When Motown moved to Hollywood

To this day, Motown Records is still heavily associated with Detroit, Michigan. But in the early 1970s, the music empire made a shocking and strategic move — leaving Detroit for Los Angeles.

When Motown moved, a new legacy took shape. How did the move affect the music label? And what was gained and lost in the process?

The Jackson Five, one of Motown's biggest acts, photographed here in the U.K. in 1972, included the Jackson brothers (from left to right) Jermaine, Tito, Jackie, Michael and Marlon (Randy, who would join the group when it became the Jacksons later in the decade, is at the back).

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LAist's daily news program AirTalk, which airs on 89.3 FM, spoke with Motown historian Adam White about what the label's move to L.A. hoped to accomplish, and how it affected both its legacy in Detroit and the artists there who helped build it.

From Motor City to City of Angels

Motown Records made its permanent move to Los Angeles in 1972, but this was far from a sudden decision. The rumors had been swirling for some time. In the early 1960s, Motown's founder Berry Gordy opened an office in Los Angeles.

"It became apparent that he wanted to move the company there because he had ambitions," said White, who authored the book Motown: The Sound Of Young America. Those ambitions, he said were directly tied to something no other city could offer — Hollywood, and access to the film industry.

Even while the label still operated out of Detroit, Gordy started to build a presence in L.A. He bought a house in the Hollywood Hills in 1968, perhaps a foretelling of the permanent move to follow years later.

But how would a complete and permanent move impact the record label and its artists?

Widescreen ambitions

With the help of his colleagues, Gordy discovered a young and talented singer by the name of Brenda Holloway who grew up in Watts.

She would go on to record one of the earliest hits recorded in L.A. for Motown Records — "Every Little Bit Hurts." The song was a promising start for the label trying to make it in Hollywood.

At the same time, Gordy saw stars like Stevie Wonder and The Supremes begin to star in movies and TV specials. He began to realize that getting Motown stars into film and TV was important.

"I think it really was the television shows that some of his artists were doing that opened his eyes and began to really have an impact on the way the company was operating," White said.

"There was always a sense that Los Angeles represented a good base for Motown, a good talent source," White added. That talent source included the town's best writers as well.

In 1965, Motown signed L.A.-based songwriter Jimmy Webb to the publishing arm of the label. Webb went on to write top songs for the The Supremes. Slowly but surely, one thing was crystal clear to Gordy: access and resources in Los Angeles were undeniable.

Making a splash

The move seemed like a logical one. When Motown Records touched down in Los Angeles, the change was swift. Breakout star Diana Ross starred in Motown Production’s Lady Sings the Blues, the company's first feature film.

But the move wasn't without growing pains, White said.

"The most significant aspect of it, of course, was leaving Detroit [and] leaving the musicians who had created the sound that was indeed the sound of young America that was so memorable and had such an impact," White said.

Motown closed down its Detroit offices for good in 1972, the same year it moved to L.A., which marked the end of the era in which Motown rose to prominence. "There was certainly some bad blood around that situation. Most of the musicians did not move," White said.

Motown's sound changed when they left Detroit, but what they lost in a unified sound they gained in a flurry of remarkable West Coast musicians.

William King and Lionel Richie of The Commodores, a top Motown act, at The Brill Building in New York City, photographed in 1976.

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The sound of the West

Right before Motown's permanent move in 1972, Gordy created Motown's West Coast offshoot label, MoWest. This was one of the many subsidiaries of Motown Records that was created over the years.

"MoWest as a label didn't do particularly well," White said.

The up and coming group The Commodores were signed to MoWest at the very beginning, but the label struggled to produce a hit single and eventually folded. But the California dream was already alive and well.

"When you move your corporate headquarters across the country, a lot of the ordinary stuff gets affected," White said. "The stars? Not necessarily."

Over time, Stevie Wonder, Ross and many of the other big Motown starts moved to Los Angeles. Even Smokey Robinson, who White said "used to joke to Barry that he wouldn't do it because he was afraid of earthquakes."

From 1972 onward, Gordy's Motown ambitions forged ahead and so did his dreams of reaching as wide an audience as possible.

Motown artists Stevie Wonder (center left), Michael Jackson (center right), and Lionel Richie (far right) pose with singer Dionne Warwick (far left) and record producer Quincy Jones (center) after the 28th Grammy Awards at the Shrine Auditorium on February 25, 1986.

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Los Angeles Public Library

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Today, Motown Records is owned by Universal Music Group, but it's still based here in L.A. and churning out music. Its slate of current artists include multi-time Grammy winners Erykah Badu and Ne-Yo, as well as Long Beach's very own Vince Staples.

Listen to the conversation