For over a century, Detroit has been a music mecca. From early commercial success in jazz to the Detroit rap sound that put the Motor City on the map again, it’s safe to say the 313 has a thing or two to say about music.

This list features five albums from every decade between 1960 and today that were recorded by some of Detroit’s finest musicians, from John Lee Hooker to J Dilla.

This is far from an exhaustive list—a complete undertaking would require years of research and arranging. However, there’s something for everyone here!

My hope is to illustrate Detroit’s importance in music and culture through the years, showcase how many of the Motor City’s music scenes were evolving simultaneously, and, hopefully, put you onto some new music.

I added a few tracks from every album and made a Spotify playlist, which you’ll find at the bottom of this page.

Drop the needle, grab some headphones, and let’s get started.

*if you click the links below, you’ll be redirected to their Spotify listing

Pre—1960

Defined by: The Great Migration, Jazz, Soul, Blues

2007 | McKinney’s Cotton Pickers - The Ultimate Jazz Archive 4 (1927-1931)

Notable information
- The band were regulars at the Arcadia and the Graystone Ballrooms on Woodward Avenue

1993 | John Lee Hooker - The Legendary Modern Recordings (1948-1954)

Notable lyrics
- When I first came to town people // I was walkin' down Hastings Street // Everybody was talkin' about the Henry Swing Club

1958 | Jackie Wilson - He’s So Fine

Notable information
- Jackie Wilson was born in Highland Park and got his start singing at church

1958 | Little Willie John - Fever

Notable information
- Little Willie John’s single ‘I’m Shakin’ was covered by Jack White in 2012

1959 | Barry Harris Trio - Breakin' It Up

Notable information
- Barry Harris, born in Detroit in 1929, attended Northeastern High School

1960—1969

Defined by: Social Unrest, Motown, Rhythm & Blues, Rock n’ Roll

1964 | The Supremes - Where Did Our Love Go

Notable information
- Initially named the Primettes, the Supremes all grew up in the Brewster-Douglass housing projects on the outskirts of downtown Detroit

1967 | Four Tops - Reach Out

Notable information
- The Four Tops, Levi Stubbs, Abdul Fakir, Renaldo Benson, and Lawrence Payton were among the only Motown Bands with the same lineup for their entire existence

1967 | Aretha Franklin - I Never Loved A Man The Way I Love You

Notable information
- Aretha’s father, C. L. Franklin, was the pastor at New Bethel Baptist Church, worked for equal rights with the UAW, and was a friend of Martin Luther King Jr. Aretha started with music at her father’s church

1969 | Mattie Moss Clark & the Church of God in Christ Choir - Try Jesus, He Satisfies

Notable Information
- Mattie Moss Clark moved to Detroit in the late 1940s and went to Greater Love Tabernacle COGIC, where she became involved in their choir. The church still exists today

1969 | MC5 - Kick Out The Jams

Notable information
- This album was recorded live at the Grande Ballroom on Grand River in Northwest Detroit

1970—1979

Defined by: Industrial Decline, Punk, Introspective, Funk

1970 | Rodriguez - Cold Fact

Notable Information
- Cold Fact was the first of two studio albums by Rodriguez. His life was featured in a documentary called Searching for Sugar Man in 2012. Read more about his memorial here

1971 | Marvin Gaye - What’s Going On

Notable Information
- Marvin Gaye moved to Detroit around 1960 and worked as a session drummer in his early years at Motown. Additionally, he co-wrote the 1964 hit ‘Dancing in the Street’

2009 | Death - …For the Whole World to See (1975)

Notable Information
- This album was recorded in 1975 at United Sound Studios but was never released due to a disagreement with Columbia Records over their name. The band broke up and was rediscovered in the 2000s, and the album was released on Drag City Records in 2009

1976 | The Stooges - Metallic K.O.

Notable information
- This album was recorded at the Michigan Palace (the former Michigan Theatre), which is now a parking garage

1977 | Bootsy’s Rubber Band - Ahh… The Name Is Bootsy, Baby!

Notable information
- Bootsy Collins was a member of The Pacesetters, James Brown’s backing band in the early 1970s. After that, he moved to Detroit and joined George Clinton’s Funkadelic group in 1972

1980—1989

Defined by: Bewilderment, Techno, Hip Hop, Indie Labels

1983 | Negative Approach - Tied Down

Notable information
- Negative Approach frequented the Freezer Theater and The Clubhouse in Detroit’s Cass Corridor in the 1980s

1983 | Cybotron - Enter (Rereleased in 1990 as Clear)

Notable information
- Juan Atkins left the group two years after the album was released

1987 | The Winans - Decisions

Notable information
- Although The Winans were a quartet comprised of four brothers from Detroit, there were numerous musicians in the Winan family, including their father, Pop Winans

