Born in 1915 in Cotton Plant, Arkansas to musical parents who also worked as cotton pickers, Tharpe was a musical prodigy who is reported to have picked up a guitar at four and began performing at age ...

Born on this day in 1915, Rosetta Tharpe revolutionized the sound of electric guitar by using distortion with her unique phrasing & picking, inspiring Chuck Berry, Little Richard, Johnny Cash ...

Happy Music Monday, you all. I’m back a week late, if you are counting. I have been thinking about the life and career of the utterly original Jimmy Scott. His voice conveyed such vulnerability, and ...

Happy Music Monday, you all. I’m back a week late, if you are counting. I have been thinking about the life and career of the utterly original Jimmy Scott. His voice conveyed such vulnerability, and ...

In 1945, Lionel Hampton spotted a five year-old boogying so hard during his concert in Los Angeles, that the legendary the ...

To learn more about Oakland native Zendaya, check out the links to sources provided in today’s show notes or in the episode’s full transcript posted on goodblacknews.org.

As a solo artist, Roy Ayers released dozens of albums over the years, dating as far back as 1963. His last release was in 2024. Ayers’ biggest hits were “Everybody Loves the Sunshine” and “Running ...

Born in 1875 in Virginia to formerly enslaved parents who were never taught to read and write, Carter G. Woodson often had to forgo school for farm or mining work to make ends meet, but was encouraged ...