Rhiana Gunn-Wright is an African American environmental activist, policy advisor, and one of the authors of the Green New Deal. Born in Chicago, Illinois on October 15, 1988, she was raised by her mother, Karen Gunn, and grandmother Bertha Gunn. Growing up in the Englewood … Read MoreRhiana Gunn-Wright (1988- )
Darnella Frazier, an activist and motivational speaker, was born in 2003 in Nashville, Tennessee to parents LaTangie Gillespie and James Frazier. She has three brothers and one sister. Most of Darnella’s life, however, has been spent in Minneapolis, Minnesota. After being active in varsity basketball, … Read MoreDarnella Frazier (2003- )
Clifford Smith Jr. is a rapper, producer, songwriter, and actor best known under the stage name Method Man. Smith was born on March 2, 1971, in Hempstead, New York to Clifford and Genola Smith. The couple share three children: Terri, Clifford Jr. and Althea. Smith’s … Read MoreMethod Man/ Clifford Smith Jr. (1971- )
Concert Pianist, composer, conductor, pedagogic Nelson Hall was born on February 11, 1954, in Marianao, Cuba, to Selvin Hall, a choral conductor from Manzanillo, Cuba, and Elsa Fortun Hall from Placetas, Cuba. He has two siblings, Merari and David. Hall, an intelligent artistically child, began … Read MoreNelson Hall (1954- )
Orchestra conductor Thomas Alphonso Wilkins was born on September 10, 1956, in Norfolk, Virginia, the son of Wallace Y. Wilkins Sr. In 1962 he began school at the city’s segregated Young Park Elementary School. When he was in the third grade, he was introduced to … Read MoreThomas Alphonso Wilkins (1956 – )
Onika Tanya Maraj-Petty, known professionally as Nicki Minaj, is an influential award-winning and record-breaking rapper and songwriter who has sold over a 100 million records. Music critics and members of the public alike have named Minaj the Queen of Rap due to her punchy flow … Read MoreNicki Minaj/Onika Tanya Maraj-Petty (1982- )
Brandon Paak Anderson, better known as Anderson .Paak, is an American rapper, songwriter, producer, and drummer. Born on February 8, 1986, in Oxnard, California, Paak has become widely respected in the music industry as a multi-talented, up and coming artist. He is bi-racial, his father … Read MoreAnderson .Paak (1986 – )
Composer, Jazz pianist, and vocalist Leslie Coleman “Les” McCann was born September 23, 1935, in Lexington, Kentucky. His early education began at the all-Black Rosenwald School in the city. In 1956, the self-taught pianist McCann played and sang in school bands and in the U.S. … Read MoreLes McCann (1935-2023)
Nel Ust Wyclef Jean is an rapper, musician and actor. Jean was born on October 17, 1969, in a hut with no electricity, in Croix-des-Bouquest, Haiti. His parents, Nazarene Pastor Gesner and mother Yolanda immigrated to the United States, and in 1978, Jean and his … Read MoreNel Ust Wyclef Jean (1969- )
Opera composer, librettist, composer, violinist, pedagogic, and activist Daniel Bernard Roumain was born on May 3, 1971 in Skokie, Illinois. He was reared, however, in Margate, Florida, His parents are Haitians, and he has one son, Zachary. Roumain began playing the violin at the age … Read MoreDaniel Bernard Roumain (1971- )
