William R. "Cozy" Cole, jazz drummer, dies.

Freedmen's Town, Houston, Texas (1865- )

Freedmen’s Town is a nationally registered historical site. The site was originally a community located in the fourth ward of Houston, Texas that began in 1865 as the destination for former enslaved people from surrounding plantations in Texas and Louisiana after the Civil

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Source: Black Past

Jun

19

1865

Ella Fitzgerald Born

Ella Fitzgerald, First Lady of Song, born. In 1934, an awkward sixteen-year-old girl made her singing debut at the Harlem Apollo Theatre amateur night in New York City. She intended to dance, but she lost her nerve when she got on stage. The man said, do something while youre out there, the singer

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Source: Blackfacts.com

Apr

25

1918

Smith, Ada “Bricktop” (1894-1984)

Ada Beatrice Queen Victoria Louise Virginia Smith (“Bricktop”), vaudevillian actress, singer, nightclub owner, and international celebrity host, was born August 14, 1894 in Alderson, West Virginia, to Thomas and Hattie Thompson Smith. Her father passed away in 1898 and Mrs. Smith moved

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Source: Black Past

Jan

31

1984

Smith, E. Russell "Noodles" (? - 1952)

E. Russell Noodles Smith, so named because he always kept enough money for a bowl of noodles after a night of gambling, is considered to be the father – or perhaps the midwife - of Seattle jazz. He arrived in Seattle during the Alaska Yukon Pacific Exhibition in 1909 with $17,000 that he claimed

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Source: Black Past

Cook, Will Marion (1869-1944)

Will Marion Cook was a talented musician, conductor, and composer born on January 27, 1869 in Washington, D.C. to John Hartwell Cook and Marion Isabelle Lewis. From 1884 to 1887 Cook studied violin at the Oberlin Conservatory of Music. He then studied abroad for two years from 1887 to 1889 at the

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Source: Black Past

Jan

27

1869

From Opera, Minstrelsy and Ragtime to Social Justice: An Overview of African American Performers at Carnegie Hall, 1892-1943

“It is probable that this hall will intertwine itself with the history of our country,” said Andrew Carnegie in 1890, when he laid the cornerstone of the building that would become Carnegie Hall. In keeping with Carnegie’s firm belief in egalitarianism and meritocracy, the hall that

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Stokes, Charles Moorehead (1903-1996)

Charles Moorehead Stokes, one of three sons of Rev. Norris Jefferson Stokes and Myrtle Garner Stokes, was born on February 1, 1903 in Pratt, Kansas. He graduated from the University of Kansas Law School in 1931 and soon after opened his law practice in Pratt but later moved to Topeka to serve as an

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Source: Black Past

Nov

25

1996

Southern, Eileen Jackson (1920-2002)

Eileen Southern was among the first generation of musicologists focused on studying, preserving, and teaching the history and traditions of African American music. She was also the first female African American faculty member at Harvard

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Akon

Akon is an American Hip Hop artist who has produced several platinum albums, appeared in television and film roles, received several Grammy nominations and owns two record labels. He was born Aliaune Damala Bouga Time Bongo Puru Nacka Lu Lu Lu Badara Akon Thiam in St. Louis, Missouri on April

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Source: Black History Resources

Apr

16

1973

Hinderas, Natalie Leota (1927-1987)

Concert pianist Natalie Hinderas was born Natalie Leota Henderson on June 15, 1927, to parents Abram Henderson and Leota Palmer Henderson in Oberlin, Ohio. Hinderas came from a family of accomplished musicians. Her great-grandfather had been a bandleader and teacher, her father was a jazz pianist

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Source: Black Past

Jul

22

1987

Africans and African Americans in China: A Long History, A Troubled Present, and a Promising Future?

Africa and China have hadcontact for more than a thousand years. Some scholars assert that the contactsbegan as early as 4th century A.D. but convincing evidence issporadic or lacking. Beginning with the Tang dynasty (618 A.D. to 907 A.D.)documented evidence of contact and trade exists showing

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Source: Black Past

Sarah Vaughan

Sarah Vaughan was a popular twentieth century African-American Jazz singer. She was recognized for her beautiful voice and often nicknamed ‘Sassy’, ‘Sailor’ and ‘The Divine One’ for her salty speech. Moreover, she won a Grammy Award and was awarded the “highest honor in jazz” by The

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Source: Black History Resources

Mar

27

1924

How Jazz Helped Fuel the Civil Rights Movement

Starting with the age of bebop, jazz ceased to cater to popular audiences and instead became solely about the music and the musicians who played it. Since then, jazz has been symbolically linked to the civil rights

