Motown Research Papers

Motown Records was founded by Berry Gordy in Detroit, Michigan. Detroit was the motor city and that is where “Motown” Records came from. Berry Gordy used $800 from money he scraped up from his family members to make this possible. Motown Records was an R&B record label that became hit. He mainly signed African-American singers and he would shape them up in a way that they would be accepted by the white audience.

Most of the Motown musicians grew up in Detroit. Most artist would describe Motown records as very “roomy.” Motown records was in a black neighborhood and most of the musicians came from the city of Detroit. “One of the unique features of the Motown company was its dependence on the artistic talents of young, local black musicians.

Although, Motown did not have an impact that was obvious like Dr. King or Malcolm X, Motown still played a part. After the death of Dr. King, it was time to step the game up. It was a new rising in the black movement. Instead of the “pleasing the white people” strategy that Berry Gordy set out, his artist began to embrace their blackness. The artists began to embrace their afros and original southern language. “In 1968 and 1969 Motown spoke to the heart of young America. After his friend the Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated, Berry released the album . . . Free at Last, a collection of inspirational speeches by the slain civil-rights leader. The Temptations grew Afros and sang “Cloud Nine,” a hit single about the power of mind-altering drugs to dull the pain of living in the real world. (The song captured Motown its first Grammy Award in 1969.) Diana Ross and the Supremes tackled the issue of single motherhood with “Love Child” and “I'm Livin' in Shame.”

Smokey Robinson and the Miracles mourned the loss of America's most revered nonviolent leaders with “Abraham, Martin and John,” a song composed in honor of Abraham Lincoln, Martin Luther King Jr., and John F. Kennedy—men shot down because of their efforts for racial equality.” (Chapter 6: What's Going On." History Of Motown) It was what we would call pop culture, a certain event happened that caused a shift in music. Albums were being released from the Motown

Regardless of the success that came out Motown, it also had its ups and downs. “The irony of Motown's going on the sales block in 1988 is that black music is hotter than ever. But Motown, which virtually defined the genre in the '60s and '70s, has been beaten at its own game in recent years. The label has been bedeviled by increased competition from other labels, the exodus of some of its biggest acts and an inability to develop new stars.” (The Sale Of Motown Marks End Of An Era) The downfall was not an unusual one. As we all know, all good things come to end. Better things or in this case better artist came in the picture as the years went by. The golden years of Motown were now over, and new companies began to arise. “Black music has set the pace in pop through most of the '80s. But if the music is going through the roof, the same cannot be said for black-owned music enterprises” (The Sale Of Motown Marks End Of An Era) Berry Gordy did not create black music but he did set a foundation for it. HB set a foundation that companies still follow through with