Sam Cooke (1931-1964), hailed as the "King of Soul," was a singer, songwriter and activist who significantly transformed soul music. Between 1956 and 1964, he charted 29 Top 40 pop singles and 20 Top Ten R&B singles. Cooke's promising career was abruptly ended when he was fatally shot in 1964.

Edmonia Lewis is considered the first Afro-Native American professional sculptor to achieve international recognition for her work.

Billie Holiday (1915 - 1959) was a singer and activist who bravely stood against the racism and discrimination of her times.

John H. Johnson founded The Johnson Publishing Company, once the largest Black-owned publishing firm, which included magazines Jet and EBONY that spoke for Black America to Black America.

Virgil Abloh was a fashion designer, architect, designer and influencer. His work, merging streetwear with luxury, gained him international acclaim, a position on Time magazine's 100 Most Influential People list in 2018, and recognition for transforming fashion.

Gordon Parks (1912 –2016) was a photographer, composer, film director, author, and poet known for his documentary photojournalism on civil rights and poverty.

Alain Leroy Locke (1885-1954) was a writer, educator, philosopher and art collector. He’s considered the godfather of the Harlem Renaissance for writing about the Black art and culture that was emerging during that time.

This talented Bahamian American actor, dancer and singer brought "Good Times" and outspoken advocacy to television.

Exuberant and undeniably fashionable, Talley redefined what others only dared to dream was possible in the fashion industry.

Stormé DeLarverie is an activist, community leader and influential figure remembered for her role in sparking the Stonewall Uprising

Alvin Ailey was a trailblazing dancer, choreographer, storyteller, and activist who shaped the landscape of modern dance. He was a visionary choreographer who saw the beauty in Blackness and used the stage as his protest, pouring his heart and soul into his work.

World-renowned author and essayist Jamaica Kincaid explores family dynamics, the lingering legacy of colonization, the hypocrisy of American capitalism, and bigotry both in the Caribbean and in the United States. She writes from the “status of the uprooted subject,” blending genres to craft “elusive” works composed in a “deceptively simple and unadorned style.

Halima Aden has achieved many historical firsts in her industry. Throughout her career, the activist, disruptor, role model, and actual model has pushed the conventions of what qualifies as fashion and outdated beauty standards.

Augusta Savage was a Harlem Renaissance portrait sculptor and educator dedicated to forging a space for Black artists in a whites-only art world.

At "Hitsville, U.S.A.," Berry Gordy, Jr. created a system inspired by his days working at an auto plant to create and produce classic Motown music.

Maya Cade is the film historian, archivist, and creator of Black Film Archive, a digital register of more than 300 films spanning eleven decades of Black cinematic history. A genuine display of a labor of love, Cade reclaims the cinematic image of Black people by preserving the legacy of those who came before, in both their beauty and contradictions.

Julius Eastman (1940-1990) was an openly gay Black composer, singer, conductor, and pianist ahead of his time. His minimalist style was distinct for the classical music genre and provocative compared to his white contemporaries.

Gloria Gaynor is a singer, songwriter and actor known for her hit “I Will Survive,” an empowering disco anthem that reflected the Black and LGBTQ+ liberation movement.

Elmore "Tee" Collins was a prolific animator, and one of the first Black animators to work in television, Collins played an instrumental role in "selling education to children" on the beloved children's program Sesame Street.

John William Boone, known as “Blind Boone,” was a groundbreaking composer and ragtime pianist who shaped the evolution of American popular music. Boone performed thousands of shows to both white and Black audiences during the height of Jim Crow segregation.