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List of African Americans
This is a list of famous African Americans.
Please add more notable people here.
A
- Aaliyah (1979-2001), singer, actress
- Hank Aaron (born 1934), Baseball Hall of Famer
- Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (born 1947), basketball legend
- Michael Abels (born 1962), composer
- Ralph Abernathy (1936-1996), civil rights leader
- Muhal Richard Abrams (born 1930), musician
- Mumia Abu-Jamal (born 1954), prisoner and activist
- Alvin Ailey (1931-1989), dancer
- Muhammad Ali (born 1942), boxer, war protester, member of the Nation of Islam, civil rights protester, and poet
- Richard Allen (Reverend) (1760-1831), ex-slave, religious leader, founder of the African Methodist Episcopal Church
- Ivie Anderson (1904-1945), jazz singer with Duke Ellington's band
- Marian Anderson (1897-1993), famous opera and concert singer
- Carmelo Anthony NBA star
- Louis Armstrong (1901-1971), jazz musician
- Arthur Ashe (1943-1993), tennis star and activist
- Emmett L. Ashford, first African-American umpire in organized baseball
- Crispus Attucks (1723-1770), killed in Boston Massacre
B
- David Baker (born 1931), composer
- Josephine Baker, singer, entertainer
- William Banfield (born 1961), composer
- Tyra Banks, supermodel
- Benjamin Banneker (1731-1806), 18th century astronomer
- Charles Barkley, (born 1963), NBA basketball power forward
- Angela Bassett (born 1958), actor
- Count Basie (1904-1984), pianist, band leader
- Daisy Bates (1914-1999), civil rights leader
- Sidney Bechet (1897-1959), jazz musician
- James A. Bell, interim President and CEO of Boeing (2005)
- Shelton Benjamin pro Wrestler
- Halle Berry (born 1966), Oscar-winning actor and model
- Eubie Blake (1883-1983), composer and musician
- Mary J. Blige (born 1971) American R&B and soul singer and record producer.
- Barry Bonds (born 1964), baseball star
- Carol Moseley Braun (born 1947), former senator and presidential candidate
- Anthony Braxton (born 1945), composer and multi-reedist
- Arthur M. Brazier, Minister,community activist, and civil rights leader
- Edward Brooke, former Massachusetts Attorney General, first African American elected to the United States Senate (November 8, 1966).
- Shelton Brooks (1886-1975), songwriter and entertainer
- James Brown (born 1933), R&B, soul and funk singer
- Jim Brown (born 1936), football legend, actor, activist
- Ron Brown (1941-1996), served as chairman of the Democratic National Committee becoming the first African American to lead a major American political party.
- Kobe Bryant (born 1978), professional basketball player
- George Washington Buckner , physician and diplomat, U.S. minister to Liberia, 1913 - 1915, first African American to serve as minister to a foreign country.
- Ralph Bunche (1904-1971), diplomat, Nobel Laureate 1950
- Busta Rhymes, (born 1972), rap musician, also known as Trevor Smith Jr.
C
- Marcus Camby (born 1974), NBA basketball star
- John Carlos (born 1945), Olympic athlete
- William Harvey Carney (1842-1908), American Civil War hero
- George Washington Carver (1860-1943), plant scientist
- Wilt Chamberlain (1936-1999), basketball legend
- Tracy Chapman (born 1964), singer-songwriter
- Dave Chappelle (born 1972), comic
- Ray Charles (1930-2004), pop musician
- Charles Chesnutt (1858-1932), author
- Chingy (born 1980), rapper, also known as Howard Bailey Jr.
