Curated category
20th-century African-American musicians
- Keef CowboyRobert Keith Wiggins stood in a Bronx hallway on the 20th of September 1960. He would later become known as Keef Cowboy, but his name was just a sound to him…
- Spoonie GeeGabriel Jackson arrived in Harlem on the 27th of May 1963. He grew up using a spoon as his only eating utensil during early childhood years.
- Disco King MarioDisco King Mario entered the world on the 1st of July 1956. His family originated from Edenton, North Carolina. This small town in eastern North Carolina…
- Jocko HendersonDouglas Henderson was born on the 8th of March 1918 in Baltimore. He grew up there with both parents working as teachers.
- FabolousJohn David Jackson stood before the microphone on the 18th of November 1977. He was born in Brooklyn and grew up in Breevort Houses within Bedford-Stuyvesant.
- Coke La RockCoke La Rock was born on the 24th of April 1955 in The Bronx, New York City. His family roots traced back to North Carolina before he arrived in the city.
- Large ProfessorWilliam Paul Mitchell was born in Harlem on the 21st of March 1972. He grew up in Flushing, Queens, where he attended IS 237 and John Bowne High School.
- Jeru the DamajaKendrick Jeru Davis was born on the 14th of February 1971 in Brooklyn, New York. He spent his early years in the borough's East New York neighborhood where…
- Sha-RockSharon Green entered the world on the 25th of October 1962 in Wilmington, North Carolina. Her family moved her to the South Bronx during the earliest years…
- Dr. HepcatAlbert Lavada Durst arrived in Austin, Texas on the 12th of January 1913. He learned to play piano while still a child growing up in that city.
- Hi-C (rapper)Crawford Wilkerson grew up in Compton, California. He joined the Tree Top Piru gang during his youth. This affiliation shaped his early life and future…
- Tupac ShakurTupac Amaru Shakur was born on the 16th of June 1971, in East Harlem, Manhattan. His birth name was Lesane Parish Crooks until he was renamed at age one.
- Dallas AustinDallas Austin was born on the 29th of December 1970 in Columbus, Georgia. He grew up in a home where his parents owned The Party Club, a night club that…
- Bo DiddleyEllas Bates McDaniel arrived in the world on the 30th of December 1928, inside a small town called McComb, Mississippi. He was the only child of Ethel…
- Gil Scott-HeronGilbert Scott-Heron arrived in Chicago on the 1st of April 1949. His mother Bobbie Scott was an opera singer who performed with the Oratorio Society of New…
- Kurtis BlowKurtis Blow made history in 1979 when he became the first rapper signed to a major label. Mercury Records released his single Christmas Rappin' that same…
- Lil JonJonathan H. Smith was born on the 17th of January 1971 in Atlanta, Georgia. He grew up in Southwest Atlanta as the oldest of five children.
- DMXEarl Simmons was born on the 18th of December 1970, in Mount Vernon, New York. He grew up as the middle child of a family that included two daughters and two…
- Tech N9neAaron Dontez Yates was born on the 8th of November 1971 in Kansas City, Missouri. He began rapping at a very early age to spell out his own name letter by…