Michael Jackson
Michael Jackson was one of the most widely beloved entertainers and profoundly influential artists of all-time. Five of Jackson's solo albums - "Off the Wall," "Thriller," "Bad," and "Dangerous" all with Epic Records - are among the top-sellers of all time and “Thriller” holds the distinction as the largest selling album worldwide in the history of the recording industry with more than 70 million units sold. Additionally, singles released from the Thriller album sold more than 100 million copies worldwide, another all time record. During his extraordinary career, he sold an estimated 750 million records worldwide, released 13 No.1 singles and became one of a handful of artists to be inducted twice into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. The Guinness Book of World Records recognized Jackson as the Most Successful Entertainer of All Time and "Thriller" as the Biggest Selling Album of All Time. Jackson won 13 Grammy Awards and received the American Music Award's Artist of the Century Award. Michael Jackson started in the music business at the age of 11 with his brothers as a member of the Jackson 5. In the early 1980s, he defined the art form of music video with such groundbreaking videos as "Billie Jean," "Beat It" and the epic "Thriller." Jackson's sound, style and dance moves inspired subsequent generations of pop, soul, R&B and hip-hop artists. He was then and will now always be remembered as the King of Pop for his amazing gift and warm heart.
Little Richard
Little Richard has been known as an architect and originator of rock and roll. He singlehandedly laid the foundation and established the rules for a new musical form: rock and roll. Little Richard was born and raised in Macon, Georgia, the third of twelve children. Richard Wayne Penniman began singing in his local church choir at a young age. He signed with RCA Records in 1951 after winning a talent contest and released two singles—neither receiving prominent notice. Returning to his job washing dishes in a Greyhound bus station, Richard sent a demo tape to Specialty Records, a fledgling Los Angeles label. The song, "Tutti Frutti," was his catalyst for success and led to an uninterrupted run of smash hits—"Tutti Frutti," "Long Tall Sally," "Rip It Up," and many more. By 1968, Little Richard had sold over 32 million records internationally.
Richard was honored with a star on the world-renowned Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1990. Soon afterward, he returned to his hometown of Macon for the unveiling of "Little Richard Penniman Boulevard." In 1993, he received the long-overdue Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences. He also performed for rock & roll fans Bill Clinton and Al Gore at one of the biggest parties in Washington—the inaugural gala.
Little Richard was a great musician and he was then and will always be remembered as one of the originators to rock and roll.
Louis Armstrong (Musician)
Louis Armstrong,nicknamed Satchmo, was an American jazz trumpeter and singer from New Orleans, Louisiana. He was born in 1901 to a very poor family. His father abandoned him and his mother when he was a baby and he lived with his paternal grandmother until he was five yeas old. Then he moved in with his mother and baby sister. As a child he had many jobs and sang in a boys' quartet. When he was 12 he was sent to a reform school after shooting a gun in the air on New Year's Eve. While in the reform school he learned how to play the cornet. Since then he had a passion for music. In his teens he learned more about jazz from listening to great musicians. Armstrong gained his fame after becoming second cornet for a band in Chicago. Then he went off to regain further fame in New York City where he worked with Duke, Ellington and Irving Berlin. From then on Armstrong was known as a man who changed the meaning of jazz. He entertained many and will always be remembered as the man who revolutionized jazz. Some of his many accomplishments are as followed:
• Developed a way of playing jazz, as an instrumentalist and a vocalist, which has had an impact on all musicians to follow;
• Recorded hit songs for five decades, and his music is still heard today on television and radio and in films;
• Wrote two autobiographies, more than ten magazine articles, hundreds of pages of memoirs, and thousands of letters;
• Appeared in more than thirty films (over twenty were full-length features) as a gifted actor with superb comic timing and an unabashed joy of life;
• Composed dozens of songs that have become jazz standards;
• Performed an average of 300 concerts each year, with his frequent tours to all parts of the world earning him the nickname “Ambassador Satch,” and became one of the first great celebrities of the twentieth century.
Althea Gibson (Tennis Player)
· Born August 25, 1927, in Silver, South Carolina
· Considered to be the “Jackie Robinson of tennis” because she broke the color barrier in the sport.
· First African American women to win a Grand Slam title.
· Won 5 individual Grand Slam titles.
Jesse Owens (Track and Field Athlete)
· Born September 12, 1913 in Danville, Alabama
· Jesse Owens proved to the world during the 1936 Olympics in Nazi Germany that any individual could achieve greatness, regardless of race, religion or national origin by winning 4 gold medals.
· Jesse Owens was awarded the Medal of Freedom by President Ford in 1976.
Jackie Robinson (Baseball Player)
· Jackie was born on January 31, 1919 in Cairo, Georgia. He was the youngest of five children.
• In March 1984, US President Ronald Reagan posthumously awarded Jackie the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
· In 1999, Time Magazine named Robinson on its list of the 100 most influential people of the 20th century.
Muhammad Ali (Boxer)
· Muhammad Ali born Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr. on January 17, 1942. He changed his name to Muhammad Ali in 1964 after joining Nation of Islam.
· Muhammad Ali has devoted his life to humanitarian work, putting his name to many initiatives for peace and humanitarian aid.
· First Boxer to win the World Heavy weight Championship three times
Arthur Ashe (Tennis Player)
· Born on July 10th, 1943
· Arthur is the only black male tennis player to win Wimbledon (1975) and the U.S. Open (1968).
· First (and only) African-American to be ranked #1 tennis player in the world.
· Presidential Medal of Freedom Recipient.
Langston Hughes
- Born February 1, 1902
- One of the founders of the Harlem Renaissance
- Social Activist
- African American novelist, playwright, short story writer, and columnist
Toni Morrison
- Born February 18, 1931
- Pulitzer-winning author
- Beloved
- First African American woman to receive the Nobel Prize for Literature (1993)