- Clarence 13x, (1928-1969) religious leader, also known as Clarence Smith
- Eldridge Cleaver (1935-1998), Black Panther
- Emanuel Cleaver, II (born 1944), former mayor of Kansas City, Missouri and U.S. House member-elect
- Gary Coleman (born 1968) actor
- John Coltrane (1926-1967), jazz musician
- Ward Connerly (born 1939), University of California Regent, political activist
- John Conyers (born 1929), congressman
- Marvel Cooke (1903-2000), journalist, writer, civil rights activist
- Coolio (born 1963), rapper, also known as Artis Ivey
- Roque Cordero (born 1917), composer
- Bill Cosby (born 1937), actor, comic, entertainer
D
- Angela Davis (born 1944), author and activist
- Benjamin J. Davis (1903-1964), communist leader, NY city councilman
- Benjamin O. Davis Sr., general
- Benjamin O. Davis Jr. (1912-2002), military airman
- Miles Davis (1926-1991), jazz musician
- Dominique Dawes (born 1976), first African American female gymnast to medal in an Olympics (Gold (Team) and Bronze (Floor) Medalist at the 1996 Olympic Games)
- Martin R. Delany (1812-1885), abolitionist
- Oscar DePriest (1871-1951), first black Congressman elected in the 20th century
- Chris Dickerson (born 1939), bodybuilder
- Taye Diggs, actor
- David Dinkins, (born 1927), mayor of New York City from 1990-1993
- DMX (born 1970), rapper
- Rockin' Dopsie, (born Alton Rubin) February 10, 1932 Carencro LA - 1993 Zydeco musician
- Bob Douglas , first African American elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame.
- Frederick Douglass (1818-1895), orator and abolitionist, ex-slave
- Dr. Dre (born 1965), rap musician, founded Death Row Records, member of rap group NWA
- Charles R. Drew (1904-1950), physician, pioneer of blood transfusion techniques
- W. E. B. DuBois (1868-1963), writer, activist, communist
- Paul Laurence Dunbar (1872-1906), poet
- Oscar Dunn, first African American lieutenant governor of a US state (Louisiana)
E
F
- 50 Cent (born 1976), New York City rapper Real Name Curtis Jackson
- James L. Farmer, Jr. (1920-1999), civil rights activist
- Louis Farrakhan (born 1933), Nation of Islam Leader
- Jessie Fauset, novelist
- Colin Ferguson, LIRR gunman who killed 6
- Aneesa Ferreira , reality tv contestant
- Ella Fitzgerald (1918–1996), singer
- Ishmael Flory (1907–2004), Communist labor organizer
- George Foreman (born 1949), boxer, TV pitchman, minister
- Aretha Franklin (born 1942), singer, often referred to as the Queen of Soul
G
- Marcus Garvey (1887-1940), political leader and nationalist
- Henry Louis Gates, Jr. (born 1950), literary critic and Harvard professor
- Marla Gibbs (born 1931), actress (The Jeffersons and 227)
- Bob Gibson (born 1935), Baseball Hall of Famer
- Whoopi Goldberg (born 1950), actress and activist
- Cuba Gooding Jr. (born 1968), actor
- Louis Gossett, Jr. (born 1936), actor
- Grandmaster Flash (born 1958), DJ and early hip hop pioneer
- Bryant Gumbel (born 1948), NBC and CBS news anchor
H
- Benjamin Hacker, (1935-2003), First U.S. Naval Flight Officer (NFO) to achieve Flag rank.
- Adolphus Hailstork (born 1941), composer
- MC Hammer (born 1962), 1980s and early 1990s rap artist, also known as Stanley Kirk Burrell
- W.C. Handy (1873-1958), blues composer
- Frances E. W. Harper , poet, novelist, lecturer and activist in turn of the century temperance and racial uplift movements.
- Jackée Harry (born 1956), actress
- Mya (born 1979) singer/actress (real name: Mya Marie Harrison)
- Isaac Hayes (born 1942), singer
- Sherman Hemsley (born 1938), actor (The Jeffersons)
- Fletcher Henderson, band leader, orchestrator, pianist
- Jimi Hendrix (1942-1970), rock and roll musician
- George Herriman (1880-1944), cartoonist
- Lauryn Hill (born 1975), hip hop singer for the Fugees
- Robert L. Hill (1892-?), black leader at Elaine Race Riot
- Billie Holiday (1915-1959), singer
- Whitney Houston (born 1963), singer
- Langston Hughes (1902-1967), poet
I
- Ice Cube (born 1969), rapper, member of NWA, also known as O'Shea Jackson
- Ice T, (born 1958), rapper, also known as Tracy Marrow
- Allen Iverson, (born 1975), NBA basketball star, all-star guard for Philadelphia 76ers
- India Arie, (born 1976), neo-soul singer-song writer
J
- Ja Rule (born 1976), rap artist, also known as Jeff Atkins; famous for his duets with Jennifer Lopez and other female artists
- Beau Jack (1921-2000), boxer, two time world champion
- LeBron James (1984-), Famous NBA baller.
