AALBC Search
J. Ivy
J. Ivy NONE J. Ivy, a Chicago-born hip-hop poet, musician, and actor, has won a Peabody and Grammy award for his performances and collaborations with artists like Jay-Z, Kanye West, and Bob Dylan. He...
Ivy Valentine Pate
Ivy Valentine Pate NONE Ivy Valentine Pate, CEO of Wild Ivy Publishing and author of the “These Kids of Mine” series, resides in Lawrenceville, GA. She's also a mother of three. Ivy Valentine Pate is...
Ivy Claire Pochoda and Created by Kobe Bryant
Ivy Claire Pochoda and Created by Kobe Bryant MULTIPLE Ivy Claire Pochoda is a renowned author known for her collaborative work with the late basketball legend Kobe Bryant, blending their unique pers...
Ziggy Marley
Ziggy Marley 000000011476515X Ziggy Marley, five-time Grammy-winning musician, actor, and activist, was born in Jamaica to Bob and Rita Marley. He began his career in music at just 10 years old and l...
Ivy Claire Pochoda
Ivy Claire Pochoda 0000000058923861 Ivy Claire, a former world-ranked squash champion turned full-time writer, holds a degree in classics. A literary novelist in a parallel life, she resides in Los A...
Roberta Flack
Roberta Flack 0000000115996355 AALBC Mourns the Passing of Roberta Flack, February 24, 2025 Roberta Flack, born in 1937, is a renowned singer known for chart-topping singles and duets with Donny Hatha...
Lil Nas X
Lil Nas X 0000000476080561 Lil Nas X, a Grammy-winning rapper from Georgia, gained fame with his viral hit Old Town Road. The first Black, openly gay rapper to win a Grammy, he's been honored with nu...
Swizz Beatz and Alicia Keys
Swizz Beatz and Alicia Keys MULTIPLE Grammy-winning icons Swizz Beatz and Alicia Keys are not only musical powerhouses but also philanthropists and art advocates. Founders of the Dean Collection, the...
Mandisa Hundley
Mandisa Hundley 0000000046764760 Mandisa Lynn Hundley was a Grammy-award winning artist known for her Christian music. She began her career singing backup for renowned artists and later topped Christ...
Ernie Paniccioli
Ernie Paniccioli 0000000114932974 Ernest “Brother Ernie” Paniccioli is a renowned hip-hop photographer, known for his work in the 80s and 90s. He authored the bestseller 'Who Shot Ya?' and was featur...
Poet On Watch
Poet On Watch NONE Poet On Watch is a renowned performance poet and multimedia artist, who collaborates globally as an independent art director. She's authored two poetry collections and has contribu...
Dionne Warwick
Dionne Warwick 0000000078273077 Marie Dionne Warwick (born December 12, 1940) ranks among the 40 biggest US hitmakers between 1955–1999, based on her chart history in Billboard’s Hot 100 pop singles...
Thulani Davis
Thulani Davis 0000000001538348 Thulani Davis is an interdisciplinary scholar and writer, with focus on black political thought, slavery, and African American literature. She's a recipient of numerous...
Paul Simon
Paul Simon 0000000114799181 Paul Simon is a renowned artist recognized with twelve GRAMMY Awards, including a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2003. He is an honoree in the Songwriters and Rock & Roll H...
Mavis Staples
Mavis Staples 0000000080055378 Mavis Staples, born in 1939, is a renowned musician from Chicago, acclaimed for her multiple Grammy Awards and inductions into the Blues, Gospel, and Rock & Roll Halls ...
W.D. Foster-Graham
W.D. Foster-Graham NONE W.D. Foster-Graham, a Minneapolis native and multi-Grammy Award-winning ensemble member, is a distinguished author and poet. He's a psychology graduate, guest writer, and book...
Gwendolyn Brooks
Gwendolyn Brooks 0000000081816650 Brooks was U.S. Consultant in Poetry, 1985-1986 (title was changed to U.S. Poet Laureate in 1986) Gwendolyn Elizabeth Brooks (1917-2000) was an influential African-Am...
