Detroit seeks to honor musical legacy with new composer laureate

DETROIT (FOX 2) - If you ask Detroit's director of arts and culture, the city's legacy and imprint it has left on music stretches farther than any other city. 

All it has to do now is honor that legacy - and give it the attention it deserves.

"We’re going to claim what’s ours," said Rochelle Riley. "By the time you realize that all the early jazz started in Detroit, all the pop and R&B, and some of the styles of music that happened in Detroit or became famous in Detroit, and we’re going to talk about some of the music that’s happening now."

Tunes that came from the electronic genre, for example. The city played a special role in the birthing techno, even hosting a music festival that pays homage to it.

And of course, Hip Hop, being the home of the country's first Oscar-winning rap song in Eminem's ‘Lose Yourself.’

In an effort to document this history, the city is hiring a composer laureate. They will work alongside Detroit's historian and its newly-named poet laureate. They'll also work on various projects with schools and hopefully inspire future musicians. 

Just thinking about the project has Riley smiling.

"We’re going to show people that everything that is literally excellence about music and literature, about film even, and about theater, Detroit is all up in it," she said.

If you want to nominate someone or think yourself is up for the job, you can apply here.