Berry Gordy is going to take Motown to Broadway!
The show based on Gordy’s life is indeed still in motion, with new announcements stating that the musical will feature music hits by the likes of Diana Ross and the Supremes, Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye and Michael Jackson, among others; also the Musical will open on Broadway in spring 2013 at a Nederlander theater to be announced, produced by Kevin McCollum (producer of such shows as Rent, Avenue Q and In the Heights – all 3 Tony Award-winning musicals by the way, so we could say that Gordy’s work is in good hands here), Sony Music Entertainment chairman and CEO Doug Morris, and of course Gordy himself, with Charles Randolph-Wright (an African American by the way, who has his own extensive background as a writer, director, producer for film, TV and theater) directing.
“Broadway is the pinnacle of live theater and provides a challenging and exciting opportunity to tell my story and share the magic of Motown,“- Berry Gordy.
Here are some interesting facts about Motown.
- The Beatles were hugely influenced by Motown and recorded cover versions of four Motown tracks.
- Motown was the first record label to run its own ‘charm school’ for artists who were taught how to perform.
- In 1966 Berry Gordy refused to sign the Jackson Five because he didn’t want to work with any more children. It was Gladys Knight who persuaded him to change his mind a year later.
- Motown was the first American music label owned by an African-American
- Motown was the first music label to successfully market black artists to white mainstream audiences
- Responsible for discovering, mentoring, and perfecting a number of American popular music’s most influential and successful artists
- Created a “charm school” to ensure that its acts were uniformly palatable to the mainstream.
- Employed the legendary musicians known as The Funk Brothers and the songwriting team of Holland-Dozier-Holland
Make sure to read: Marvin Gaye’s Songs Still Resonates With Modern Day
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Listen the playlist below of Motown hits.
