"I was a failure at everything until I was, like, 29 years old," Berry Gordy says. "I never gave up. I just, I knew there was something that I had.”

Persistence certainly paid off for the young Gordy, who went on to establish the Motown Records label, and in so doing, helped create a sound for a generation as well as scores of top-10 hits. In an interview with CBS Mornings host and anchor Nate Burleson, Gordy, now 92 and one of this year's five Kennedy Center Honorees, shared memories of working with some of Motown's iconic artists.

Reflecting on working with Diana Ross, Gordy recalls telling Ross that life in music would be demanding, but Ross was not to be deterred. "Diana Ross was the epitome of an artist that you might want, or dream about — or pray for," Gordy tells Burleson. "When I told her about the world of show business, and what she had to do, and she just told me, 'Berry, if you think it, I can do it.'"

Gordy also confirmed that he was initially reluctant to release Marvin Gaye's "What's Going On," considering the artist's trajectory to that point in his career. "He wanted to do this thing about police brutality. I'm saying, "Marvin, you know, you've got a wonderful career'," Gordy recalls. "But he said, 'Look, B.G., you got to let me do this. I want to waken the minds of mankind. I've got to, you've got to let me do it.'"

Looking back on his life, Gordy says he is thrilled at what he has accomplished. "There's no limit to how big your dream is," he says. "Most people say the sky is the limit, but we say it's not the limit. It's the first step."

Watch the complete video from CBS at the top of this page.

This week's Time Machine episode goes back to 1964 — a year of big Motown hits from the Temptations, Mary Wells, and the Supremes. Hear that episode on Tuesday, Dec. 21, at 10 p.m. Central on The Current.

The 44th Annual Kennedy Center Honors special airs Wednesday, Dec. 22, at 8 p.m. Central on CBS.

Gallery

Fullscreen SlidePrevious Slide

1 of 2

2 of 2

Next Slide