1989 | Awesome Dre and the Hardcore Committee - You Can’t Hold Me Back

Notable information
- Awesome Dre was the first Detroit rapper to release music on a major label

1989 | The Gories - Houserockin’

Notable information
- The band broke up in 1993 after releasing just three albums. All three members continued to make music. Danny Kroha’s self-titled Angels Watching Over Me (2015) and Detroit Blues (2021) are good listens, as well as The Dirtbombs’ Ultraglide in Black (2001)

1990—1999

Defined By: Chaos, Techno, Rap, Garage Rock

1993 | Model 500 (Juan Atkins) - Classics

Notable information
- Born in Detroit, Juan Atkin (also known as Model 500 and Infiniti) spent his formative years in Belleville, where he met the other members of the ‘Belleville Three,’ who are credited with inventing Detroit techno

1994 | Esham - Closed Casket

Notable Lyrics
- I grew up in the ghetto // I live in the ghetto // I’m never gonna get out the ghetto // The place where black folks die // And slangin' them cracks is a way to get by // There's nothin' else a ni**a can do // And f**k the police because they only protect you // You wouldn't understand unless you was a black man

1997 | Slum Village - Fan-Tas-Tic (Vol. 1)

Notable information
- The entire album was produced by J Dilla

1998 | The Detroit Cobras - Mink, Rat or Rabbit

Notable information
- Formed in the early 1990s, The Detroit Cobras were known for their merry-go-round of musicians who were a part of the band and Rachel Nagy’s impressive vocals that were a mainstay of the Cobras from its inception until she died in 2022. They’re named after a street gang

1999 | The White Stripes - Self Titled

Notable information
- The single off this album, The Big Three Killed My Baby, references GM, Ford, and Crysler and their ineptitudes in the 1990s

2000—2009

Defined by: Urban Decay, Independent Music, Rap, Beat Tapes

2003 | Electric Six - Fire

Notable information
- Jack White appears on ‘Danger! High Voltage’

2005 | Blade Icewood - Blood, Sweat, & Tears

Notable information
- Blade was shot in 2004 at his home and was left paralyzed from the waist down. Less than a year later, he was shot again and died. That same year, this album was released

2005 | Proof - Searching for Jerry Garcia

Notable information
- Proof’s father, McKinley Jackson, was a Detroit musician in the 1970s and 1980s. Proof attended Osborn High School and was shot and killed in April 2006. The leaked Eminem song, ‘Difficult,’ is about Mather’s lifelong friend, Proof

2006 | J Dilla - Donuts

Notable information
- This album was released three days before Dilla passed away from complications from thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura and lupus

2008 | Danny Brown - Hot Soup

Notable lyrics
- But it's hard in the D, I gotta get my bread up // So I ride '94 with nowhere to go
- Hit the Coney's cause my gas low, low // Cop a bag, roll a blunt and say to extras // And I swoop a couple ho*s then ride up Dexter
- Sip Faygo, Better Made, Red Hot // In the wrong place, might see red dots
- Days got hard, nights got rough // Used to eat a coney on the Gratiot bus
- Brown hard like coney island bacon

2010—2019

Defined By: Resurgence, Paying Dues, Rap, Electronic

2011 | Elzhi - Elmatic

Notable lyrics:
- I left and I stopped up at the Hip-Hop Shop // Seen 'Tin, Dilla, and Proof, Bugz, Bad Vibes, and Grym, T3 when he was slim // Watchin' La Peace battle Eminem // Soon they handed me the mic to spit a rhyme and a verse

2012 | Doughboyz Cashout - Free Roc

Notable information:
- Doughboy Roc, the album’s namesake, was murdered at 29 in 2017
Notable lyrics:
- Awwww shit, Fenkell in this bit*h

2013 | Omar S - Thank You for Letting Me Be Myself

Notable information
- Omar S, founder and operator of FXHE, gained an underground following after numerous hard-hitting releases throughout the 2000s. Thank You for Letting Me Be Myself was his first full-length solo album

2014 | Jessica Hernandez & the Deltas - Secret Evil

Notable information
- Jessica Hernandez’s parents own and operate the Mexicantown Bakery on Vernor Highway

2019 | Sada Baby - Bartier Bounty

Notable information
- Sada Baby went to Martin Luther King Jr. High School on the east side of Detroit, where he played basketball. In 2018, he gained worldwide fame after he dropped a video for his track Bloxk Party with Drego

2019 | Apollo Brown - Sincerely, Detroit

Notable information
- Apollo Brown is from Grand Rapids but moved to Detroit after college. This album has more Detroit rappers on it than any other I’ve seen

Highlights Spotify Playlist

This playlist features at least one song from every album included above.

Check out my Historically Significant Interactive Map for more reading on the Motor City.

5 Essential Detroit Albums From Every Decade