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| WORLD NEWS - WORLD NEWS - USA Motown |
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 12 Jan Motown Records marks 50th annivesary
Motown Records, the famous US record labels which popularised black music, and produced household names such as Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye, Diana Rose, is marking its 50th anniversary.
The label was originally called Tamla by the founder, Berry Gordy (pictured), a songwriter and businessman. He started the label in 1959 from a studio in his cellar after securing an $800 loan.
Today Motown Records boasts nearly 200 No 1 songs worldwide, and has produced a long line of famous groups like the Temptations and The Supremes.
Motown set out to develop black musical talent and, during the 1960s and 1970s, the label helped launch the careers of stars such as Smokey Robinson and Michael Jackson.
Gordy changed the label's name to Motown because he likened the label's promoting of black artists to an automobile assembly line that transformed plain metal frames into gleaming motorcars.
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