ABSTRACT
While based in Detroit, Motown affected the careers of some of the most famous artists in the history of popular music: Diana Ross & the Supremes, Smokey Robinson and the Miracles, Martha & the Vandellas, the Temptations, Four Tops, Marvelettes, Mary Wells, Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye, and others. Through their voices and with the talents of esteemed musicians known as the Funk Brothers, Motown’s writers and producers gave the world some of the most memorable songs ever recorded. They were songs people could relate to: upbeat, with elements of gospel, pop, and jazz fused and packaged in slick musical arrangements-tailored within the well-coordinated outfi ts their artists wore when they performed live. Stage routines were choreographed to project an air of “class” and “sophistication,” very much within the range of acceptability for mainstream audiences, but with a subtle edge that spoke “young,” “cool,” “Black,” “urban,” and “Detroit.” And most of Motown’s personnel were young Blacks born or raised in Detroit. Motown would advertise its music as “The Sound of Young America,” a slogan consistent with the ages of company personnel and with the large number of young Americans buying Motown’s records. 2
Before Motown, the music industry had no history of a Black-owned company seriously competing with White-owned companies on a national level. Motown’s record sales and numbers of hit records were competitive with top independent labels and major labels in both R&B and pop categories. 3 Motown produced a product that, although delivered through Black voices and faces, crossed over into the White market at an unprecedented level of success.