Natasha Trethewey
Natasha Trethewey 0000000084159051 Trethewey was U.S. Poet Laureate, 2012-2014 Natasha Trethewey, an American poet and winner of the 2007 Pulitzer Prize for her collection “Native Guard,” was inspired...
Alexander Smalls with Veronica Chambers
Alexander Smalls with Veronica Chambers MULTIPLE Alexander Smalls is a renowned American chef, former owner of NYC restaurants including the award-winning Cecil, and a Grammy and Tony-winning opera s...
Ice–T
Ice–T NONE Tracy “Ice-T” Marrow, born on February 16, 1958, is an iconic rapper, actor, songwriter, and producer, known for his influential rap albums in the '80s, Grammy-winning band Body Count, and...
Blair Underwood
Blair Underwood 0000000114403642 Blair Underwood is a two-time Golden Globe and Tony nominee and an Emmy, Grammy, and eight-time NAACP Image Award-winning actor, director, and producer. Strong>Blair...
Elona Washington
Elona Washington NONE Elona Washington, a DC native and best-selling author, is a sexual assault survivor turned advocate who has worked with RAINN since 2011. A successful publisher, TV host, and bl...
Hill Harper
Hill Harper 000000011447159X Hill Harper, an accomplished actor and author, is an alumnus of Brown University and Harvard Law School. Despite his multiple Ivy League degrees, he chose an acting caree...
LL Cool J
LL Cool J 0000000368571427 LL Cool J is a multi-talented figure: a Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee, Grammy-winning Hip-Hop artist, honored actor, best-selling author, philanthropist and CEO of Rock...
Patrick Denard Douthit
Patrick Denard Douthit 0000000047281613 Patrick Denard Douthit, known as “9th Wonder”, is a Grammy-winning producer, DJ, lecturer, and social activist from Winston-Salem, NC. Born in 1975, he has bee...
Questlove
Questlove 0000000054154268 Ahmir Khalib Thompson, known as “Questlove”, is a multi-talented musician, DJ, producer, author, and culinary entrepreneur from Philadelphia. Co-founder of the Roots and mu...
Method Man and Sanford Greene
Method Man and Sanford Greene MULTIPLE Method Man, a Grammy-winning rapper and actor, is part of the Wu-Tang Clan and resides in New York. Sanford Greene, a renowned comics artist for DC Comics, Imag...
Alexander Smalls
Alexander Smalls 0000000458935095 Alexander Smalls, an iconic American chef and owner of award-winning NYC restaurants, is also a co-author of a James Beard award-winning cookbook and a globally reco...
Marvis Johnson
Marvis Johnson NONE Marvis Johnson is a multi-talented entrepreneur, artist manager, director, and author with formal training in Film and Television Arts. Known for his work in the New York City fil...
Kelly Rowland
Kelly Rowland 0000000055189251 Kelly Rowland is a Grammy-winning singer, songwriter, actress, and producer, known as a founding member of Destiny's Child. She's also coauthored a guide for new moms, ...
Darius Rucker
Darius Rucker 0000000045244800 Darius Rucker is a three-time GRAMMY-winning singer, guitarist, and songwriter, known as the lead of Hootie & the Blowfish and for his successful solo country career. H...
Mervyn Morris
Mervyn Morris 0000000122796976 Born in 1937, Mervyn E. Morris is a renowned Jamaican poet and scholar. A Rhodes Scholar and Professor Emeritus of Creative Writing & West Indian Literature, he was the...
Malik Canty
Malik Canty NONE Malik Canty, also known as the Word Bird, is a spiritual poet, teacher, and writer known for giving voice to the voiceless. He has performed at renowned venues including The Apollo T...
Victor L. Wooten
Victor L. Wooten NONE Victor Lemonte Wooten, a five-time Grammy-winning bass player, composer, and producer, is known as an original member of the Béla Fleck and the Flecktones. He's also the author...
