‘The Motown Sound: In Performance at the White House’ March 1st on PBS

“The Motown Sound: In Performance at the White House” is a PBS music special in the East Room of the White House. President and Mrs. Obama hosted the event yesterday Thursday, February 24 in celebration of Black History Month and the legacy of Motown, the distinctive soul-infused pop music sound, style and presentation that was born in Detroit and embodied by the Motown Records label. The evening will include program host Jamie Foxx and performances by Foxx, Natasha Bedingfield, Sheryl Crow, the group Gloriana, Nick Jonas, Ledisi, John Legend, Amber Riley, Smokey Robinson, Mark Salling, Seal and Jordin Sparks. (Program subject to change.) The sixty-minute television special, part of the Emmy Award-nominated PBS “In Performance at the White House” series, will premiere Tuesday, March 1 at 8 p.m. ET on PBS stations nationwide. (Check local listings.) The program will also be broadcast on March 11 via the American Forces Network to American service men and women and civilians at U.S. Department of Defense locations around the world.