Rhythm and Blues singer Anita Ward was born on December 20, 1956, in Memphis, Tennessee, to James L. Ward, and Juanita Ward. The oldest child, Anita, had four siblings, Cassandra Ward Hibbler, Michael Ward, Entrée Ward, and James L. Ward, Jr. Ward began singing early … Read MoreAnita Ward (1956- )
Three Six Mafia is a hip hop group from Memphis, Tennessee that includes members Paul Duane “DJ Paul” Beauregard, Jordan Michael “Juicy J” Houston III, Lola Chantrelle “Gangsta Boo” Mitchell, Darnell “Crunchy Black” Carlton, Ricky “Lord Infamous” Dunigan, and Robert Cooper “Koopsta Knicca” Phillips. Three … Read MoreThree Six Mafia (1991- )
Robert Knight was born Robert Henry Peebles on April 24, 1945 in Franklin, Tennessee. Knight made his professional vocal debut with the Paramounts, a racially integrated doo-wop quintet during the Civil Rights era comprised of friends at the all-black Natchez High School and all-white Franklin … Read MoreRobert Knight (1945-2017)
The first African American players in the National Basketball Association in the twentieth century all came into the league in 1950. They were Earl Francis Lloyd (Washington Capitols), Charles Henry Cooper (Boston Celtics), and Nathaniel Clifton (New York Knicks). They all began their college careers … Read MoreThe First Black Players in the NBA (1950)
Harvey Johnson Jr. is an American politician from Mississippi. He graduated from Rosa A. Temple High School in Vicksburg, Mississippi and earned a bachelor’s degree in political science from Tennessee State University in 1968. He earned his master’s degree in political science from the University … Read MoreHarvey Johnson Jr. (1946- )
Composer, pianist/ singer Ivory Joe Hunter was born on October 10, 1914, in Kirbyville, Texas to Dave Hunter, a blues guitarist, and Anna Smith Hunter, a pianist/ gospel singer. Ivory began piano lessons at age 5 with his mother. After his mother died when he … Read MoreIvory Joe Hunter (1914-1974)
Historian, thespian, activist Georgette M. Norman was born on January 27, 1946, in Montgomery, Alabama, to George Maggie Norman, a real estate broker from Hope Hull, Alabama, and Juliet Graham Norman, who taught at W.B. Paterson Elementary School and was from Montgomery. Georgette’s early education … Read MoreGeorgette M. Norman (1946- )
Kirk Franklin and the Family, an ensemble that comprised 23 singers and musicians who were biologically related or friends, was spearheaded and directed by contemporary gospel Grammy Award recipient Kirk Franklin (born January 26, 1970, in Dallas, Texas). This informal musical collaboration became an official … Read MoreKirk Franklin and the Family (1992-2010)
Stephanie Dorthea Mills, the fifth of six children, was born on March 22, 1957 in Queens, New York, to Joseph Mills and Christine Mills but she was reared in the Bedford–Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn. At an early age, she sang gospel music at Cornerstone Baptist … Read MoreStephanie Mills (1957- )
Charles King is a producer, visionary, trailblazer, angel investor, founder and Chief Executive Officer of MACRO, a Hollywood development and production studio founded in 2015. Born in Harlem, New York in 1969 to Dr. Winton King, a Bermudian and pediatrics resident at Harlem Hospitals at … Read MoreCharles David King (1969- )
