Tried to, working in Motown (7)
I believe the answer is:
detroit
'motown' is the definition.
(I've seen this in another clue)
'tried to working' is the wordplay.
'working' is an anagram indicator.
'tried'+'to'='triedto'
'triedto' is an anagram of 'DETROIT'.
'in' is the link.
(Other definitions for detroit that I've seen before include "US city associated with automobile production" , "Origin of Motown" , "Motown, Mich." , "US motor city" , "Michigan car city" .)