Duke Ellington - American composer, pianist, and leader of a jazz orchestra from 1923 through the rest of his life. Toots Thielemans - Belgian jazz musician. He was mostly known for his chromatic harmonica playing, as well as his guitar, whistling skills, and composing. Dave Valentin - American Latin jazz flautist of Puerto Rican descent. […]

Lesley Gore - American singer, songwriter, actress, and activist. At the age of 16, she recorded the pop hit "It's My Party", a US number one in 1963. She followed it up with ten further Billboard top 40 hits including "Judy's Turn to Cry" and "You Don't Own Me". Randy "Rudy" Cain -

James Brown - American singer, dancer, musician, record producer, and bandleader. The central progenitor of funk music and a major figure of 20th century music, he is often referred to by the honorific nicknames "Godfather of Soul", "Mr. Dynamite", and "Soul Brother No. 1".

Nick Ashford - R&B singer and songwriter. Tyrone Davis - American blues and soul singer with a long list of hit records over more than 20 years. Ron Carter - American jazz double bassist. Sharon Jones -  American soul and funk singer. She was the lead singer of Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings. Jackie Jackson […]

Andy Gibb - English singer, songwriter, and actor. Jheryl - American recording company executive who was the former President and Chief Executive Officer of Motown Records. Johnnie Taylor - American recording artist and songwriter who performed a wide variety of genres, from blues, rhythm and blues, soul, and gospel to pop, doo-wop, and disco.

Herb Cox - American singer from R&B group, The Cleftones.

David Prater - American Southern soul and rhythm & blues singer and musician, who was the deeper baritone/tenor vocalist of the soul vocal duo Sam & Dave from 1961 until his death in 1988.

Arthur Alexander - American country soul songwriter and singer. Ron Banks - Founding member of R&B group the Dramatics. Bill Coday - American musician and singer.  

Irving Berlin - American composer, songwriter and lyricist. His music forms a great part of the Great American Songbook. Born in Imperial Russia, Berlin arrived in the United States at the age of five.

Burt Bacharach - American composer, songwriter, record producer, and pianist who composed hundreds of pop songs from the late 1950s through the 1980s, many in collaboration with lyricist Hal David. Norman Whitfield - American songwriter and producer, who worked with Berry Gordy's Motown labels during the 1960s. He has been credited as one of the […]

Mary Wells - American singer, who helped to define the emerging sound of Motown in the early 1960s. Teddy Randazzo - American pop songwriter, singer, arranger and producer, who composed hit songs such as "Goin' Out of My Head", "It's Gonna Take a Miracle", "Pretty Blue Eyes", and "Hurt So Bad" in the 1960s. Stevie […]

Bobby Sheen - American rhythm and blues singer. George Johnson - American guitarist but a songwriter, arranger, and producer.