What was the Motown effect and why was it important to society culture?

The Social Impact of Motown Music in American Culture By assembling an impressive roster of talented artists, Motown managed to break down the social and racial barriers and become the most important independent record label of the early 1960s in the history of pop music.

What is so important about Motown music?

Its name, a portmanteau of motor and town, has become a nickname for Detroit, where the label was originally headquartered. Motown played an important role in the racial integration of popular music as an African American-owned label that achieved crossover success….Motown.

What was unique about the Motown sound?

The Motown Sound owes some of its uniqueness to the reverb effect created by pumping tracks through the label’s Echo Chamber, in the days before computers and synthesizers. True to his commitment to quality, Berry Gordy, Jr. would not slap a Motown label on every song his producers offered.

How does Motown influenced music today?

Sixty years on, Motown’s classic catalogue remains ubiquitous and influential: forming a blueprint for modern soul and pop successes, from girl groups to hit singer-songwriters; sampled on countless hip hop and dance anthems and covered by acts of every genre.

How did Motown music help further the civil rights movement?

It was wildly popular. Though the songs were not overtly political, Motown’s popularity contributed to the Civil Rights Movement by achieving crossover success. Thanks to its popularity, African-American songs and faces entered the homes of every American in the country, regardless of race.

Which phrase best describes the role of the Motown studio musicians?

In which city was Motown Records located? Which phrase best describes the role of the Motown studio musicians? produce a consistent, distinctive sound for different Motown artists. Which Motown house band played with hundreds of artists but never had its own hit record?

How did Motown music change?

Fifty years ago, when black musicians had a difficult time breaking into a music business that was divided by race, Motown changed everything. Catchy dance tunes blending R&B, gospel, swing and pop from Berry Gordy’s Detroit-based record company caught on nationwide.

What was the main strategy used by Motown Records to promote black musicians?

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.

What best describes the Motown Sound?

The Sound of Motown A strong, steady four-beat drum tempo. Frequent use of strings and horns. Pop vocal stylings embellished with gospel-influenced chorals. Complex chord changes and sophisticated melodies.

What was the Motown charm school designed for?

From 1964 to 1969, Powell ran Motown’s in-house “charm school,” a mandatory course of instruction in proper sitting, standing, eating, dressing, chatting with fans, responding to reporters and every other act of public deportment that might make or break a Motown star.

Why is Motown so influential to American culture?

Why is the Motown sound so special?

The ‘Motown Sound’ is unmistakeable for its glorious melodies and killer hooks; the Motown spirit – as embodied by the vivacious, tenacious Gordy himself (now 89) – is exceptional, even if the label is no longer independent (it’s currently part of Universal Records).

What does Motown stand for in history?

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.

How did Motown change America?

Sixty years ago, Berry Gordy set up the hit factory of Motown. Arwa Haider looks at how an independent record label created one of the most influential sounds of the 20th Century. On 12 January 1959, the music sensation that changed America – and the world beyond it – was set in motion.

What is motmotown best known for?

Motown, recording company founded by Berry Gordy, Jr., in Detroit, Michigan, U.S., in 1959 that became one of the most successful Black-owned businesses and one of the most influential independent record companies in American history. It gave its name to the hugely popular style of soul music that it created.