Music · born 1977
Obie TricerapperWest-side Detroit rapper who came up through the Hip Hop Shop battles and released two top-ten albums on Eminem's Shady Records.DETROIT / A living lexicon / ¼
Famous Detroiters
People who were born here, moved here or built their careers in Detroit: musicians, carmakers, athletes, writers, inventors, civil-rights leaders and a few notorious names. With their dates, their Detroit story and the places where they lived, worked and played, closed ones included.
- 1,949 famous people
- 516 Detroit places
- 22 fields
Hungarian ties 31 Detroiters with Hungarian ties →
Origin and citizenship
Field
Connection
Born in
A–Z (family name)
1379 people · 4/29 page
Clear filtersMusic · born 1977Obie TricerapperWest-side Detroit rapper who came up through the Hip Hop Shop battles and released two top-ten albums on Eminem's Shady Records.
Sports · born 1959Rick Carlislebasketball coach, former playerHall-of-Fame-caliber coach who ran the Pistons bench for two seasons, reaching the Eastern Conference semifinals before Detroit let him go with a year left on his contract.
Press & broadcasting · 1891–1979
Charles CoughlinCatholic priest, radio broadcaster, political agitatorThe Royal Oak 'Radio Priest' whose 1930s broadcasts from the Shrine of the Little Flower reached tens of millions before turning to antisemitism and support for fascism.
Sports · 1930–2009Chuck Dalybasketball coachHead coach of the "Bad Boys" Pistons who won back-to-back NBA championships in 1989 and 1990, then coached the 1992 Olympic Dream Team.
Sports · born 1992Tobias Harrisbasketball forwardVersatile scoring forward traded to the Pistons in 2016, who returned on a two-year contract in 2024 to help lead Detroit back to the playoffs after years of losing.
Music · born 1937
Neeme JärviconductorEstonian-born conductor who led the Detroit Symphony Orchestra from 1990 to 2005 in its restored Orchestra Hall, the second-longest tenure in the orchestra's history.
Auto industry · 1952–2018
Sergio MarchionneCEO of Fiat, Chrysler and Fiat Chrysler AutomobilesItalian-Canadian executive who took over bankrupt Chrysler in 2009 and turned it around from Auburn Hills, merging it with Fiat.
Visual art · 1875–1955
Carl MillessculptorSwedish sculptor who spent twenty years as Cranbrook's sculptor-in-residence, filling its gardens with fountains and leaving works in Detroit and Ann Arbor.
Sports · born 1997
Sviatoslav Mykhailiukbasketball player, shooting guardUkrainian sharpshooter who spent two seasons with the Pistons after a mid-season trade in 2019, before later winning an NBA championship with Boston.
Music · 1944–2021Mary Wilsonsinger, authorFounding member of the Supremes who grew up in Detroit's Brewster-Douglass projects and stayed with the group longer than any other original member.
Sports · born 1982Joel Anthonybasketball player, centerCanadian center and two-time NBA champion with Miami who spent his final two NBA seasons as a rarely used reserve big man for the Pistons.
Sports · born 1940Larry Brownbasketball coachHall of Fame coach who led the Pistons to the 2004 NBA championship over the Lakers, the only coach to win both NCAA and NBA titles.
Sports · born 1987Meryl Davisice dancer, Olympic championRoyal Oak-born ice dancer who, with childhood friend Charlie White, trained in metro Detroit and won America's first Olympic ice-dance gold in 2014.
Sports · born 1993Andre Drummondbasketball player, centerDominant rebounder who spent eight seasons anchoring the Pistons' frontcourt, becoming the franchise's all-time leader in offensive rebounds and a two-time NBA All-Star.
Auto industry · 1861–1947William C. Durantfounder of General Motors, co-founder of ChevroletFlint carriage king who founded General Motors, co-founded Chevrolet in Detroit and ordered the giant GM headquarters on West Grand Boulevard.
Sports · born 1994Jerami Grantbasketball player, forwardForward who became a Pistons focal scorer for two seasons, developing into a go-to offensive option during Detroit's rebuilding years.
Sports · born 1960Igor Larionovice hockey center, coach, agentSoviet-trained center nicknamed 'the Professor' who anchored Detroit's famed Russian Five and won three Stanley Cups with the Red Wings.
Comedy · born 1961Tim Meadowscomedian, actorTen-season Saturday Night Live veteran from Highland Park and Detroit's Conant Gardens, who learned improv at the Soup Kitchen Saloon and later moved back to the city.
Sports · born 1990Greg Monroebasketball playerPistons power forward-center for five seasons who was the last Detroit player to wear No. 10 before it was retired for Dennis Rodman.
Politics · 1907–1995George W. Romneyautomobile executive, governor of MichiganDetroit auto-industry spokesman and American Motors chief who became Michigan's governor (1963–1969) and later U.S. housing secretary.
Music · 1945–1970Tammi TerrellsingerPhiladelphia-born Motown singer, discovered by Berry Gordy at Detroit's 20 Grand, whose duets with Marvin Gaye include "Ain't No Mountain High Enough".
Film & TV · 1943–2019Max WrightactorALF's harried father Willie Tanner, born in Detroit and raised in Southfield, where he starred in high school musicals; he returned to act at the Jewish Ensemble Theatre in 2007.
Sports · born 1965Steve Yzermanice hockey center, general managerHall of Fame center who played his entire 22-season career with the Red Wings, captained the team for a record 19 years, and led Detroit to three Stanley Cups.
