Detroit is a city of rhythm­­, from the resonance of automated assembly to the sounds generated by passionate artists and musicians. Detroit gave the world music genres like Motown and techno, and exported world-class musicians to other genres like jazz, blues, gospel, rock and hip-hop. Detroit not only built cars and companies, but the sounds that revolutionized the world.

Why Detroit? Detroit's location in the Midwest has offered artists over the centuries a place to experiment with sounds and music concepts without following the confines of music development on the coasts. Detroit's public school system, in the early 19th century, also made music accessible to all, hiring some of the best music education professors to cultivate young, artistic minds.

Detroit also is a city of complexities and contrasts. It is a place where first-generation Americans came to Detroit in search of a better life, sweated on assembly lines and toiled as entrepreneurs, eventually triumphing over adversity. Detroit's music reflects that struggle, diversity and triumph of a community of people in the oldest city in the Midwest. These are the sounds of Detroit.