This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features James P. Johnson, a highly influential black American jazz pianist who also wrote popular songs and composed classical works. A founder of the stride piano idiom, he was a crucial figure...

This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features James T. Rapier, a black planter and labor organizer who was a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Alabama during Reconstruction.

This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features John E. Carter, an American singer born June 2, 1934, Chicago, Ill.

This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features Lisa P. Jackson, an American public official who served as commissioner of New Jersey's department of environmental protection (2006-08) and as administrator of the U.S. Environmental...

This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features M. Carl Holman, an American civil rights leader, president of the National Urban Coalition (1971-88), who promoted the need for a mutual partnership between industry and government to...

This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features Melville J. Herskovits, an American anthropologist noted for having opened up the study of the "New World Negro" as a new field of research. Herskovits was also known for his humanistic...

This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features Michael S. Steele, an American politician, the first African-American to serve as chairman of the Republican National Committee (RNC; 2009-2011).

This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features R. Kelly, an American singer, songwriter, producer, and multi-instrumentalist who became one of the best-selling rhythm-and-blues (R&B) artists of the 1990s and early 21st century....

This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features Robert C. Weaver, a noted economist who was the first African-American to serve in the U.S. cabinet.

This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features Robert E. Park, an American sociologist noted for his work on ethnic minority groups, particularly African Americans, and on human ecology, a term he is credited with coining. One of the...

This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features Alonzo J. Ransier, a black member of the U.S. House of Representatives from South Carolina during Reconstruction.

This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features Bill T. Jones, an American choreographer and dancer who, with Arnie Zane, created the Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company.

This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features Abbey Lincoln, an American vocalist, songwriter, and actress born Aug. 6, 1930, Chicago, Ill.

This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features Adelaide Hall, an American-born jazz improviser whose wordless rhythms ushered in what became known as scat singing.

This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features Alan Page, an American gridiron football player who in 1971 became the first defensive player to win the Most Valuable Player award of the National Football League (NFL). He was inducted...

This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features Al Green, an American singer-songwriter who was the most popular performer of soul music in the 1970s. By further transforming the essential relationship in soul music between the sacred...

This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features Alice Dunbar Nelson, a novelist, poet, essayist, and critic associated with the early period of the Harlem Renaissance of the 1920s and '30s.

This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features Alicia Keys, an American singer-songwriter, pianist, and actress, who achieved enormous success in the early 2000s with her blend of R&B and soul music.

This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features Allen Toussaint, a songwriter, pianist, and producer, Toussaint was responsible for national hits by Ernie K-Doe, Chris Kenner, Jessie Hill, Aaron Neville, Irma Thomas, and the Showmen,...

This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features Allen Iverson, an American basketball player known for both explosive play on the court and controversy away from the game. He became the first great athlete to be strongly identified with...

This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features Amanda Smith, an American evangelist and missionary who opened an orphanage for African-American girls.

This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features Anna Deavere Smith, an American playwright, actress, author, journalist, and educator, who was best known for her one-woman plays that examined the social issues behind current events.

This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features Art Tatum, a blind, self-taught American pianist, considered one of the greatest technical virtuosos in jazz.

This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features Barry Sanders, an American professional gridiron football player. In his 10 seasons with the Detroit Lions (1989-98), Sanders led the National Football League (NFL) in rushing four times...