Former Location -

Among Motown's early artists were Mabel John, Mary Wells, and Barrett Strong. The label's first hit was Barrett Strong's "Money (That's What I Want)" (1959), which made it to #2 on the Billboard R&B charts; its first #1 R&B hit was "Shop Around" by the Miracles in 1960. A year later, The Marvelettes scored the label's first US #1 pop hit, "Please Mr. Postman." By the mid-1960s, the label, with the help of songwriters and producers such as Robinson and Holland-Dozier-Holland, was a major force in the music industry.

From 1961 to 1971, Motown had 110 Top 10 hits from many artists including Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye, Diana Ross & The Supremes, The Temptations, The Four Tops, The Jackson 5, and Gladys Knight & the Pips.

By the late 1960s the label was billing itself as "The Sound of Young America", with its acts enjoying widespread popularity among black and white audiences alike.

The company was sold in 1988 to what was then MCA Records.