- Rick James (1948-2004), musician, born James Johnson, Jr.
- Janet Jackson (born 1966), musician, sister of Michael (see below)
- Jesse Jackson (born 1941), civil rights activist and political leader
- Michael Jackson (born 1958), musician
- Samuel L. Jackson (born 1948), actor & golfer
- Tony Jackson (1876-1921), pianist & composer
- Jay-Z, rap artist, also known as Shawn Carter
- Mae Carol Jemison, first African-American woman in space
- Leroy Jenkins (born 1932), composer and musician
- George W. Johnson (c.1855-1914), pioneer recording artist
- Jack Johnson (1878-1946), first black heavyweight champion of the world
- James P. Johnson (1894-1955), pianist & composer
- James Weldon Johnson (1871-1938), author, poet, folklorist, and civil rights leader
- Earvin "Magic" Johnson (born 1959), basketball legend and entertainment entrepreneur
- Robert Johnson (1911-1938), legendary blues guitarist
- Robert L. Johnson (born 1946), media entrepreneur, first African American to be the principal owner of a major-league sports franchise (NBA's Charlotte Bobcats)
- Scipio Africanus Jones (1863-1943), attorney for Elaine Race Riot accused
- Edward P. Jones, writer
- Scott Joplin (1868-1917), ragtime composer
- Barbara Jordan (1936-1996), first African-American woman elected to Texas Senate
- Michael Jordan (born 1963), professional basketball player
- Louis Jordan (1908-1975), jazz musician and bandleader
- Hubert Julian (born 1900), aviator
K
- Ulysses Kay (1917-1995), composer
- Eddie Kendricks(1939-1992), musician, former member of The Temptations
- Alan Keyes (born 1950), diplomat and only 20th century African American to become a major Republican presidential candidate
- Alicia Keys 1981-, musician, R&B, Soul real name Alicia Augello Cook
- Lil Kim (born 1976), female rap artist, also known as Kimberly Jones
- B.B. King (born 1925), blues musician
- Coretta Scott King (born 1927), activist and widow of Martin Luther King Jr.
- Martin Luther King Jr. (1929-1968), civil rights activist, minister, Nobel laureate
- Regina King (born 1971), actress
- Rodney King (born 1965), motorist beaten by police, videotaped by bystander
- Gladys Knight (born 1944), singer
- Suge Knight, rap mogul, cofounder of Death Row Records
- Ellis O. Knox (1900-1975), first African-American to earn doctorate on West Coast (1931), educator, civil rights leader
- Lenny Kravitz, (1964), rock/pop musician
- Kurupt (born 1972), rapper, also known as Ricardo Brown
- R.Kelly (1966) Singer Robert Kelly
L
- Lil flip Rapper
- Nella Larsen (1891-1964), novelist
- Queen Latifah (born 1970), rapper (born Dana Owens)
- Oliver Law (1899-1937), officer in the Abraham Lincoln Brigade, first African American to command white soldiers
- Spike Lee (born 1957), filmmaker
- Carl Lewis (born 1961), track and field legend, nine-time Olympic gold medalist
- John Lewis (born 1940), congressman and civil rights activist
- Reginald Lewis (1942-1993), business
- LL Cool J, rap artist, also known as James Todd Smith
- Robert Jr. Lockwood (born 1915), blues musician
- Nia Long (born 1970), actress
- Joe Louis (1914-1981), boxer, longest-reigning world heavyweight champion
- Ludacris (born 1976), rap performer
- Frank Lumpkin (born 1916) communist union leader
- Jair Lynch (born 1971), first African American male gymnast to medal in an Olympics (Silver Medalist on Parallel Bars at the 1996 Olympic Games)
M
- Bernie Mac (born 1958), actor and comedian, star of Fox Network's Bernie Mac Show
- Elijah J. McCoy (1844–1929), inventor
- Cynthia McKinney (born 1955), politician
- Wynton Marsalis (born 1961), jazz trumpeter
- Thurgood Marshall (1908–1993), first non-white U.S. Supreme Court associate justice
- Three members of the Dave Matthews Band—but NOT Dave Matthews, a white South African
- Willie Mays (born 1931), Baseball Hall of Famer
- Method Man (born 1972), rapper also known as Clifford Smith, member of rap group Wu-Tang Clan
- Oscar Micheaux (1884–1951), author and pioneer filmmaker
- Arthur W. Mitchell (1883–1968), first black Congressman from the Democratic Party
- Roscoe Mitchell (born 1940), composer and musician
- Thelonious Monk (1917–1982), composer and musician
- Shemar Moore (born 1970), actor (The Young and the Restless)
- Debbi Morgan (born 1956), soap opera actress (Angie Baxter on All My Children)
- Toni Morrison (born 1931), author, Nobel laureate 1993
- Mya R&B Singer
- Mystikal, rapper
- Khalid Abdul Muhammed (1948–2001), Nation of Islam leader
N
- Nas (born 1973), rap artist also known as Nasir Jones
- Huey P. Newton, (1942-1989), founder of the Black Panther Party
- Nelly (born 1978), rapper, also known as Cornell Haynes Jr.
