Huey Lewis

Born Hugh Anthony Cregg III and raised in Marin County, California, Huey Lewis was surrounded by the 1950s counterculture, including notable Beat poets that had a major influence on his style. He attended boarding school in New Jersey, where he created his signature sound on the harmonica, and after graduation, hitchhiked throughout Europe playing music. After playing in college bands, and the notable country rock band Clover, he formed his own band which would become Huey Lewis and the News. 

Huey Lewis and the News rocketed into the Top 40 with their second album Picture This, but it was their 1983 album, Sports, that entrenched them in rock history. Sports became a #1 hit in 1984, eventually going multiplatinum and yielding hit singles such as  “Heart and Soul,” “The Heart of Rock and Roll,” “I Want a New Drug,” and “If This is It.” The band was awarded a Grammy, and their #1 hit song, “The Power of Love,” which was recorded for the blockbuster film Back to the Future (in which Lewis cameoed), was nominated for an Academy Award. Huey Lewis and the News also performed on the iconic charity single, “We Are the World,” along with other music superstars of the time.

In 2018, Lewis revealed that he had been diagnosed with Ménière’s disease, a hearing disorder that can cause vertigo, tinnitus, and difficulty discerning sounds. For decades it had only affected one ear, but in January 2018, his left ear collapsed. The condition made the music that had been at the center of his life sound so distorted that it left him unable to perform. After determining that the condition may be permanent, the band released their first album in 17 years, Weather, a collection of recordings they had been accumulating before Lewis’s hearing deteriorated. 

Now, Lewis puts his talent for performing to work as a compelling keynote speaker. In his talks, he shares intimate stories of the personal and professional obstacles he has faced, and how overcoming them has not only made him more resilient, but were key to his success.

His cameo in Back to the Future led Lewis to other acting roles including as Vern Miller in Robert Altman’s Short Cuts and Ricky Dean in Duets. He also had parts on television shows such as One Tree Hill, The King of Queens, The Blacklist, and alongside Betty White on Hot in Cleveland. He currently lives on a ranch near Stevensville, Montana.

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