Commissioner (Dist. 2)
From the West Side of Detroit to the halls of Wayne County government, Commissioner Jonathan C. Kinloch has spent a lifetime defying expectations, building institutions, and serving his community with uncommon dedication. His story is one of dual mastery — a career that bridges the worlds of music and politics with equal passion and purpose.
Born and raised in Detroit, Commissioner Kinloch grew up one of six siblings, the son of a seamstress mother and a father who was a UAW member in the automotive industry at Chevrolet Gear & Axle. Raised not far from the iconic Hitsville U.S.A., the birthplace of Motown, he came of age in a neighborhood alive with creative ambition. “Growing up in my neighborhood, the Old Westside, there was a kindred spirit,” he recalls. “Dreams of becoming that next big star were so real then because you heard of people like Diana Ross and Marvin Gaye making it — and it seemed a reachable goal, especially because it was so close to home.” Though he once dreamed of becoming a scientist, it was music and public service that ultimately captured his heart and shaped the arc of his remarkable life.
His civic formation began early. During his formative years at Detroit Public Schools’ Northwestern High School, Kinloch was fortunate to engage in internships and volunteer efforts under the guidance of Michigan trailblazers, including former Detroit City Council President Erma L. Henderson, Detroit’s former Ombudsman Marie Farrell-Donaldson, and Gloria C. Cobbin, a former president of the Detroit Board of Education. These mentors instilled in him a lifelong reverence for public service — a calling he has never set aside. After high school, he worked as a Legislative Aide to former Michigan State Senator Jack Faxon, served as Director of Government and Community Relations for Trend Industries, Inc.
While building his civic foundation, Kinloch simultaneously pursued a career in the music industry that would take him to the highest levels of the business. He founded Kinloch Entertainment Inc. in 1991, later renamed The Kinloch Group, Inc., and went on to manage the platinum-selling R&B vocal group Hi-Five. He secured a solo deal for Hi-Five lead singer Tony Thompson on Nuff Sound/Giant Records, a division of Warner Music Group, where Thompson’s debut solo album Sexsational reached the Billboard Top Ten in 1995.
As President of 2000 Watts Music, Inc., Kinloch helped produce a string of major hits, including Busta Rhymes and Janet Jackson’s “What It’s Gonna Be,” LSG’s “My Body,” and contributed to high-profile soundtracks including Down in the Delta and Save the Last Dance. He accumulated co-ownership of a catalog of over 300 songs. His success in the music business was shaped in part by mentors such as industry legends Bert Padell, Merlin Bobb, Ann Carli, Barry Weiss, and Clive Caulder, who taught him to focus on the music above all else. “Clive told me to focus on the record and not the charts,” Kinloch reflects, “because if you make a great record, it will cross over.”
True to his dual calling, Kinloch never allowed his music career to pull him away from public service. In 1997, he was appointed to the City of Detroit Board of Zoning Appeals, where he served for nine years. In 2006, he was elected to the Detroit Board of Education, representing a district encompassing the city’s southwest side — home to Michigan’s largest Latino population. During his tenure, he chaired the Committee on Human Resources, Policy, and Legislative Affairs, overseeing 17,000 employees, 14 labor unions, and the district’s full scope of policy and legislative affairs. Among his most enduring contributions were the establishment of the Office of Inspector General and the DPS Police Department, as well as securing citywide voter approval, granting Detroit Public Schools subpoena power during corruption investigations. He subsequently served on the Detroit Library Commission from 2008 to 2013.
Commissioner Kinloch worked in the communications department at UAW-Ford, under the leadership of then UAW Ford Vice President Rory Gamble, also he served as Southeast Michigan Community Liaison to Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer and later as Political Director for the Service Employees International Union–Healthcare Michigan (SEIU), deepening his expertise in labor, health policy, and statewide governance.
It was perhaps his most consequential moment of political courage that brought him to national attention. In November 2020, as a member of the Wayne County Board of Canvassers, Kinloch stood firm against efforts to decertify Wayne County’s 2020 Presidential Election results — a principled stand that reverberated across the nation and reaffirmed his commitment to democratic integrity.
Today, Commissioner Jonathan C. Kinloch serves his third term as a Wayne County Commissioner, representing approximately 116,000 residents in Commission District 2 — a district that encompasses Detroit neighborhoods including Central Westside, Northend, Midtown, Downtown, and parts of Southwest and Eastside Detroit. As Chair of the Committee on Ways and Means, he stewards the county’s fiscal priorities with both rigor and vision. He also chairs the Special Committee on the Criminal Justice Complex and serves on the Special Committee on Behavioral Health, with a policy focus on housing, mental health, regional transportation, and economic equity.
Commissioner Kinloch’s leadership extends across an impressive portfolio of boards and authorities. He serves as President of the Wayne County Housing Commission; Chair of the Board of Directors of the Detroit Wayne Integrated Health Network (DWIHN), the county’s Mental Health Authority; and Chair of the Detroit/Wayne County Port Authority Board of Directors. He also serves on the Board of Directors for the Wayne County Economic Development Corporation, the Detroit Board of Water Commissioners, and the Board of Directors for the Community Mental Health Association of Michigan (CMHAM), where he sits on the Legislation & Policy Committee.
At the regional level, Commissioner Kinloch is deeply engaged with the Southeast Michigan Council of Governments (SEMCOG), where he serves as a Delegate on the General Assembly, Vice Chair of the Counties Bloc Caucus, and member of the Executive Committee, Regional Review Committee, and Transportation Coordinating Council. Nationally, he serves on the U.S. Global Leadership Coalition (USGLC) Michigan Advisory Committee, bringing a global perspective to his fundamentally community-centered work.
His Democratic Party leadership remains robust. He serves as Chair of the 13th Congressional District Democratic Party and as 4th Vice Chair of the Michigan Democratic Party. He also serves on the Chandler Park Conservancy Board of Directors.
Commissioner Kinloch is a member of The Most Worshipful Prince Hall Grand Lodge of Michigan — Abiff Lodge #21, the Michigan Wolverine Consistory #6 PHA, and holds the distinguished rank of Grand Inspector General (33°), the thirty-third and last degree, in the United Supreme Council, Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite, Prince Hall Affiliation, Northern Jurisdiction, USA — the highest degree attainable in that venerable tradition.
Faith undergirds all that he does. Commissioner Kinloch is a proud member of Triumph Church in Detroit, under the pastoral leadership of his brother, Rev. Solomon W. Kinloch, Jr. He continues to volunteer and lend his support to causes locally and nationally, guided by the conviction that service is not a chapter of one’s life — it is the whole story.
Commissioner Jonathan C. Kinloch is, in every sense, a rare and enduring force in Detroit’s civic life — a man who never chose between his passions, but mastered them all, and in doing so, lifted his community with every step forward.
Staff
Becel Dubreuze III
Executive Assistant to the Chair
of Committee on Ways and Means
Brian K. Martin
Legislative Aide for Office Administration
Steven Rimmer
Legislative Aide for Constituent Services
Duriajaiye Lewis
Housing Policy Fellow (Extern)
Submit an invitation to a meeting, inquiries or concerns
:Jkinlochstaff@waynecountymi.gov