Motown Museum has received a $1 million Legacy Grant from The Links Foundation, Incorporated, bringing the institution within $2 million of completing its $75 million capital campaign for its long-planned expansion.
The gift, announced Monday, July 13, increases the museum’s fundraising total to $73 million and supports construction of the expanded campus, which is expected to open in summer 2027. The grant was approved during The Links, Incorporated’s 45th National Assembly, which was held recently in Detroit.
The Links Foundation is the philanthropic arm of The Links, Inc., one of the nation’s oldest and largest volunteer service organizations of professional women of African descent. Through its Legacy Grant program and other initiatives, the foundation has distributed more than $27 million to organizations including the Obama Presidential Center, the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, the National Civil Rights Museum, the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, and the United Negro College Fund.
“We are deeply honored to receive this generous gift from The Links Foundation, Incorporated,” said Robin Terry, chairwoman and CEO of Motown Museum, in a statement. “For generations, The Links have brought together some of our nation’s most accomplished women in service of education, culture and community. Their support is especially meaningful because it reflects a shared belief in the power of storytelling to preserve history, inspire future generations and strengthen communities.”
Terry also thanked The Links’ 18th National President, Ethel Isaacs Williams, for her leadership and commitment to preserving African American history and culture.
Williams said the grant reflects the organization’s commitment to preserving one of the nation’s most influential cultural institutions.
“We are proud to support the Motown Museum expansion through our Legacy Grant program,” Williams said. “Motown transformed music, elevated generations of Black artists and forever changed American culture. Preserving that legacy ensures future generations understand not only the sound of Motown, but the resilience, creativity and excellence it represents.”
The latest contribution adds to a series of major philanthropic investments that have helped advance the museum’s expansion campaign over the past several years.
In 2023, the Fred A. and Barbara Erb Family Foundation awarded the museum a $1 million grant to support the expansion and educational programming planned for the new campus. At the time, museum officials said the project would create new opportunities for aspiring musicians, entrepreneurs and young people while expanding public access to the Motown story.
The museum has also secured significant public funding, including a $10 million federal appropriation announced in 2023 that accelerated construction plans. Additional support has come from a broad coalition of foundations, corporations and individual donors, including the Hudson-Webber Foundation, The Kresge Foundation, the Ralph C. Wilson Jr. Foundation, Ford Motor Company Fund, Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase, Bloomberg Philanthropies, Amazon, and Sony Music Group, among many others.
Originally announced in 2016, the multi-phase expansion will increase the Motown Museum campus to approximately 50,000 square feet. The project centers on preserving the historic Hitsville U.S.A. home while adding new exhibition galleries, interactive experiences, a state-of-the-art performance theater, recording studios, expanded retail space, a café and educational facilities through the museum’s Hitsville NEXT initiative.
Museum leaders have said the completed campus is intended to strengthen Detroit’s North End neighborhood by attracting additional visitors from around the world while expanding year-round educational and cultural programming.
Construction on the project’s final phase began in 2024 after the campaign reached the $70 million fundraising milestone. The museum has since continued to attract philanthropic support as it works toward completing the remaining $2 million needed to fully fund the $75 million project.
