Just a block away from his former Detroit home, a jubilant Otis Williams helped unveil a commemorative city marker bearing his name. Otis C. Williams Street was revealed Saturday afternoon in a lively ceremony celebrating the 82-year-old Temptations founder. At one point, Williams was visibly moved as he took in the latest honor from the city where his musical journey began.
“To have my name on the street where I used to live — I never imagined such wonderful recognition would come my way, and I am deeply grateful,” Williams told the gathered crowd of Motown figures, city dignitaries, and enthusiastic neighborhood residents.
Dressed in a sparkling jacket, sunglasses, and a cap emblazoned with “DETROIT,” Williams expressed his gratitude to fans and the 27 singers who have been part of the Temptations over the years. “I just love you all for loving us through all the changes we’ve been through,” said Williams, the group’s only surviving original member. He also paid tribute to the Temptations’ longtime manager, Shelly Berger, who was present at the event.
The ceremonial street designation, located along Wisconsin Street at Santa Clara on the city’s northwest side, joins several other streets in Detroit named after hometown music legends, including Stevie Wonder Avenue, Marvin Gaye Drive, Aretha Franklin Way, and David Ruffin Avenue.
Williams lived in the neighborhood from 1968 to 1970, during a period when the Temptations were solidifying their status as one of the most successful vocal groups in history. Years earlier, he had spearheaded the group’s formation, and the Temptations’ “Classic Five” lineup — including Melvin Franklin, Eddie Kendricks, David Ruffin, and Paul Williams — became a Motown powerhouse, achieving global fame with their intricate harmonies and polished stage performances.
The street renaming was approved by the Detroit City Council after a two-year process initiated by Williams’ nephew, Ali Little, and supported by the Black United Fund of Michigan. The effort was further propelled by the Motown Museum and City Council member Angela Whitfield Calloway.
“It takes a village, even when you’re celebrating a giant,” said Robin Terry, CEO and chairwoman of the Motown Museum.
On a sunny morning before the dedication, Temptations tunes filled the air as guests such as Calloway, Detroit City Council President Mary Sheffield, Michigan Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist, and Universal Music Enterprises President Bruce Resnikoff gathered. Neighbors, including some who had been around when Williams lived at 17376 Wisconsin, eagerly captured the moment on their mobile devices.
The group’s tour bus arrived before the noon start, and Williams’ current bandmates — Ron Tyson, Jawan Jackson, Terry Weeks, and Tony Grant — joined the celebration with the Temptations’ patriarch, who now resides in Los Angeles. The group was scheduled to perform later that evening to conclude a two-night engagement at the Andiamo Celebrity Showroom in Warren.
As part of Saturday’s ceremony, Williams was also presented with a Spirit of Detroit Award by the Detroit City Council, which hailed him as a “towering figure” in the city’s culture and recognized his “transformative contributions to music and his embodiment of the Detroit spirit.”
Gilchrist, speaking on behalf of himself and Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, expressed Michigan’s pride and gratitude for the musical legacy created by Williams and the Temptations. The new street marker, he said, serves as a cross-generational symbol and a reminder of the “talent that exists on every corner of every street in every neighborhood in Detroit.”
A performance of “Ain’t Too Proud to Beg” by singers from the Motown Museum’s Hitsville Next program was followed by remarks from Berger, who has been Williams’ manager and close confidant for 57 years. Berger recounted Motown founder Berry Gordy’s description of the Temptations as a group whose whole was greater than the sum of its parts. And the enduring backbone, he said, was Williams, a “thinking man” who always prioritized the group’s interests.
“Through it all, quietly, there was one thing that was always constant — Otis Williams,” Berger said.
Contact Detroit Free Press music writer Brian McCollum: 313-223-4450 or [email protected].