Sports · born 1980Henrik Zetterbergice hockey player, forward, team captainRed Wings forward who played his entire sixteen-year NHL career in Detroit, won the 2008 Stanley Cup and Conn Smythe Trophy, and captained the team from 2013 until his retirement.
Music · born 1977Royce da 5'9"rapper, songwriterDetroit rapper and Eminem's partner in Bad Meets Evil, whose debut album Rock City was named after his hometown's musical past.
Music · 1943–1976Florence BallardsingerDetroit-born founding member of the Supremes who named the group, sang on nine No. 1 hits and died in her hometown at 32 as a comeback was beginning.
Sports · 1939–2013Walt Bellamybasketball player, centerHall of Fame center and 1961 Rookie of the Year who spent parts of two seasons with the Pistons after a blockbuster trade for Dave DeBusschere.
Sports · born 1969Sergei Fedorovice hockey centerHall of Fame center who defected from the Soviet Union to join the Red Wings in 1990, won three Stanley Cups in Detroit and the 1994 Hart Trophy as league MVP.
Music · 1937–2001Joe Hendersonjazz tenor saxophonist, composerOhio-born tenor saxophone giant of Blue Note and Verve who came of age in Detroit's 1950s jazz scene and studied at Wayne State University.
Sports · born 1964Brett Hullice hockey right winger, executiveOne of the NHL's greatest goal scorers, Hull signed with Detroit in 2001 chasing a second Stanley Cup and won it in 2002, switching his number out of respect for Vladimir Konstantinov.
Sports · born 1970Nicklas Lidströmice hockey defenseman, executiveSwedish Hall of Fame defenseman who played all twenty NHL seasons with the Detroit Red Wings, won four Stanley Cups, and became the first European-born captain to lead a team to the championship.
Religion · born 1930
Adam MaidaCardinal Archbishop of Detroit (1990–2009)Pennsylvania-born cardinal who led the Archdiocese of Detroit from 1990 to 2009, a period of shrinking city parishes and growing suburbs.
Science & invention · born 1964Leland Melvinastronaut, engineer, former football playerNASA astronaut who flew two Space Shuttle missions after an NFL career that ended in the Detroit Lions' 1986 training camp.
Sports · born 1970Mike Modanoice hockey centerThe NHL's all-time leading American-born goal scorer, born and raised in Livonia, who closed out his 21-season career with a single season for his hometown Red Wings.
Politics · born 1958Gary Peterspolitician, former naval officerPontiac-born Democrat who represented eastern Detroit in the U.S. House and has been Michigan's U.S. senator since 2015.
Sports · born 1972
Željko Rebračabasketball playerSerbian center who spent three seasons as a Pistons reserve big man before being traded away weeks before Detroit's 2004 championship run.
Sports · born 1974Jerry Stackhousebasketball player and coach, broadcasterTwo-time All-Star who set the Pistons' single-game scoring record with 57 points and later returned to Detroit as a television analyst.
Sports · born 1987Charlie Whiteice dancer, Olympic champion, coachDearborn-born ice dancer, 2014 Olympic champion with Meryl Davis, who now coaches at the Michigan Ice Dance Academy he co-founded in Canton.
Film & TV · 1930–2015Grace Lee Whitneyactress, singerStar Trek's Yeoman Janice Rand, who grew up in Detroit and began her career at 14 as a girl singer on WJR radio.
Music · 1948–2009Ron Ashetonguitarist, bassist, songwriterGuitarist and co-founder of the Stooges, the Ann Arbor proto-punk band that served as a house band at Detroit's Grande Ballroom.
Music · born 1931Kenny Burrelljazz guitarist, composer, educatorDetroit-born jazz guitarist who came up in the city's 1950s bebop clubs and Wayne State, then became a Blue Note mainstay and a leading jazz educator.
Sports · 1940–2003Dave DeBusscherebasketball player and coach, baseball playerDetroit-born Hall of Famer who starred for the Pistons, became the youngest head coach in NBA history at 24, and later won two championships with the New York Knicks.J Dillarecord producer, rapper, composerConant Gardens-raised producer of Slum Village and the Soulquarians, whose off-grid, “drunk” drum programming reshaped hip-hop from a Detroit basement.
Politics · 1926–2019John Dingellpolitician, lawyerDearborn Democrat who represented Detroit and its western and Downriver suburbs for 59 years, the longest tenure in the history of Congress.
Sports · born 1990Reggie Jacksonbasketball point guardPoint guard who became the Pistons' leading scorer for several seasons after a 2015 trade, helping them make the playoffs in 2016 before injuries and a rebuild ended his run.
Sports · born 1989Marcus Morris Sr.basketball playerForward who spent two seasons with the Pistons and helped them reach the playoffs for the first time since 2009.
Politics · born 1958Rick Snyderbusiness executive, governor of MichiganMichigan's governor (2011–2019) who put Detroit under an emergency manager, approved its 2013 bankruptcy filing and backed the 'grand bargain' that ended it.Lester Bangsrock critic, editor, musicianLegendary rock critic who moved to Detroit in 1971 to edit Creem, called the city 'rock's only hope' and spent five wild years there.The lexicon keeps growing. Every entry lists its sources at the bottom. Dates were checked against Wikidata and Wikipedia. The texts are our own. Famous people's places among the sights ↗
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