About

Dr. Margena A. Christian, Ed.D., is the retired Director of Internships, Undergraduate Studies, and a Senior Lecturer in English at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) where she was a founding faculty member of the Professional Writing minor. Her research interests focus on the intersections of the role of the media in education, Black popular culture and historical inquiry. At the Research 1 institution, the distinguished lecturer was chosen by the UIC Chancellor’s Committee on the Status of Blacks (CCSB) as a Black History Maker for 2021.

Dr. Christian is the author of 2018's Empire: The House That John H. Johnson Built (The Life & Legacy of Pioneering Publishing Magnate). The media scholar is a former Senior Editor and Senior Writer with the pioneering, African American monthly EBONY magazine. She is the only editor in the history of Johnson Publishing Company (JPC) to have written for EBONY, JET, EBONY Man, EBONY South Africa, EBONY Fashion Fair and EBONY.com. Dr. Christian compiled the history for EBONY Fashion Fair, JPC's pioneering traveling fashion show, and was the last editor at JPC to have worked with late publishing magnate John H. Johnson, founder of JPC, before leaving the company in 2014.

Commissioned articles written by Dr. Christian about John H. Johnson, Eunice W. Johnson, Lerone Bennett Jr., Bo Diddley, Tupac Shakur, Christopher "Notorious B.I.G." Wallace, Donna Summer, Aaliyah, Luther Vandross, Ossie Davis, and Della Reese are on American National Biography (Oxford University Press). Excerpts of JET magazine stories she authored have been used in academic textbooks, including Ideas & Details: A Guide to College Writing, Making Media Work: Cultures of Management in the Entertainment Industries and in Magazine Writing.

Her current book is titled It's No Wonder: The Life and Times of Motown's Legendary Songwriter Sylvia Moy. The historical corrective is about the Songwriters Hall of Fame inductee and Motown's first certified female in-house songwriter and producer, who helped to revive a teen Stevie Wonder's early career with hit songs such as Uptight (Everything's Alright), I Was Made to Love Her, and My Cherie Amour (Da Capo/Hachette, February 10, 2026).

Featured Work

It's No Wonder: The Life and Times of Motown's Legendary Songwriter Sylvia Moy

2026
Sylvia Moy on cover of book

Biography of Motown's first female certified in-house songwriter and producer noted for Stevie Wonder classics like "My Cheri Amour" and "Uptight."

Imagine a world without the music of Stevie Wonder. A world without hits like “I Was Made to Love Her” and “Shoo-Be-Doo-Be-Doo-Da-Day.” That’s the world we would live in had it not been for Sylvia Moy, a woman whose legacy has been carefully tucked away within the annals of music history—until now.

It’s No Wonder examines the groundbreaking career of the pioneer who battled sexism and broke down barriers to become Motown’s first certified female in-house songwriter and producer. As the lone woman in a room full of men, the odds were stacked against Moy from the start. Amidst racial strife at the height of the Civil Rights Movement, most African American women who were allowed into the music industry could only dream of a career as a singer. Nevertheless, the Detroit native found unprecedented success as both a songwriter and producer. In addition to single-handedly saving Stevie Wonder’s early career at Motown, Moy solidified herself as one of the label’s most prolific composers, penning many of Wonder’s classic hits as well as songs for other Motown acts like “Honey Chile,” “It Takes Two,” “This Old Heart of Mine (Is Weak For You),” “My Baby Loves Me,” “(We’ve Got) Honey Love,” “Forget Me Not,” “With a Child’s Heart,” and countless others.

Meticulously researched, fiercely feminist, and told with the cooperation of Moy’s estate, It’s No Wonder is a historical corrective that restores Sylvia Moy to her rightful place at the forefront of music history.

Other Works

  • Wally, Where'd You Get Those Glasses? My Life Through the Lens of Parliament, Pendergrass and Prince

    2019

  • Empire: The House That John H. Johnson Built (The Life & Legacy of Pioneering Publishing Magnate)

    2018

Press and Media Mentions