Mary J. Blige
Mary J. Blige 000000006310393X Mary J. Blige, born in 1971, is a globally recognized singer, songwriter, actress, and entrepreneur. She has won nine Grammy Awards, an Emmy, and multiple honors, inclu...
Lin-Manuel Miranda, Quiara Alegría Hudes, and Jeremy McCarter
Lin-Manuel Miranda, Quiara Alegría Hudes, and Jeremy McCarter MULTIPLE Lin-Manuel Miranda, Quiara AlegrÃa Hudes, and Jeremy McCarter are renowned figures in the arts. Miranda, a multi-award-winning ...
Amiri Baraka
Amiri Baraka 0000000446460520 Amiri Baraka, also known as LeRoi Jones, was a prolific 20th-century African American writer, poet, and Obie-winning playwright. Known for works such as “Blues People” a...
Countee Cullen
Countee Cullen 0000000081534450 Countée Porter Cullen (1903-1946) was a prominent figure of the Harlem Renaissance, known for his poetry books “Color” and “Copper Sun.” He taught and mentored James ...
Troy Andrews
Troy Andrews 0000000114882786 Troy “Trombone Shorty” Andrews, a Grammy-nominated artist from Tremé, New Orleans, became a band leader at six. Known for his prodigious trombone skills, he now headlin...
Vanessa L. Williams
Vanessa L. Williams 000000011462842X Vanessa Lynn Williams, born March 18, 1963, is a multi-talented actor, singer, fashion designer and author. She made history as the first African-American Miss Am...
Whoopi Goldberg
Whoopi Goldberg 0000000368562870 Whoopi Goldberg, born Caryn Elaine Johnson on November 13, 1955, is a celebrated comedian, actress, author, and TV host. Known for her role in 'The Color Purple,' she...
Bill Withers
Bill Withers 000000006309931X Bill Withers was a singer-songwriter and musician. He received numerous awards in his lifetime and won three GRAMMY Awards. William Harrison Withers Jr. (July 4, 1938 &...
Charlie Wilson
Charlie Wilson 0000000055156329 Charlie Wilson, renowned R&B and soul musician, has earned multiple Grammy nominations and acclaim for his distinct voice and timeless hits. Despite struggles with hom...
Snoop Dogg
Snoop Dogg 0000000120269646 Calvin Broadus, known as Snoop Dogg, is a renowned rapper from Long Beach, California. After overcoming legal struggles, he launched his career with Dr. Dre, achieving qua...
Paul Mooney
Paul Mooney 0000000055077997 Comic legend Paul Mooney (1941-2021) wrote for iconic shows like Chappelle's Show, SNL, and In Living Color. He acted in The Buddy Holly Story and released a Grammy-nomin...
Barack Obama and Bruce Springsteen
Barack Obama and Bruce Springsteen MULTIPLE Bruce Springsteen, Rock and Roll Hall of Famer and recipient of 20 Grammy Awards, is the acclaimed author of NYT bestseller “Born to Run.” Honored with an ...
Janelle Monáe
Janelle Monáe 0000000120233360 Janelle Monáe is a multifaceted American artist, known for her work as a singer/songwriter, actress, and producer. With eight Grammy nominations and successful roles i...
Omarion
Omarion 0000000101022998 Omarion Ishmael Grandberry, former B2K lead singer and successful solo artist, is now known as the “King of Unbothered.” A Grammy-nominated singer, songwriter and actor, he's...
Chuck D
Chuck D 0000000368402543 Chuck D, born Carlton Douglas Ridenhour, is a renowned hip-hop artist, social activist, and multimedia producer. Best known as the leader of Public Enemy, he has significantl...
Queen Latifah
Queen Latifah 0000000120268301 Queen Latifah, born Dana Elaine Owens, is a renowned rapper, singer, actor, TV and record producer. Known as the “First Lady of Hip-Hop,” she released her debut album i...
