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Detroit Proud Playlist: Week of 6/02 - Special Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Edition!

Detroit Proud music fans, you love coming from a city filled with a rich history of musical greats, right? Well, did you know that Detroit also boasts a long list of bands, artists, and performers who have been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame? Yeah, that's right – we have the credits to back up all of our bragging!

We've put together this week's playlist to include a few of those names that were talented enough to be honored with an induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame…check them out!

Marvin Gaye – Inducted in 1987 – "Hitch Hike"

Marvin Gaye
(credit: wikipedia.org)

Marvin Gaye is often credited with helping shape the sound of Motown in the 1960s. He's worked with many other Motown artists including Diana Ross and The Miracles. American author Michael Eric Dyson described him as someone "who transcended the boundaries of rhythm and blues as no other performer had done before". Check out his song "Hitch Hike" here!

Smokey Robinson – Inducted in 1987 – "Being With You"

Smokey Robinson
(credit: wikipedia.org)

Smokey Robinson is known as the founder and front man of the Motown vocal group The Miracles, and he lead the group up until 1972 when he shifted his focus to his role of Motown's vice president. The same year he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, he also landed a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Check him out here!

Jackie Wilson – Inducted in 1987 – "Doggin' Around"

Jackie Wilson
(credit: wikipedia.org)

Jackie Wilson was known as "Mr. Excitement" because he was a master showman - and one of the most dynamic and influential singers and performers in R&B and rock n' roll history. His music also played an important role in the transition of rhythm and blues to soul. Check his music out here!

Stevie Wonder – Inducted in 1989 – "Uptight (Everything's Alright)"

Stevie Wonder
(credit: wikipedia.org)

How many of you knew that Stevie Wonder's real name is actually Stevland Hardaway Morris? Did you also know that Stevie Wonder signed with Motown's Tamla label at the young age of only 11? Often considered a child prodigy, Stevie is one of the most beloved and creative musicians of the 20th century. Check him out here!

John Lee Hooker – Inducted in 1991 – "Boogie Chillen"

John Lee Hooker
(credit: wikipedia.org)

John Lee Hooker was a highly influential American blues singer, songwriter, and guitarist. He became popular for playing his own unique spin of "County Blues" in clubs around Detroit in the 1950s. He later developed his own style of blues called "Talking Blues" which incorporates a boogie-woogie piano style and a driving rhythm into his blues guitar-playing and singing. Check his music out here!

Alice Cooper – Inducted in 2011 – "Crazy Little Child"

Alice Cooper
(credit: wikipedia.org)

Did you know, aside from music, Cooper is a film actor, a golfing celebrity, a restaurateur, and, since 2004, a popular radio DJ with his classic rock show "Nights with Alice Cooper"? He started out with traditional Detroit rock, though through many years of experimentation, he's dabbled in everything from conceptual rock, art rock, hard rock, heavy metal, new wave, pop rock, and industrial rock. Check him out here!

Martha & The Vandellas – Inducted in 1995 – "Then He Kissed Me"

Martha and The Vandellas
(credit: wikipedia.org)

Everyone knows the hit song "Dancing In The Street," right? That catchy little tune that reminds everyone of summer and will make anyone's feet bop? Martha & The Vandellas is one of Motown's most successful groups and one of the most influential all-female groups in music history. Did you know when they were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, they were only the second-ever all-female group to be inducted? Rock on, ladies. Check Martha out here!

James Jamerson – Inducted in 2000 – "You Can't Hurry Love" (Song by The Supremes)

James Jamerson (The Supremes)
(credit: wikipedia.org)

James Jamerson was the uncredited bassist on most of the Motown Records hits in the 1960s and early 1970s...though today, he is now regarded as one of the most influential bass players in modern music history. After working in one of Motown's record labels, Hitsville U.S.A, he became a member of a core of studio musicians who were informally known as The Funk Brothers. He's worked with The Temptations, Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye, The Supremes, The Miracles, and more. Hear him play bass for The Supremes' "You Can't Hurry Love" here!

Bob Seger – Inducted in 2004 – "Beautiful Loser"

Bob Seger
(credit: wikipedia.org)

As a largely successful Detroit-area artist, Bob Seger performed and recorded as Bob Seger and the Last Heard, then The Bob Seger System throughout the 1960s. In 1973, he put together The Silver Bullet Band, a group of Detroit-area musicians, and went on to achieve monumental success. With his classic, raspy voice, Bob Seger has recorded over 15 studio albums along with two live albums. Check him out here!

Bill Haley – Inducted in 1987 – "Rock Around The Clock"

Bill Haley
(credit: wikipedia.org)

Bill Haley is the man behind the beloved hits "Rock Around The Clock," "See You Later, Alligator,, and "Shake, Rattle, And Roll." He is credited by many with first popularizing the rock 'n' roll style of music in the early 1950s with his group Bill Haley & His Comets. Hear the iconic song here!

Who do you think should be inducted next? Tell us in the comments!

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