As Blacks in the South moved north during the Great Migration of the 20th century, they brought their musical heritage with them. Blues, gospel, jazz, ragtime, and other styles found homes in Midwestern cities like Chicago, Detroit, Kansas City, and St. Louis, where the genres influenced existing music scenes and provided the ingredients for exciting new hybrids like rock and roll. In addition, large cities gave artists access to wider audiences through live venues and recording studios. Learn about the Midwest's rich musical history at these 9 attractions.
Missouri History Museum, St. Louis
Roll on, Beethoven. Rock's Chuck Berry (a St. Louis native) and ragtime's Scott Joplin (also with Missouri ties) are among the music legends sharing the bill at Audio replay of St. Louis— runway installation with content from the original St. Louis Sound exhibit (over). Buy recordings nearby Vintage vinylor record your own blues track in an interactive exhibit at National Blues Museum centre.
Courtesy of Visit KC
American Jazz Museum, Kansas City, Missouri
Celebrate the fusion, improvisation, and celebration of America's unique musical form — art form, really — in the Historic 18th & Vine Jazz District. Interactive exhibits and films Spotlight on KC jazz masters like Charlie Parker, Count Basie and Big Joe Turner who shaped the sounds of the 1920s, 1930s and 1940s. Hear today's jazz The Blue Rooma work club connected to the museum or across from The Gem Theatrewhere a restored 1912 facade hides a contemporary 500-seat performing arts center.
Columbus Live Music Trail, Columbus, Ohio
See the stages Columbus roots artists like Twenty One Pilots, Rascal Flatts and Dwight Yoakam played before they made it big. The trail covers more than 40 live music spots on a Spotify spectrum: pop, punk, rock, rap, jazz, bluegrass and more. Stops include famous jazz venue Dick's Den, venerable rock club Newport Music Hall, Dirty Dungarees laundromat/bar and music hall/kitchen Natalie's Grandview. Certain venues, such as Cafe Bourbon Street and Ace of Cups, appear in the recent film, Poser, a thriller set in the underground music scene of Columbus.
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Cleveland
Huey Lewis was right: the heart of rock and roll still hitting in cleveland. Many call it the birthplace of rock — local DJ Alan Freed promoted the music. The hall's induction ceremony (November 5 this year) is a career cap to the artists and must-see entertainment for fans, while the IM Pei-designed museum is the world's largest set of music and memorabilia: a Jimi Hendrix guitar (a that made “fire”), the dresses of The Supremes, an Elvis motorcycle, John Lennon Sgt. of pepper duds and Kurt Cobain's death certificate.
Chess Records, Chicago
Get your mojo working in the South Side building where Muddy Waters, Chuck Berry, Bo Diddley, Howlin' Wolf and the Rolling Stones laid down blues, soul, jazz and rock tracks in the 1950s and 1960s. Brothers Leonard and Phil Chess set up their record label to cover the demand for the music of black artists. Sit in the recording studio—it's still in use—and imagine a young Etta James at the microphone. Pause in the lobby where the musicians cooled off. Much of the decoration is original, but not the front window: harmonica player Little Walter supposedly went crazy and walked into it.
Motown Museum, Detroit
Stop—in the name of love—at the unassuming house that Berry Gordy Jr. built the global music empire called Motown Records. Website, also known as Hitsville USA, launched the careers of Diana Ross, Stevie Wonder, Smokey Robinson, Marvin Gaye, the Jackson 5 and others. Stand in Studio A, where the musical magic happened, among vintage instruments and equipment. Check out the original recording equipment and control room floor (worn from foot tapping to beat). Upstairs, see the apartment where Gordy lived with his young family.
Paisley Park, Chanhassen, Minnesota
Purple reigns in Prince's longtime home, creative haven and (still active) production complex 20 minutes southwest of Minneapolis. Named after a utopian Prince song, the site hosts tours, concerts, festivals and special events. Tours offers a look at concert fashions, awards, musical instruments, artwork, motorcycles and rare footage of the artist who once changed his name to a symbol of love. A current exhibit highlights Prince's collection of custom shoes—more than 300 pairs, including 4-inch boots and suede light-up skates.
Surf Ballroom, Clear Lake, Iowa
Long ago (on the night of February 2nd, 1959), Buddy Holly, Richie Valens and J.P. Richardson (the Big Bopper) is performed here. Early on February 3, they died in a plane crash outside the city. Don McLean's “American Pie” called it “The day the music died,” but there's an afterlife: The Surf still hosts concerts, including an annual Winter Dance Party tribute. Tour the ballroom to see the historic stage and original dance floor, booths and coat checks. The pay phone Holly used to call his wife is outside the lobby entrance.
Hard Rock Casino, Gary, Indiana
Enjoy yourself at this game, food and live music mecca not far from the Gary home where Joe and Kathryn Jackson raised six sons and three daughters. As a group and through solo careers, the Jacksons became one of the most successful families in music history. The casino's decor incorporates Joe's guitar — his sons would sneak out with it — and costumes worn by the Jackson 5. The site's Hard Rock Cafe displays the red jacket Michael wore in his “Beat It” video, a of his trademark shiny gloves and a pair of shoes he moonwalked in.
