In April, the Motown Museum in Detroit will premiere “Psychedelic Soul: A Journey Through Rhythms and Time,” a new exhibition exploring the evolution of the Motown Sound during one of the most transformative periods in music history.

It will be the first exhibit presented at the Esther Gordy Edwards Centre for Excellence, the Museum’s new 38,000-square-foot space that opened in 2025 to honor founder Esther Gordy Edwards and accelerate the institution’s future through community engagement, education, and creative exploration.

Gordy Edwards, during the mid-1960s, served as vice president and CEO of Motown Records, which was founded by her younger brother, Berry, in 1959. A graduate of Cass Technical High School and Howard University, she created the Motown Museum and served as its president for many years.

While public tours of the original Hitsville U.S.A. campus remain paused during the Museum’s ongoing expansion project, Motown Museum is utilizing the Esther Gordy Edwards Centre for Excellence to welcome guests, offer a curated exhibition experience, and continue sharing the Motown story.

The period from 1967 to 1975 marked Motown’s Psychedelic Soul era, when the label expanded beyond its signature love songs to embrace experimentation and socially conscious storytelling. Guided by producer Norman Whitfield, artists like The Temptations helped define the sound with Grammy-winning hits such as “Cloud 9” and “Papa Was a Rollin’ Stone.”

“Psychedelic Soul: A Journey Through Rhythms and Time” features rare vinyl releases, vintage fashion, immersive multimedia, and artifacts that capture the cultural and technological shifts of the era. Through docent-led tours, the exhibition connects this transformative chapter of Motown’s history to its lasting influence on contemporary music and culture.

Motown Museum members can experience the Psychedelic Soul exhibit tour for free. Reservations are required for members, and can be made by calling the box office at 313-875-2264.

The exhibit will open to the public on April 17 and run through Sept. 27, 2026. Exhibit hours are Wednesday thru Sunday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The address is 2550 W. Grand Blvd.

Tickets are available online now at motownmuseum.org.

Note: The Motown Museum retail store will be open onsite at the Esther Gordy Edwards Centre for Excellence during exhibit hours.

Founded in 1985, Motown Museum is a 501(c)(3) not for profit, tax-exempt organization. The museum is committed to preserving, protecting, and presenting the Motown story through authentic, inspirational, and educational experiences.

Announced in late 2016, the Motown Museum expansion will grow the facility to a nearly 50,000-square-foot world-class entertainment and education tourist destination featuring dynamic, interactive exhibits, a performance theater, recording studios, an expanded retail experience, and meeting spaces. It is scheduled to be completed in spring 2027.

For more information on Motown Museum, visit motownmuseum.org.

A woman whose remains were found nearly 50 years ago in California has been identified as a Detroit-area native, with her death considered a homicide. 

The Placer County Sheriff’s Office in California reported on March 18 that the woman who was known in their community as “Emigrant Gap Jane Doe” is confirmed to be Melinda “Pip” Beardsley, a woman who had been missing since the mid 1970s. 

The break in the case came through advancements in DNA technology and decades of investigative work, the sheriff’s office said. 

Beardsley’s remains were discovered amid a snowbank on Dec. 17, 1977, in the Emigrant Gap area of Placer County.  

“Investigators later determined she had been strangled to death. Despite extensive investigative efforts over the years, her identity remained unknown,” the sheriff’s office said. 

Those attempts included distributing her fingerprints and identifying information to law enforcement agencies across the United States and Canada, including submitting a report to the Federal Bureau of Investigation. 

The Placer County Sheriff’s Office said its agency requested exhumation of her remains in 2011 in hopes that newer forensic techniques could identify her. A partial DNA profile was created in 2018; further testing happened over the years. 

By 2025, a DNA profile with sufficient details for “investigative genetic genealogy” was finally available. With that information, the Placer County Sheriff’s Office Cold Case Investigations team began working with Moxxy Forensic Investigations. This nonprofit organization works with law enforcement agencies on investigative genetic genealogy and missing-person cases. 

In the meantime, Beardsley’s family was working with The Doe Network, a volunteer organization that focuses on missing and unidentified person cases. The Doe Network reached out to Moxxy Forensics. 

Moxxy Forensics reviewed Beardsley’s life and the circumstances known about her disappearance, efforts that led to a possible connection to Emigrant Gap Jane Doe. DNA comparison testing took place, and test results were confirmed during February 2026. 

Beardsley was born in 1946 in rural Michigan, just north of Detroit, Moxxy Forensics said. The last time anyone in the family confirmed her location was in 1976, in Carson City, Nevada. 

“This identification hopefully provides long-awaited answers to Beardsley’s family, but the work is not done. The Placer County Sheriff’s Office is actively investigating the homicide of Melinda Beardsley,” the sheriff’s office said. 

“Every unidentified person is someone’s child, sibling, or parent,” said Katie Thomas/Co-Founder of Moxxy Forensic Investigations. “Restoring Melinda’s name restores her dignity. We are honored to stand beside her family and our law enforcement partners in this work.”

Authorities ask that anyone with information about Beardsley’s homicide contact the Placer County Sheriff’s Office Investigations Tip Line at 530-889-7830.