*Yitz Jordan was born on this date in 1978. He is a Gay, Black, Jewish hip-hop artist. An Orthodox Jew, Jordan was formerly Hasidic and is better known by his stage name Y-Love. Jordan, an only child, was born and raised in Baltimore, Maryland, to a Christian Ethiopian father and a Puerto Rican mother. He occasionally […]
learn more*Nile Rodgers Jr. was born on this date in 1952. He is a Black record producer, guitarist, composer, and philanthropist. Nile Gregory Rodgers was born on the Lower East Side, New York City, to Beverly Goodman and Nile Rodgers. His mother gave birth to Rodgers when she was 14. He was raised as a Catholic. […]
learn moreRoderick Cox is a classical composer, conductor, and musician. In this segment, he shares his knowledge of the many contributions from Africa and people of African descent.
learn more*Les McCann was born on this date in 1935. He was a Black jazz pianist, composer, and bandleader. Leslie Coleman McCann was born in Lexington, Kentucky. He grew up in a musical family of four, a brother and three sisters, with most of McCann’s family singing in church choirs. His father was a jazz fan, and his […]
learn more*Rudolph Isley was born on this date in 1939. He was a Black Rhythm and Blues singer and lyricist. Rudolph “Rudy” Bernard Isley was born and raised in Cincinnati, Ohio, where Isley began singing in church at a young age. By his teen years, he was singing as a member of The Isley Brothers with Kelly, Ronnie, and […]
learn more*Chaka Khan was born on this date in 1953. She is a Black singer known as the ‘Queen of Funk.’ Khan was born Yvette Marie Stevens into an artistic, avant-garde household in Chicago, Illinois. The eldest of five children born to Charles Stevens and Sandra Coleman, she has described her father as a beatnik and […]
learn moreDouglas Ewart is a musician, composer, instrumentalist, sculptor, and musical instrument maker. In this segment, he shares a past class project he instructed with students.
learn more*Martha Redbone was born on this date in 1966. She is a Black, Native American blues and soul singer. She identifies as having Choctaw, Eastern Cherokee, and African American ancestry. Martha Redbone was born in New York City. Redbone spent childhood with her maternal grandparents in Black Mountain, Harlan County, Kentucky. Her maternal grandmother is of Eastern Cherokee and Shawnee […]
learn more*Lucila Reyes was born on this date in 1936. She was an Afro Peruvian singer, and personality. Born to a poor family in the capital, Lima, Lucila J. Sarsines Reyes was one of sixteen children. Her father, Tobias Sarsines, died after she turned six months old. Reyes spent much of her childhood living away from her immediate […]
learn more*Doc Clayton was born on this date in 1898. He was a Black blues singer and songwriter. He was born Peter Joe Clayton in Georgia and moved to St. Louis as a child with his family. He had four children and worked in a factory in St. Louis, where he started his career as a singer and […]
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