- Brandy Norwood (born 1979), singer and actor
- Willie 'Ray-J' Norwood Jr. (born 1981), singer and actor, brother of the precedent
- Notorious B.I.G. (1972 - 1997), also known as Biggie Smalls or Christopher Wallace, New York City rapper
O
P
- P. Diddy, (born 1970), rap artist and record executive, real name Sean Combs
- Charlie Parker (1920-1955), jazz musician
- Rosa Parks, started the Birmingham bus boycott
- William L. Patterson (1890-1980), communist, civil rights lawyer
- Walter Payton (1954-1999), football legend
- Coleridge-Taylor Perkinson , (born 1932), composer
- P. B. S. Pinchback (1837-1921), first serving African American governor of a US state (Louisiana)
- Leonard Pitts , columnist for the Miami Herald
- Jean Baptiste Point du Sable (1745-1813), first resident of Chicago
- Colin Powell (born 1937), outgoing (2004) U.S. Secretary of State under President George W. Bush, former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
- Percival Prattis , the first African American news correspondent allowed in the United States House of Representatives and Senate press gallery.
- Richard Pryor (born 1940), comedian
- Kirby Puckett (born 1961), Baseball Hall of Famer
R
- A. Philip Randolph (1889-1979), socialist, labor leader, and civil rights activist
- Tim Reid (born 1941), actor (WKRP in Cincinnati)
- Hiram Rhoades Revels, a Republican from Mississippi, the first African American ever to sit in the U.S. Congress
- Willy T. Ribbs , the first African-American driver to qualify for the Indianapolis 500 (May 19, 1991)
- Condoleezza Rice (born 1954), U.S. Secretary of State under President George W. Bush
- Jerry Rice (born 1962), holder of almost all major NFL receiving records
- Little Richard (born 1932), pioneer of rock and roll
- Norbert Rilleaux (1806-1894), inventor
- RuPaul (born 1960), drag queen
- Paul Robeson (1898-1976), athlete, actor, singer, scholar, communist
- David Robinson (born 1965), professional basketball player and U.S. Navy veteran
- Frank Robinson (born 1935), Baseball Hall of Famer, first African American manager in Major League Baseball
- Jackie Robinson (1919-1972), Baseball Hall of Famer, first African American to play in Major League Baseball in the 20th century
- Chris Rock (born 1966), comedian
- The Rock (born 1972), professional wrestler turned actor (real name: Dwayne Johnson)
- Victoria Rowell (born 1960), actress (The Young and the Restless)
- Bill Russell (born 1934), basketball legend
- Bayard Rustin (1912-1987), civil rights activist
S
- Kristoff St. John (born 1966), actor (The Young and the Restless)
- Barry Sanders (born 1968), NFL Hall of Fame inductee, running back for the Detroit Lions
- Isabel Sanford (1917-2004), actress (The Jeffersons)
- Bobby Seale (born 1936), co-founder of the Black Panther Party
- Al Sharpton (born 1954), clergyman and politician
- Assata Shakur (born 1947), exile and political activist
- Tupac Shakur (1971-1996), rapper, actor
- Art Shell first ever African American NFL head coach
- Kimora Lee Simmons CEO of Baby Phat, Wife of Russell Simmons
- OJ Simpson, football star, accused of murdering his wife and acquitted after one of the most highly publicized trials of the 20th century
- Bessie Smith (1894-1937), blues singer
- Clara Smith, blues singer
- Hale Smith (born 1925), composer
- Mamie Smith, blues singer
- Tommie Smith (born 1944), Olympic athlete
- Willie The Lion Smith (1897-1963), pianist & composer
- Will Smith (1968-) rapper, actor, director, writer
