[6][9] Prominent members have included Verdine White, Philip Bailey, Ralph Johnson, Larry Dunn, Al McKay, Roland Bautista, Robert Brookins, Sonny Emory, Freddie Ravel, Ronnie Laws, Sheldon Reynolds and Andrew Woolfolk.

[10] The band is known for its kalimba sound, dynamic horn section, energetic and elaborate stage shows, and the contrast between Bailey's falsetto and Maurice's tenor vocals.

[11] In 1969, Maurice White, a former session drummer for Chess Records and former member of the Ramsey Lewis Trio, joined two friends in Chicago, Wade Flemons and Don Whitehead, as a songwriting team.

[32] Al Rudis of The Chicago Sun-Times wrote "Their second album, The Need of Love again displays some unusual music that might be called avant garde were it not so melodic and entrancing.

The nine-member group mixes excellent jazzy instrumentals with harmony singing and chanting, some big band sounds and some free-form parts as well as solid soul beats.

[40] Ovid Goode Jr. of The Los Angeles Daily News declared "Last Days and Time, sprouts forth with a fresh sound that sets it apart from many of the ho-hum aggregations around today.

[48] Vince Aletti of Rolling Stone declared "Been having a lot of music dreams lately but this one's not too surprising since I've been playing the Earth, Wind & Fire album pretty constantly for the past week, certainly beyond all expectations".

[49] Tony Palermo of the Pittsburgh Press wrote "Folks like to compare this bunch with War, but the first difference that hits you with E,W&F's brand of jazz-rhythm and blues is the smoothness of Jessica Cleaves' vocal work.

"[138] James Johnson of the Evening Standard scribed "On I Am..the band's flashy staccato rhythms, their smooth melodies and precise production adds up to another majestic album".

[169] Tony Prince of the Daily Mirror also called Powerlight the album of the week exclaiming "The worst you can say about Earth, Wind & Fire are their high standards of arrangements are predictable.

[213] Roe Hoeburger of Rolling Stone found "Bailey's falsetto sounds as pure and piercing as ever, but he often needs White's sly, low counterpunch to bring him back from the stratosphere.

Artists such as Phoebe Snow, Roberta Flack, Cyndi Lauper, Patti LaBelle, Animotion, Atlantic Starr, and Anne Murray appeared on the album.

Phyl Garland of Stereo Review wrote "with this set of skillfully shaped songs, White has positioned Earth, Wind & Fire to move into the next century".

Artists such as Steven Tyler of Aerosmith, Boyz II Men, Smokey Robinson, Isaac Hayes, Michael Jackson, Eric Clapton and Tom Morello of Rage Against the Machine posted messages on the site for White.

On March 6, 2000, EWF was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame by hip hop artist Lil' Kim to a standing ovation during the 15th annual ceremony held at New York's Waldorf-Astoria Hotel.

Maurice, Bailey, Verdine, and Johnson, as well as former EWF members Al McKay, Larry Dunn, Woolfolk, Fred White and Johnny Graham attended the ceremony.

[8][14][304] On February 8, 2004, Earth, Wind Fire performed in a tribute to funk, along with Parliament Funkadelic, OutKast, and Robert Randolph and the Family Band, at the 46th annual Grammy Awards held at the Staples Center, Los Angeles, California.

At first EWF sang "Shining Star", with Outkast's request collaborated on "The Way You Move" and Robert Randolph and the Family Band then performed their new single "I Need More Love".

At the 57th Primetime Emmy Awards held on September 18, 2005, at Los Angeles' Shrine Auditorium, the band performed as the opening act with The Black Eyed Peas.

Am from the Black Eyed Peas, Big Boi from OutKast, Kelly Rowland from Destiny's Child, plus Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, Raphael Saadiq and others.

[328] On February 11, 2007, EWF performed "Runaway Love" alongside Mary J. Blige and Ludacris at the 49th Grammy Awards held at Los Angeles's Staples Center.

[329] Interpretations: Celebrating the Music of Earth, Wind & Fire, an album featuring cover versions of EWF's material, was released in March 2007 on Stax Records.

Executively produced by Maurice, the LP featured artists such as Chaka Khan, Kirk Franklin, Lalah Hathaway, Mint Condition, Dwele, Meshell Ndegeocello, and Angie Stone.

"[366] Elias Leight of Popmatters also wrote "Now, Then & Forever has all the old colors and grooves, an impeccable rhythm section, prominent guitars, and indomitable horns that trace and re-trace motifs, dancing rings around everything.

[379] Randy Lewis of the Los Angeles Times gave the album a 3 out of five stars rating and wrote "The venerable R&B band does what it does best here: lays on the hard and heavy funk with fat horn accents and thick rhythmic riffs to propel a batch of time-tested holiday favorites.

[399] The band later embarked on a joint summer tour with Carlos Santana and made a guest appearance on the Isley Brothers' September 2022 album Make Me Say It Again, Girl.

[405][13] EWF has influenced artists such as Alicia Keys,[406] Usher,[407] Janet Jackson, [408] will.i.am,[409] Janelle Monáe,[410] Mary J. Blige,[411] Prince,[412] Kelly Rowland,[413] India Arie,[264] Jon Secada,[414] and Wyclef Jean.

[264] They have also been influential to musical acts like Angie Stone,[415] Patrice Rushen,[416] Pharrell Williams,[417] The All-American Rejects,[418] Nelly[419] Teena Marie,[420] Musiq Soulchild,[264] Solange Knowles,[421] Babyface,[422] Taylor Dayne,[423] Will Gregory of Goldfrapp,[424] Outkast,[425] and Gloria Estefan.

[436] The band has also influenced musical acts such as Bonnie Raitt,[437] Mark Ronson,[438] Erykah Badu,[439] Jamie Foxx,[440] Common, [441] Patrick Stump of Fall Out Boy,[442] Lalah Hathaway,[443] Amy Winehouse,[444] and Meghan Trainor.

earned an NAACP Image Award nomination in the category of Outstanding Independent Motion Picture[449][450] Hot Feet, a jukebox musical based on the Earth, Wind & Fire song catalog, opened on Broadway in April 2006.