Motown

Motown, the most successful black-owned American record company, was founded in 1960 in Detroit by Berry Gordy, Jr. Derived from "Motor Town." The name also denoted the company's musical style, which featured unusual song structures, heavy rhythms, and large orchestras. Live performances by Motown artists required carefully controlled choreography, set routines, and elaborate consumes and grooming, to produce what was in effect a Motown-style package.

 

The Motown formula created a number of stars during the 1960s. Including Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye, and Diana Ross and the Supremes; in the 1970s. The Jackson Five and in the 1980s, Lionel Richie. At the peak of its success, Motown represented the best of mass-produced, black-derived pop music. Although its later productions were less inspired and more obviously the products of a musical assembly line. Motown was largely responsible for introducing the sounds of contemporary black music to a large white audience.