HAUPPAUGE, NEW YORK, August, 17, 2023 — As a founding member of the legendary soul and R&B group, the Four Tops, Duke Fakir’s music career has spanned more than seven decades. The popular vocal quartet helped define the Motown sound of the 1960s and has entertained millions of fans across the globe with their rich harmonies and classics such as “Reach Out, I’ll Be There” and "Baby I Need Your Loving."
Given Duke’s amazing longevity as one of the group’s lead singers still entertaining audiences today, it’s hard to imagine that he ever struggled to stay in tune and on pitch. But as Duke relates, the gradual hearing loss he experienced for many years made it increasingly more difficult.
“While singing on stage I found that I couldn’t hear myself completely, which is critical to staying on key and singing properly. The progression was slow so it took me a while to realize that something needed to be done about it,” Duke says.
One option was wearing in-ear monitors like his fellow bandmates to focus only on the voices and the drum beat, “but I’m old-school,” Duke emphasizes. “I like to hear the entire stage while I’m performing—including the horns and rhythm section.” The best solution for Duke, therefore, was a hearing aid. At age 87, he now wears the Moment hearing aids from Widex and feels more connected to the music than he has in years.
“The Widex Moment hearing aids are the greatest thing since candy,” Duke remarks. “For the first time in a very long time, I can truly hear myself, my inflections, my tone. They’ve upped my level of professionalism to the point where members of the group are noticing a huge improvement. Recently, one of them said, ‘Wow, Duke! Your pitch is brilliant!’
Four years ago, Duke was fit with Widex’s previous generation of hearing aids, Widex Evoke, by Felix Cruz — hearing instrument specialist and owner of Cruz Hearing Aid Service in Michigan. Duke was immediately impressed with the sound quality and the experience has only improved since upgrading to Widex Moment.
“When Duke first came to us he said music just wasn’t sounding the way it used to, but he showed immediate improvement wearing Widex Evoke,” Cruz said. “Now, with Widex Moment, he’s taken sound quality to a new level. He’s back to hearing music the way it should sound. For musicians like Duke, there’s no better choice. I’ve personally worn Widex for seven years and have tried every hearing aid under the sun. For me, no one can match the Widex sound. It’s purer, cleaner and richer — all of which are appreciated by musicians and music lovers everywhere.”
For Duke, the advantages of Widex Moment aren’t just musical. “No matter where I go or what I’m doing, they help tremendously,” he says. “My wife likes to talk quite a bit and now I can hear her more distinctly. She hates repeating herself, so she appreciates being able to say things to me only once.”
Given his roots in the music business, it’s no surprise that Duke also listens to music for relaxation. While he may have missed certain elements of a song in the past due to hearing problems, now every lyric and instrument is well defined and clear, “especially when I use the app to focus on the music rather than ambient sounds,” Duke reports.
Indeed, whether he’s on stage or relaxing at home, Duke takes full advantage of the various settings available through the Widex Moment companion app; for example, choosing to boost treble tones or bass tones, or focusing only on conversations while blocking out background noise.
“The experience is so personalized and easy to control—like having my own sound studio,” he raves. “Plus, they are so comfortable to wear and keep a charge all day. I never need to worry about charging them until I go to bed.”
At the top of his game, thanks in part to a renewed sense of hearing, Duke has no intentions of slowing down. “I’m still able to enjoy and excel at something that’s been a huge part of my life for 70 years! The Widex Moment hearing aids work like magic and have changed my life!”
From the melodies on stage, to fan interactions to something as ordinary as water running from a faucet, thanks to Widex Moment hearing aids, it’s now all music to Duke’s ears.