- Wesley Snipes (born 1962), actor and producer
- Snoop Dogg, rap artist, also known as Calvin Broadus
- Thomas Sowell (born 1930), economist and author
- Peter Spencer (1782-1843), ex-slave, religious leader, A.U.M.P. Church founder
- Michael Steele (born 1958), Lieutenant Governor of Maryland
- Shelby Steele (born 1946), author, educator
- William Grant Still (1895-1978), composer
T
- Marshall Taylor (1878-1932), aka "Major Taylor", champion competition cyclist
- Clarence Thomas (born 1948), U.S. Supreme Court associate justice
- Debi Thomas (born 1967), first African American to win a medal at the Winter Olympics
- Vivien Thomas (1910-1985) was an African-American surgeon who developed the procedures used to treat Blue Baby Syndrome.
- Ike Turner (born 1931), singer
- Nat Turner (1800-1831), leader of major slave revolt
- Tina Turner (born 1939), singer, actor, former wife of Ike
- Sojourner Truth (1797?-1883), ex-slave, abolitionist
- Harriet Tubman (1820-1913), ex-slave, writer, abolitionist
- Tamara Tunie (born 1959), actress (As the World Turns, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit)
- Mike Tyson (born 1966), professional boxer
U
- Usher (born 1978), famous R&B Singer
V
W
- C. J. Walker, she was the first African-American millionaire
- George Walker, (born 1922), composer
- Fats Waller (1904-1943), composer, singer, jazz musician
- Rhonda S. Walker , (born 1980), poet from Cleveland, OH
- Dionne Warwick (born 1940), singer
- Booker T. Washington (1856-1915), educator
- Denzel Washington (born 1954), Oscar-winning actor
- Ethel Waters (1896-1977), vocalist
- Muddy Waters (1915-1983), blues musician
- Cornel West (born 1953), public intellectual, author, Princeton University professor
- Phillis Wheatley (1753-1784), poet
- Jaleel White (born 1976), actor, star in ABC and CBS sitcom Family Matters as Steve Urkel
- Joseph White (1835-1918) Cuban born composer
- Carl Whitney (1919-1986), Negro League baseball player
- Douglas Wilder (born 1931), first elected African American governor of a US state (Virginia)
- Flip Wilson (1933-1998), television host and comedian
- Harriet E. Wilson, author of "Our Nig" and first African American novelist
- William Julius Wilson (born 1935), sociologist
- Billy Dee Williams actor
- Clarence Williams (1893-1965), composer, publisher, jazz musician
- Darnell Williams (born 1955), soap opera actor (Jesse Hubbard on All My Children)
- Paul Williams (1939-1973), former member of The Temptations
- Paul R. Willams (1894-1980), architect
- Robert F. Williams (1925-1996), organizer, civil rights activist
- Serena Williams (born 1981), tennis star
- Venus Williams (born 1980), tennis star, sister of Serena
- Sonny Boy Williamson (1897-1965), blues musician
- Paul Winfield, African American actor
- Oprah Winfrey (born 1954), talk show host, magazine publisher, news anchor
- Henry Winston (1911-1986), US communist leader
- Stevie Wonder (born 1950), musician
- Tiger Woods (born 1975), first African American (and Asian American) to win a major golf championship
X
- Malcolm X (1925-1965), (El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz, born Malcolm Little), one time Nation of Islam and civil rights leader
Y
- Andrew Young (born 1932), civil rights activist and politician
- Omali Yeshitela civil rights leader and was another one of the African-americans to stop violence to black americans.
See also
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