Motown Museum unveils first interior renderings of expansion space; work to start in spring

Brian McCollum, Detroit Free Press
Updated ·3 min read

Construction on the third, final and biggest phase of the Motown Museum’s $65 million expansion is set to start in the spring, museum officials announced.

New renderings, unveiled during a private event Wednesday night at the Roostertail, give the first glimpse inside the coming exhibit space, part of a 40,000-square-foot structure that will rise behind Hitsville, U.S.A., on Detroit’s West Grand Boulevard.

Motown Museum chairwoman and CEO Robin Terry detailed a pair of exhibits to be housed in the new building — what she called two of many more to come:

  • “The Motown Atmosphere” will be an immersive, back-in-time attraction that places visitors among images and audio of Motown artists. The circular room will feature illuminated photos and the voices of figures such as Berry Gordy Jr. and Smokey Robinson.

  • “The Backstage Lounge” is billed as the museum’s audio repository, including a listenable collection of every track in Motown's copious song catalog and curated interviews with Hitsville figures sharing stories from behind the scenes. "Our entire body of alumni will be represented in this space," Terry said.

New renderings portray the next phase in the Motown Museum’s $65 million expansion project. The images were unveiled during an event at the Roostertail in Detroit on Wednesday, Oct. 4, 2023.
New renderings portray the next phase in the Motown Museum’s $65 million expansion project. The images were unveiled during an event at the Roostertail in Detroit on Wednesday, Oct. 4, 2023.

"I'm very proud of where the exhibit design is going for this museum," Terry said. "It is powerful."

Construction had been slated to begin this summer, but was delayed following $10 million in federal funding secured by U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow in late 2022 and administered by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). That triggered what Terry called “required and rigorous HUD environmental approvals,” which are underway now.

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The Motown Museum has raised $59 million toward the $65 million goal, Terry said Wednesday.

The Wednesday event drew Motown alumni, museum supporters and donors — including some who had traveled from across the country — for a lively party at the Roostertail, the Motown family’s riverside social spot since the early 1960s.

Terry called the reception "a family meeting," held to give an update on expansion progress.

New renderings portray the next phase in the Motown Museum’s $65 million expansion project. The images were unveiled during an event at the Roostertail in Detroit on Wednesday, Oct. 4, 2023.
New renderings portray the next phase in the Motown Museum’s $65 million expansion project. The images were unveiled during an event at the Roostertail in Detroit on Wednesday, Oct. 4, 2023.

Guests included the Temptations’ Otis Williams, a night before the Tempts' co-headlining gig with the Four Tops at the Fox Theatre — the groups' first show together at the downtown venue in more than 50 years.

The evening also included an appearance by Vivian Pickard (Pickard Group) and Reggie Van Lee (AlixPartners), who spearhead the Motown Museum's National Legacy Council. The team oversees the museum's nationwide outreach, championing the nonprofit institution and its fundraising efforts.

"This is not just a local museum — this is an international museum," Pickard said.

Motown Museum chairwoman and CEO Robin Terry, center, is joined onstage by Otis Williams of the Temptations, right, and Duke Fakir Jr. during a donor event at the Roostertail in Detroit on Oct. 4, 2023.
Motown Museum chairwoman and CEO Robin Terry, center, is joined onstage by Otis Williams of the Temptations, right, and Duke Fakir Jr. during a donor event at the Roostertail in Detroit on Oct. 4, 2023.

The Motown Museum's expansion project was announced in 2016, originally with a fundraising target of $50 million. That figure eventually rose to $65 million as plans were fine-tuned and construction costs increased, particularly after the COVID-19 pandemic.

The first phase of construction, an educational and artist development space called Hitsville Next, conjoined three houses next to the main museum building and opened in 2021.

The second phase, which included a new plaza and restoration work on the historic Hitsville house, was completed last year.

Ultimately, said Terry, the museum's expansion and programming initiatives can help "restore Detroit" as the "epicenter of great music, the best music."

Artists from the Motown Museum's Hitsville Next program perform during the museum's donor gala at the Roostertail in Detroit on Oct. 4, 2023.
Artists from the Motown Museum's Hitsville Next program perform during the museum's donor gala at the Roostertail in Detroit on Oct. 4, 2023.

Wednesday's event was capped by a colorful series of performances from Hitsville Next's cast of artists, who donned vintage outfits for crisp renditions of songs by the Supremes ("Stop! In the Name of Love"), Stevie Wonder ("Uptight"), Four Tops ("Reach Out I'll Be There"), Martha and the Vandellas ("Dancing in the Street"), Marvin Gaye-Tammi Terrell ("Ain't No Mountain High Enough") and the Temptations ("Get Ready").

Contact Detroit Free Press music writer Brian McCollum: 313-223-4450 or bmccollum@freepress.com.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Motown Museum unveils first interior renderings of expansion space