Were there any white Motown artists?

Were there any white Motown artists?

Reba Jeanette Smith (February 1, 1928 – February 17, 2001), known professionally as Debbie Dean, was an American singer who was the first white solo artist to record for Motown.

Who are the most famous Motown artists?

Motown’s 7 most successful music artists, from Stevie Wonder to The Jackson 5

  • Smokey Robinson & the Miracles. AP.
  • Stevie Wonder. Spotify.
  • The Supremes. AP.
  • Marvin Gaye. AP.
  • The Temptations. AP.
  • The Four Tops. AP.
  • The Jackson 5. AP.

Who was the first white band signed to Motown Records?

the Rustix

Is Motown only black?

Arriving at the height of the civil rights movement, Motown was a black-owned, black-centered business that gave white America something they just could not get enough of — joyous, sad, romantic, mad, groovin’, movin’ music. (See an audio slideshow of five of Motown’s best tunes.)

What city is known as Motown?

Motown, in full Motown Record Corporation, also called Hitsville, recording company founded by Berry Gordy, Jr., in Detroit, Michigan, U.S., in January 1959 that became one of the most successful Black-owned businesses and one of the most influential independent record companies in American history.

What is Motown style?

Motown, or the Motown sound, is a style of rhythm and blues music named after the record company Motown in Detroit, where teams of songwriters and musicians produced material for girl groups, boy bands, and solo singers during the 1960s and early 1970s.

What year did Motown start?

January 12, 1959, Detroit, MI

Does Motown still exist?

Motown, as we’ve come to know it, does not exist anymore. It appears to not be a label, but more of a “label group,” now paired with Universal. We know that Berry Gordy sold Motown way back when, but at least then Motown was still a functioning entity.

Did Motown sell out to white America?

When Gordy founded his Tamla label in 1959, he set out to achieve what Brunswick should have been doing for Jackie Wilson: make pure, beautiful soul music and sell it to white America as well as the Black people who had created this dazzling new sound. Gordy set certain standards for his artists.

When did Motown end?

1972

Who was the first artist Berry Gordy signed?

Mary Wells

Why is it called Tamla Motown?

Realising that the way to make money was to produce his own records for his own label, in 1959 he founded Tamla Records (taking the name from the hit Debbie Reynolds film Tammy. Tamla would soon be joined by Motown – a cannibalisation of ‘Motor Town’, a nickname for Detroit).

Who founded Tamla Motown?

Berry Gordy

Who shaped the sound of Motown?

Mickey Stevenson

What made Motown successful?

A key element in Gordy’s strategy was to make his records appeal to EVERYONE, which is how and why he came up with the slogan – the Sound of Young America. While ‘the sound’ of Motown appeared to be simple, it was pop music of an incredibly sophisticated kind.

What is an essential element of a Motown song?

Contrary to popular opinion, the Motown sound had a grittier side, one brought out simply by accenting the horn and rhythm sections. The bass guitar may have been the most basic element of the Motown sound, even burbling under a song as sweetly strung and sung as this one.

How does Motown differ from soul?

Motown Records tended to produce pop-crossover songs that were and are still popular with both black and white audiences. Soul music is a slower variant of R&B music, much influenced by Gospel music. Soul features dramatic arrangements and very-melismatic vocals. Motown is the nickname of Detroit, Michigan.

Is Motown a soul?

The Motown sound, which came of age in the 1960s, must also be considered soul music.