Dionne Brand
Dionne Brand 0000000109071487 “The best poetry jolts and shocks, it mines language for what we have not seen, have not heard.” Dionne Brand is an acclaimed poet and novelist, known for win...
Warsan Shire
Warsan Shire 0000000401939810 Warsan Shire, a Somali British writer and poet, is renowned for her chapbooks, and for winning the inaugural Brunel International African Poetry Prize. She was London's ...
Saul Williams
Saul Williams 0000000055187280 Saul Williams, hailed as the “Bob Marley of American poets” is a celebrated poet, actor, and spoken-word artist. Known for his vibrant and fearless writing, Williams ha...
Chaun Webster
Chaun Webster NONE Chaun Webster, a poet, publisher, and graphic designer, is influenced by the Black Arts Movement, Jazz, and Graffiti. He founded Free Poet’s Press in 2009 to encourage art producti...
Goldie the Poet
Goldie the Poet NONE Goldie the Poet, a Bay-Area native and prominent alumnus of Leimert Park’s World Stage Poets, is a gifted actor and artist. With performances across the U.S. and Europe, his uniq...
Sharrif Simmons
Sharrif Simmons NONE Sharrif Simmons, a poet, musician, writer, and arts educator, has a performance career extending over three decades. Inspired by veteran poet Sonia Sanchez and influenced by vari...
muMs the schemer
muMs the schemer NONE Craig Grant, known as muMs the Schemer, is a poet and actor from the Bronx, New York. He rose to fame in the documentary SlamNation and through his role as “Poet” in HBO's Oz. H...
Patricia Spears Jones
Patricia Spears Jones 0000000031494569 Patricia Spears Jones, born in Arkansas, is the 2024 New York State Poet Laureate, a Jackson Poetry Prize laureate, and a cultural activist. An esteemed poet, p...
Robert Hayden
Robert Hayden 0000000114660665 Hayden was Named U.S. Poet Laureate for (1976–1978) Robert Hayden (1913-1980) was a renowned African-American poet, essayist, and educator. He was the first Africa...
Tracy K. Smith
Tracy K. Smith 0000000049042106 Smith was U.S. Poet Laureate, 2017-2019 Tracy K. Smith, born 1972, is a Pulitzer-winning poet and educator. She has published three poetry collections and teaches creat...
Suheir Hammad
Suheir Hammad 0000000084052510 Suheir Hammad, born October 25, 1973, is a Palestinian-American poet, author, performer, and activist renowned for her work in the spoken-word scene. She's had success ...
Shauntay Grant
Shauntay Grant 0000000082860020 Shauntay Grant is a Halifax-based writer and performance artist. She's written multiple children's books, including award-winning 'Up Home' and 'Africville'. Grant als...
Tarriona Ball
Tarriona Ball NONE Tarriona “Tank” Ball is a New Orleans-based slam poet and Grammy-winning recording artist with her band, Tank and the Bangas.
Barbara Chase-Riboud
Barbara Chase-Riboud 0000000110251688 Barbara Chase-Riboud is an award-winning poet and author known for her historical novels like 'Sally Hemings'. She was knighted by the French government in 1996 ...
James Grey
James Grey NONE James Grey is an author and poet. Has been writing since the age of 13 or 14. After winning a contest for young writers he was motivated to continue writing poetry and short stories....
Marc Lacy
Marc Lacy NONE Marc Lacy, a graduate from Alabama A&M University, renowned poet, author, and CEO of AVO Publishing, is known for his national literary performances and spoken word venues. He's also a...
Brenda Jones and Krishan Trotman
Brenda Jones and Krishan Trotman MULTIPLE Brenda Jones, renowned for her 15-year role as communications director for Rep. John Lewis and co-author of an NAACP award-winning book, has vast experience ...
