Motown Museum

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Motown Museum

Motown Museum—home of Hitsville U.S.A.—is the original birthplace of the Motown Sound. Motown Museum is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization.
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Visit us to take a tour of Studio A inside the house that rocked the world. Founded in 1985 by Esther Gordy Edwards—former Motown Records executive and sister to Motown founder, Berry Gordy—Motown Museum is home to iconic Hitsville U.S.A., Studio A, and an extensive array of Motown artifacts, photographs, apparel and memorabilia. Our Mission: To preserve, promote and celebrate the authentic Motown

Story as a platform for others to flourish as thinkers, creators, neighbors and entrepreneurs. Our Vision: That all generations will come to know, be inspired and transformed by the Legacy, Sound and the unparalleled cultural and social impact of Motown.

06/04/2026

Motown Museum joins the musical community in mourning the passing of two icons - Commodores member Ronald LaPread and James Anthony Carmichael, a prolific Motown arranger / producer. Both LaPread and Carmichael helped craft the consistent hitmaking sound of the legendary Motown group.

When founding Commodores bassist Michael Gilbert was drafted into the army, Lionel Richie and Thomas McClary asked Ronald LaPread if he had any recommendations for a new bass player. LaPread told them he would join on bass, learning how to play the instrument by ear as he began working with the band and earning songwriting credits on multiple Commodores releases. After touring as the opening act for The Jackson 5 and signing with Motown, the Commodores were soon paired with James Anthony Carmichael, a Motown arranger / producer who also worked with artists including the Jackson 5, Supremes, Temptations, Miracles, Gladys Knight & The Pips, and Marvin Gaye.

Carmichael, dubbed “The Preacher” for leading sessions while decked out in a full three-piece suit, helped both the Commodores as a band and Lionel Richie as a solo artist create countless hit singles and albums. With LaPread, the Commodores scored 17 Top-40 hits, including the #1 Pop hits “Three Times A Lady” and “Still.” They topped the R&B charts seven times with classics such as “Easy,” “Too Hot Ta Trot,” and “Nightshift.” In 1985, Carmichael and Richie won the Grammy Award for Producer of the Year (Non-Classical) for Richie’s certified-diamond album Can’t Slow Down , containing the classic #1 hit “All Night Long (All Night).”

LaPread remained proud of the music the Commodores made together. Speaking with journalist Scott Goldfine of Truth In Rhythm, he expressed his musical love for his bandmates. “I like to play bass with those people, I like that, I want to do that,” he said. “I would do it anywhere in the world, free of charge. I wouldn’t ask for anything.” Motown Museum continues to celebrate the Commodores’ indelible contribution to the Motown legacy, and our thoughts are with James Anthony Carmichael and Ronald LaPread’s family, friends, fans, and musical collaborators.

05/19/2026

Motown Museum Presents: A sonic journey into Psychedelic Soul & experimental sound.

Saturdays 1-4 pm through September 26

Featuring:

May 16, June 6, June 20

July 11, July 25

August 15, August 29

September 12

Come and explore the sounds of Motown’s Psychedelic era, with new interpretation! Including our new Psychedelic Soul exhibition + vintage vinyl onsite at the Motown Museum shop.

Museum hours:
Wednesday - Sunday
10 am - 6 pm

05/18/2026

to the late, great Pervis Jackson, bass singer for the legendary Spinners!

As a founding member of the iconic vocal group, Jackson’s booming voice can be heard on early recordings with Harvey Fuqua and Gwen Gordy’s Tri-Phi label, their work with Motown, including “I’ll Always Love You” and “It’s A Shame,” as well as their chart-topping hits with Atlantic Records.

We celebrate Pervis Jackson’s voice as a member of the Spinners and his contribution to the Motown legacy.

05/15/2026

in 1975, Motown released the Jackson 5 album Moving Violation.

The LP was the group's last before departing Motown and changing their group name to the Jacksons. Brian and Eddie Holland of Holland/Dozier/Holland contributed to the album, which included the two hit singles "Forever Came Today" and "All I Do Is Think Of You."

"Forever Came Today" was a cover of the 1968 hit by Diana Ross & The Supremes. The song appeared on the Supremes' Reflections LP, containing early experiments by Holland/Dozier/Holland with electronic sound effects that would go on to help define a new era of Psychedelic Soul.