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Source: ThoughtCo

Ellington, Duke

Ellington, Duke (Edward Kennedy Ellington), 1899–1974, American jazz musician and composer, b. Washington, D.C. Ellington made his first professional appearance as a jazz pianist in 1916. By 1918 he had formed a band, and after appearances in nightclubs in Harlem he became one of the most famous

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Source: Fact Monster - Black History

Norman, Jessye (1945- )

Best known as an opera singer, Jessye Norman has also lent her rich, dramatic, and powerful voice to recordings and recitals of spirituals and hymns– including a particularly compelling version of “Amazing Grace” and Christmas carols, in addition to recording jazz. She has never limited

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Source: Black Past

Sep

11

2001

Perkinson, Coleridge-Taylor (1932-2004)

Musician, composer, and conductor Coleridge-Taylor Perkinson was born on June 14, 1932, in Manhattan, New York City. Perkinson’s mother, a talented pianist, organist, and theater director in the Bronx, named her son after the Afro-British composer, Samuel Coleridge-Taylor. Perkinson began showing

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Source: Black Past

Mar

9

2004

Cab Calloway

Cab Calloway was an American jazz musician of the 20th century. He was born in Rochester, New York, on December 25, 1907 to Martha Eulalia Reed and Cabell Calloway, Jr., both of whom were college graduates. Martha was a teacher and church organist whereas Cabell was a lawyer and also worked in real

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Nov

18

1994

Jazz

Read about the artists who have shaped jazz, the influences theyve incorporated, and the techniques theyve developed in this collection.

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Jazz History by Decade - 1950 to 1960

Previous Decade: 1940-1950

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Moore, Kermit (1929-2013)

Over a long distinguished career Kermit Moore has been a cellist of outstanding acclaim, an orchestra conductor, composer, teacher, and mentor. Through these activities in classical music he has been successful in breaking down racial and social

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Source: Black Past

Oscar Peterson

Best Known

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Source: Fact Monster - Black History

Scatman Crothers

Benjamin Sherman Crothers was an American actor, musician, singer and dancer. He was born on May 23, 1910 to Benjamin and Donnie Crothers in Terre Haute, Indiana. He got his nickname when he auditioned for a radio show in 1932 and the director told him he needed a catchy name, which is when he came

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Source: Black History Resources

May

23

1910

Young, Cecil (c. 1920-c. 1975)

Pianist Cecil Youngs quartet exploded onto the Seattle jazz scene in 1950, introducing the rhythmic fire of bebop to an eager new audience. His quartets debut record was immediately successful, and Young, known for his devilish sense of humor as well as his immense musical talents, rose to great

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Introduction to Jazz Music: A Brief History

Born in America, jazz can be seen as a reflection of the cultural diversity and individualism of this country. At its core are an openness to all influences, and personal expression through improvisation. Throughout its history, jazz has straddled the worlds of popular music and art music, and it

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Black History Month - African American Inventors

Patent Abstract: A double level metal interconnection structure and process for making same are disclosed, wherein an etch-stop layer is formed on the first metal layer to prevent over-etching thereof when forming the second level metal line in a via hole in an insulating layer thereover, by means

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A Cultural History of the Zoot Suit

In the 1944 Tom & Jerry short The Zoot Cat—only the thirteenth cartoon ever made starring that famous duo—Toms would-be girlfriend lays it on him straight: Boy, are you corny! You act like a square at the fair, a goon from Saskatoon. You come on like a broken arm. Youre a sad apple, a long

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Source: ThoughtCo

McDaniel, Hattie (1895-1952)

Hattie McDaniel is best known as the first black Oscar winner. She won the award on February 29, 1940, for Best Supporting Actress for her role as “Mammy” in Gone With the Wind. McDaniels career began three decades earlier. She gave her first public performances as a grade school

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Source: Black Past

Feb

29

1940

Cassandra Wilson

Cassandra Wilson (born. Dec 4, 1955) is a best known as an American songwriter, singer, jazz musician and music producer who hails from Jackson, Mississippi. Wilson, whose ancestry includes Welsh, Eastern European and West African blood is the third youngest child of jazz musician Herman Fowlkes

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Source: Black History Resources

Dec

4

1955

Foster, Catherine D. ("Kay") -Copyeditor

Catherine D. Foster (Kay) received her B.A. in Political Science from St. Martin’s College (now University) in Olympia, Washington in 1976. Previously, she attended Western Washington University, where she was in the Honors

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Quincy Jones

Born: 3/14/1933 Chicago, IllinoisQuincy Delight Jones, Jr. is an American record producer, conductor, arranger, composer, musician, television producer, film producer, instrumentalist, magazine founder, entertainment company executive, and humanitarianAwards / Achievements:

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BlackFacts Details

William R. "Cozy" Cole, jazz drummer, dies.

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MLK at Stanford 1967 - The Other America

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