Kemi Ashing-Giwa
Kemi Ashing-Giwa NONE Kemi Ashing-Giwa is an author and scientist-in-training based in Palo Alto. Her work includes the USA Today bestselling, Compton Crook Award-winning novel The Splinter in the S...
Beyoncé
Beyoncé 0000000114914936 Beyoncé Knowles, born September 4, 1981, is a Grammy-winning singer and actress from Houston, Texas. Known as the lead singer of Destiny's Child, she has also had a successfu...
E. N. Joy
E. N. Joy NONE BLESSEDselling Author E.N. Joy, previously known as Joylynn M. Jossel, is an Essence Magazine Bestselling Author known for her “Soap Operas in Print” Divas series. The author, who has ...
Kid Cudi
Kid Cudi 0000000368537317 Scott Ramon Seguro Mescudi aka “Kid Cudi”, born January 30, 1984, is a Grammy Award–winning artist, actor, designer, and cultural trailblazer who transformed the soun...
Jim Daniels
Jim Daniels 0000000055106495 James Raymond Daniels, born 1956, is an American poet and writer from Detroit, Michigan. He currently resides in Pittsburgh with his wife, poet Kristin Kovacic, and their...
Jasmine Mans
Jasmine Mans NONE Jasmine Mans, a Black American poet and artist from Newark, NJ, is a University of Wisconsin Madison graduate. Author of the 2012 poetry collection, Chalk Outlines of Snow Angels, a...
Cheryl Boyce-Taylor
Cheryl Boyce-Taylor 0000000038283932 Trinidad-born, Queens-bred Cheryl Boyce Taylor is a celebrated poet and visual artist. She's authored several poetry collections, received the Partners in Writing...
Heru Ptah
Heru Ptah NONE Heru Ptah is a multifaceted writer, known for his work as a poet, novelist, playwright, and screenwriter. He's appeared on HBO's Def Poetry Jam, CNN, and has a novel published by MTV B...
DuEwa M. Frazier
DuEwa M. Frazier NONE DuEwa Frazier is an accomplished writer, educator, and poet, renowned for her literary contributions and educational initiatives. Born in Brooklyn and raised in St. Louis, she f...
Eugene B. Redmond
Eugene B. Redmond 0000000117637604 Eugene B. Redmond, an American poet and academic, is renowned for his connection to the Black Arts Movement. A St. Louis native, Redmond earned degrees from Souther...
Robert Lee Brewer
Robert Lee Brewer NONE Robert Lee Brewer is a Senior Content Editor at Writer's Digest, author, and was voted Poet Laureate of the Blogosphere in 2011. He is known for his expertise in editing, onlin...
Juan Boria
Juan Boria NONE Jaime Torres Torres, known as Juan Boria, was a celebrated Puerto Rican poet and actor born in 1906. Despite humble beginnings, he earned a university degree and taught for 37 years. ...
George Moses Horton
George Moses Horton 000000006316904X George Moses Horton (1798–1884) was the first African American poet to be published in the Southern US, while still enslaved. His notable works include “The Hop...
Julian Randall
Julian Randall NONE Julian Randall, a Queer Black poet from Chicago, has received multiple fellowships and was named 2015's Best Poet at CUPSI. He curates for Winter Tangerine Review and is pursuing ...
Jamila Woods, Mahogany L. Browne, and Idrissa Simmonds
Jamila Woods, Mahogany L. Browne, and Idrissa Simmonds MULTIPLE Jamila Woods, a Chicago-based poet influenced by Lucille Clifton and Gwendolyn Brooks, explores themes of blackness and womanhood. Maho...
Alice Dunbar-Nelson
Alice Dunbar-Nelson 0000000081179540 Check out Love, Activism, and the Respectable Life of Alice Dunbar-Nelson Alice Moore Dunbar-Nelson (1875-1935) was an acclaimed American journalist, political act...
r.h. Sin
r.h. Sin NONE Reuben Holmes, known as r.h. Sin, is a New York Times bestselling poet from New Brunswick, N.J. Overcoming a difficult upbringing through his love for writing, Sin currently lives in Ne...