Explore more at our pop-up exhibit, Psychedelic Soul: A Journey Through Rhythm & Time, currently showing at The Motown Museum's Esther Gordy Edwards Centre for Excellence. Book your tickets now at motownmuseum.org.

05/13/2026

Today, Motown Museum celebrates the birthdays of two icons!

Stevie Wonder, "The 12 Year Old Genius," broke out as a child star with his jubilant hit "Fingertips." He has become one of the most influential singers, songwriters, producers, and keyboardists of all time, growing and evolving to release groundbreaking albums such as Talking Book, Innervisions, Fulfillingness' First Finale, and Songs In The Key Of Life.

Sharing Stevie's birthday is the late Mary Wells, one of Motown's earliest superstars. She helped define the Motown Sound with hits including "The One Who Really Loves You," "You Beat Me To The Punch," "Two Lovers," "Laughing Boy," and "My Guy."

Turn up the music and help us celebrate these musical legends today!

05/12/2026

"The public was our pulse," songwriter / producer Norman Whitfield said as a part of the award-winning Motown 25 television special. "The people make you ... and the people also can break you. Now, if somebody's buying two or three million records ... that is a direct indication that they like what you are doing!"

Audiences demonstrated their approval of Whitfield's experimental productions and his songs co-written with creative partner Barrett Strong. Their hits, many of which pushed the Motown Sound to evolve through an embrace of Psychedelic sounds, included classics such as "Cloud Nine" and "Papa Was A Rollin' Stone" by the Temptations, The Undisputed Truth's "Smiling Faces Sometimes," "War" by Edwin Starr, and "I Heard It Through The Grapevine" by both Gladys Knight & The Pips and Marvin Gaye.

Today, on what would have been Norman Whitfield's 86th birthday, he is in the spotlight of Motown Museum's current pop-up exhibit, "Psychedelic Soul: A Journey Through Rhythm & Time." Visitors to the exhibit at our Esther Gordy Edwards Centre for Excellence can learn about Norman Whitfield's innovative music, his socially conscious compositions, and the groundbreaking sonic effects that changed The Sound of Young America.

Book your tickets now at www.MotownMuseum.org!

05/11/2026

Today, Motown Museum celebrates singer, songwriter, and producer R. Dean Taylor on what would have been his 87th birthday.

Born in Toronto, Canada, Taylor was on his way to New York City to pitch his songs when he heard about the waves that Motown was making in the music industry. After a successful audition with Brian Holland of the Holland-Dozier-Holland songwriting/production team, he co-wrote a string of Motown classics, including "I'll Turn To Stone" by the Four Tops, "All I Need" by The Temptations, and "Love Child" by Diana Ross & The Supremes.

As a solo artist, he scored hits with "Gotta See Jane" and "Indiana Wants Me," and the Northern Soul classic "There's A Ghost In My House."

05/10/2026

Today, Motown Museum celebrates Henry Fambrough, founding member of The Spinners!

Breaking into the music industry with their hit "That's What Girls Are Made For" on Gwen Gordy and Harvey Fuqua's Tri-Phi Records label, the group joined Motown and scored hits such as "I'll Always Love You," "Truly Yours," and "It's A Shame." Moving to Atlantic Records, they helped define the suave vocal group sound of the 1970s and 80s. In 2023, Motown Museum was honored to receive a donation of uniforms from The Spinners and hosted a performance by the group for our Founders Day celebration, where they sang "That's What Girls Are Made For" and reunited with lead vocalist GC Cameron. "I used to dream about this place," Fambrough recalled of his first time entering Motown's Studio A.

Although he passed in 2024, Henry Fambrough's legacy lives on. Turn up the music and help us celebrate Henry Fambrough!

05/09/2026

Stand-Up Comedian, Actor and Producer George Lopez stopped by Motown Museum and The Esther Gordy Edwards Centre for Excellence for a tour of our new exhibition Psychedelic Soul: A Journey Through Rhythm & Time.

We were excited to welcome him and his guests, as they explored the sights and transformative sounds of Motown during 1967-1975.

Catch his comedy tour coming to a city near you!

Address

2648 W. Grand Boulevard
Detroit, MI
48208

Telephone

+13138752264

Website

http://motownmuseum.org/

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