The Motown studios in Detroit are legendary in American music history

The world famous Motown Museum in Detroit has announced it will undergo a $50-million-dollar expansion starting in 2017.

This will grow the Museum to a 50,000 square foot tourist attraction featuring dynamic, interactive exhibits, a state-of-the art performance theatre, unrivalled recording studios, an expanded retail experience and meeting spaces designed by world renowned architects and exhibit designers.

The new Motown Museum will be designed and built around the current Museum space and the cherished Hitsville USA house.

Robin Terry, chairwoman, Motown Museum, said: “Our goal is to bring an expanded Motown Museum to the world, to inspire dreams and serve as an educational resource for global and local communities while creating an international mecca of music and entertainment history.

“This expanded facility will be an exhilarating national and international tourist destination which will allow us to narrate and celebrate on a much larger scale what the Motown legacy is recognised for: unmatched creative genius that transcends every barrier imaginable by bringing people together from all walks of life to share in that unmistakable Motown Sound.”

Founded by Berry Gordy, Motown is the sound that changed America and became one of the most significant musical accomplishments of the 20th century.

Motown evolved into a hit factory—transforming young singers and musicians into brilliant performers and superstars.

With more than 180 number one hit songs worldwide, no other record company in history has produced so many iconic entertainers or had such an enormous influence on popular culture.