J. Drew Lanham
J. Drew Lanham NONE J. Drew Lanham is a distinguished author, poet, and professor of Wildlife Ecology. Known for his books 'Sparrow Envy' and 'The Home Place', he's recognized with a MacArthur Grant ...
Pat Parker
Pat Parker 0000000106773440 Pat Parker (1944-1989) was a renowned African-American, lesbian-feminist poet and performer. Notable works include 'Jonestown & Other Madness' and 'Movement in Black'. She...
Brenda Marie Osbey
Brenda Marie Osbey 000000002513556X Brenda Marie Osbey, born in 1957, is a distinguished poet from New Orleans who served as Louisiana's Poet Laureate from 2005-2007. She specializes in Afro-Francoph...
Fabu Phillis Carter
Fabu Phillis Carter NONE Poet Fabu was appointed Madison's Poet Laureate in 2008 and served in that position until 2012. Fabu Phillis Carter, professionally known as Poet Fabu, was appointed Madison’...
Rita Dove
Rita Dove 0000000114709625 Dove was U.S. Poet Laureate, 1993-1995 Rita Dove, former U.S. Poet Laureate and Pulitzer Prize winner, is known for her poetry collections, novel, and drama. She's been reco...
Morgan Harper Nichols
Morgan Harper Nichols NONE Acclaimed artist, poet, musician, and Wall Street Journal and Publisher’s Weekly bestselling author Morgan Harper Nichols has created her life’s work around the stories of...
Malcolm-Jamal Warner
Malcolm-Jamal Warner 0000000072500865 AALBC Mourns the Passing of Malcolm-Jamal Warner, July 20, 2025 Malcolm-Jamal Warner (August 18, 1970 – July 20, 2025) was an American actor, musician and po...
Charles R. Smith Jr.
Charles R. Smith Jr. NONE Charles R. Smith Jr. is an acclaimed author, poet, and photographer with over 30 books. He's a recipient of the Coretta Scott King Award for Illustration and Honor Author Aw...
Alice Wootson
Alice Wootson NONE Alice Greenhowe Wootson is a retired teacher and acclaimed author of thirteen novels, including romance and romantic suspense. A prize-winning poet, member of various writers' asso...
Sterling D. Plumpp
Sterling D. Plumpp 0000000081297870 “You can not ever get free as a result of legislationHellip;you always have to take freedom.” Sterling Dominic Plumpp, born 1940, is an esteemed poet, e...
Artress Bethany White
Artress Bethany White NONE Artress Bethany White, PhD, is an award-winning poet, essayist, and literary critic known for her poetry collections and scholarly essays. Her notable works include 'My Afm...
Jeffery Boston Weatherford
Jeffery Boston Weatherford NONE Jeffery Boston Weatherford, an illustrator and poet, founded Triiibe Worldwide. His debut book, You Can Fly: The Tuskegee Airmen, acclaimed by several organizations, e...
Tracy K. Smith and John Freeman
Tracy K. Smith and John Freeman MULTIPLE Tracy K. Smith is a Pulitzer-winning poet, author of four books, including 'Life on Mars', and editor of 'American Journal'. She served as the US Poet Laureat...
Judith Falloon-Reid
Judith Falloon-Reid NONE Judith Falloon-Reid is a renowned author, filmmaker, and motivational speaker. Her versatile career involves writing books, directing films, and inspiring audiences through h...
Kevin Young
Kevin Young 0000000109530225 Kevin Young, born in 1970, is a renowned poet and teacher influenced by Hughes, Berryman, Dickinson, and Basquiat. A Harvard graduate, Young authored multiple poetry book...
Sharyn Skeeter
Sharyn Skeeter NONE Sharyn Skeeter is an award-winning novelist, poet, editor, and educator, known for her debut novel “Dancing with Langston.” She has served as an editor at Essence and Black Elegan...