Is Detroit actually the birthplace of techno?
Were we all led to believe so because of the new flashy marketing slogans and flyers?
Let's start with the obvious... the Belleville Three, as the name suggests, were in Belleville, MI, which famously is not in Detroit, but in its suburbs, 30 miles away.
Underground Resistance (UR), which "The Wizard," better known as Jeff Mills, co-founded alongside "Mad" Mike Banks and Robert Hood, was indeed in Detroit, MI. However, the truth is, Mills and Banks were not always allowed to play in US clubs in the '80s or be on terrestrial radio due to segregation laws. They often were performing and creating their craft near the border, in Windsor, Canada.
At the same time, Detroit was in such close proximity to Windsor that its residents could tune in to the neighboring country's radio and hear some of the best music selections right after the clock rolled over midnight.
"The techno scene was predominantly black," recalls Mills in an interview with Red Bull Music Academy. "Certain people, certain club owners, and certain clubs didn't like it. They cancelled a lot of nights." And this was in 1983.
While the Belleville Three is generally good music, it is not exactly techno... if you've heard "Good Life" even once in your life, you know what I'm talking about.
"Good Life" by Inner City, produced by Kevin Saunderson of the legendary Belleville Three, is one of the most iconic house music tracks, not techno.
While media is actively calling everything techno these days, we don't have to agree with what is simply incorrect.
We also asked DJ Stingray, who was born and raised in Detroit, to tell us what his take on it is.
