Jimmy Munday - American jazz tenor saxophonist, arranger, and composer, best known for his arrangements for Benny Goodman, Count Basie, and Earl Hines. Joe "Fox" Smith - American jazz trumpeter.

Little Eva - American pop singer. Although some sources claim that her stage name was inspired by a character from the novel Uncle Tom's Cabin, she stated in an interview that she was named after her aunt, which prompted her family to call her "Little Eva".  

Florence Ballard - American singer and a founding member of the Motown vocal female group the Supremes. She sang on 16 top 40 singles with the group, including ten number-one hits. Ronald Winans - American Gospel singer who gained fame as a member of The Winans. Stanley Clarke - American bassist, film composer and founding […]

Bobby Day - American rock and roll and R&B singer, multi instrumentalist, music producer and songwriter. He is best known for his hit record "Rockin' Robin", written by Leon René under the pseudonym Jimmie Thomas. Syl Johnson - American blues and soul singer and record producer. Andre Couch - American gospel singer, songwriter, arranger, record […]

Ahmad Jamal - American jazz pianist, composer, bandleader and educator. For six decades, he has been one of the most successful small-group leaders in jazz. Paul Williams (The Temptations) - American baritone singer and choreographer. Williams was noted for being one of the founding members and original lead singer of the Motown group The Temptations. […]

Arthur Blythe - American jazz alto saxophonist and composer. Tommy Lipuma - American music producer. He received 33 Grammy nominations, 5 Grammy wins, and his productions sold over 75 million albums.

Della Reese - American jazz and gospel singer, actress, and ordained minister whose career spanned seven decades. She began her long career as a singer, scoring a hit with her 1959 single "Don't You Know?". Gene Chandler - American singer, songwriter, music producer, and record-label executive. Chandler is nicknamed "the Duke of Earl" or, simply, […]

Doc Sevenrinsen -  American jazz trumpeter who led the band on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson. Joe Zawunil - Austrian jazz keyboardist and composer. First coming to prominence with saxophonist Cannonball Adderley, Zawinul went on to play with Miles Davis and to become one of the creators of jazz fusion, a musical genre that […]

Earl Van Dyke - American soul musician, most notable as the main keyboardist for Motown Records' in-house Funk Brothers band during the late 1960s and early 1970s. Louis Jordan - American saxophonist, multi-instrumentalist, songwriter and bandleader who was popular from the late 1930s to the early 1950s. Known as "The King of the Jukebox", he […]

Swamp Dogg - American soul and R&B singer, musician, songwriter and record producer. Williams has been described as "one of the great cult figures of 20th century American music." Big John Patton - American jazz, blues and R&B pianist and organist often known by his nickname, Big John Patton. Patton was one of the most […]

Gerald Levert - American singer-songwriter, producer and actor. Levert is best known for singing with his brother, Sean Levert, and friend Marc Gordon of the vocal group LeVert. Levert was also a member of LSG, a supergroup comprising Keith Sweat, Johnny Gill, and himself. 0692829A

Gwen Guthrie - American singer-songwriter and pianist who also sang backing vocals for Aretha Franklin, Billy Joel, Stevie Wonder, Peter Tosh, and Madonna, among others, and who wrote songs made famous by Ben E. King, Angela Bofill and Roberta Flack.

Frank McComb - Soul singer and record producer. He has collaborated with Prince, Chaka Khan, Will Smith, Najee, Branford Marsalis, George Duke, Frankie Beverly and Maze, Phyllis Hyman, Gamble and Huff, Patrice Rushen, Lalah Hathaway, Fred Hammond, and John P. Kee. Gregory Isaacs - Jamaican reggae musician. Milo Miles, writing in The New York Times, […]

Denise Lasalle - American blues, R&B and soul singer, songwriter, and record producer who, since the death of Koko Taylor, had been recognized as the "Queen of the Blues". Her best known songs were "Trapped by a Thing Called Love" and "Down Home Blues". William Bell - American soul singer and songwriter. As a performer, […]

Phil Upchurch - American jazz and blues guitarist.

Carlos Santana - Mexican-American guitarist who rose to fame in the late 1960s and early 1970s with his band Santana, which pioneered a fusion of rock 'n' roll and Latin American jazz.

Larry Tolbert - Drummer & percussionist. Member of American funk and R&B vocal group, Raydio.

Chuck Jackson - American R&B singer who was one of the first artists to record material by Burt Bacharach and Hal David successfully. He has performed with moderate success since 1961. His hits include "I Don't Want to Cry," "Any Day Now," "I Keep Forgettin'", and "All Over the World". Al Di Meola - American […]

Renee Diggs - Former lead singer of the R&B group Starpoint. Known for musical hits such as "Object Of My Desire" and "All Night Long," Diggs' band recorded 10 albums during the 1980s. Madeline Bell - American soul singer, who became famous as a performer in the UK during the 1960s and 70s with pop […]

Billy Taylor - American jazz pianist, composer, broadcaster and educator. He was the Robert L. Jones Distinguished Professor of Music at East Carolina University in Greenville, and from 1994 was the artistic director for jazz at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C. Jennifer Lopez- American singer, actress, and dancer. […]

Verdine White - American musician, best known as a founding member and bassist for the band Earth, Wind & Fire. White was placed at No. 27 on Bass Player's list of The 100 Greatest Bass Players of All Time. Rudy West - Founding Vocalist in American rhythm and blues vocal group, The Five Keys.

Brenton Wood - American singer and songwriter known for his two 1967 hit singles, "The Oogum Boogum Song" and "Gimme Little Sign". Andrea Marie Truden - American pornographic actress and singer from the disco era. In addition to her given name, she had multiple stage names, including Inger Kissin, Singe Low, Sandra Lips, Andrea Travis, […]

Harvey Fuqua - American rhythm and blues singer, songwriter, record producer, and record label executive. Fuqua founded the seminal R&B/doo-wop group the Moonglows in the 1950s. He is notable as one of the key figures in the development of the Motown label in Detroit, Michigan. Mary Love Comer - American soul and gospel singer, and […]

Nnenna Freelon - American jazz singer, composer, producer, and arranger. Rudy Valee - American singer, musician, actor, and radio host. He was one of the first modern pop stars of the teen idol type.

Wanya Morris - American singer, best known as a member of the R&B group Boyz II Men. Joe Beck - American jazz guitarist who was active for over 30 years.

David Sanborn - American alto saxophonist. Though Sanborn has worked in many genres, his solo recordings typically blend jazz with instrumental pop and R&B. He released his first solo album Taking Off in 1975, but has been playing the saxophone since before he was in high school. Buddy Guy - American blues guitarist and singer. […]

Ahmet Ertegun - Turkish-American businessman, songwriter and philanthropist. Ertegun was the co-founder and president of Atlantic Records. He discovered and championed many leading rhythm and blues and rock musicians. Ertegun also wrote classic blues and pop songs. Hank Jones - American jazz pianist, bandleader, arranger, and composer. Critics and musicians described Jones as eloquent, lyrical, […]

Jean Wells - American soul singer. Robert Cray - American blues guitarist and singer. He has led his own band and won five Grammy Awards.