Car Designer Martin Davis Reflects On What It Meant To Work Under GM's First Black Car Designer

Lighting Design Manager Martin Davis is holding the taillights of one of the many vehicles he's responsible for designing.

For our one-year anniversary show, honoring pioneer designer Ed Welburn, who spent 44 years as a designer of General Motors, we reached out to a few individuals who were mentored by the trendsetter. Welburn was the highest ranking black auto executive, before he retired on July 1. To find out more about Welburn and our radio interview, which airs Saturdays this month, click here.

What has it meant to have Ed Welburn as your design leader?

Martin Davis: The Black History Maker Behind GM's Snazzy Headlights (Part Two)

Car Designer Martin Davis holding up some taillights. (Photo Credit: GM)

Martin Davis, General Motors' first person to ever serve in the role as the lighting exterior design manager, is changing the way we view the exterior lights on today's vehicles. As we learned in part one of our interview, this young black history maker was instilled with enough confidence at an early age, knowing that he could be one of a handful of black car designers in the world, even when the odds, just based on sheer numbers, were stacked against him. Because of Davis, we're all taking a second look, when looking at GM cars and other makes, as it relates to the exterior lights to see if they sizzle just like the one's in the 2015 Cadillac Escalade. So, with that being the case, here's part two of our extensive interview with the creative genius.

The headlights for the 2015 Buick Enclave were designed by Martin's team.

Martin Davis: The Black History Maker Behind The Cadillac Escalade Crystal-Like Headlights (Part One)

Martin Davis ( photo credit: GM)

The LED lights of the 2015 Cadillac Escalade were designed by a team led by Martin Davis.

With this being Black History Month, we wanted to take a moment to spotlight one of the hidden gems in the field of auto design. Being that this field is so competitive, one has a better chance of becoming a professional athlete with the NBA or the NFL. Yes, the odds of becoming a car designer is very slim. That means it even harder for blacks to breakthrough in this super competitive field. Even with that being the case, we stumbled upon Martin Davis. 

Davis, a thirty-seven year old Detroit native, was destined to work in the auto industry. Like most people from Detroit, its in their bloodline. Davis, who is General Motors' first exterior lighting manager (and the only black person currently in the industry to hold such an influential position), is changing the way we view the headlights and the taillights on today's vehicles.