Motown Records
US label Motown Records, part of Capitol Music Group/UMG, whose Motown Gospel Africa division signs South African gospel artists directly.
- Based in
- United States
- Founded
- 1959
- Founder
- Berry Gordy Jr.
- Website
- motownrecords.com
Motown Records is the American record label founded by Berry Gordy Jr. in Detroit in 1959. It has operated since 2012-2014 as part of Capitol Music Group, a division of Universal Music Group, following UMG’s acquisition of EMI. Ethiopia Habtemariam is Chairwoman and CEO.
The label’s African footprint runs through Motown Gospel Africa, a division of Universal Music Africa, which has signed South African gospel acts directly: Joyous Celebration in 2019 and HLE in 2022, the latter Motown Gospel’s first direct global signing. Motown’s catalogue was also named in Universal Music Group’s November 2023 licensing agreement with Ethiopia’s Sewasew Multimedia, which brought UMG labels, including Motown, into the Ethiopian market through Sewasew’s streaming app.
Motown Records itself is not African-owned or African-headquartered. It belongs in this directory because Motown Gospel Africa is a named division with a direct African roster, not a licensing credit alone.
