Encyclopedia Britannica
Encyclopedia Britannica: Muddy Waters
A brief biography of Muddy Waters, American blues guitarist and singer who became famous in the post-World War II era.
Encyclopedia Britannica
Encyclopedia Britannica: Stevie Wonder
A brief biographical sketch of Stevie Wonder, an African-American singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist, a child prodigy who developed into one of the most creative musical figures of the late 20th century.
Encyclopedia Britannica
Encyclopedia Britannica: Bessie Smith
Biographical details on American singer, Bessie Smith, one of the greatest of blues vocalists.
Curated OER
Web Gallery of Art: Music Hall Singer
An image of "Music Hall Singer", created by Edgar Degas from 1878-79 (Black chalk with white highlights on gray paper, 475 x 310 mm).
PBS
Pbs: American Experience: Interview With John Hope Franklin Discussing the Kkk
Historian John Hope Franklin discusses the KKK's beginnings and opposition to education for the freedmen in the period after the Civil War.
Encyclopedia Britannica
Encyclopedia Britannica: Mavis Staples
This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features Mavis Staples, an American gospel and soul singer who was an integral part of the Staple Singers, as well as a successful solo artist.
Encyclopedia Britannica
Encyclopedia Britannica: Matilda Sissieretta Jones
This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features Matilda Sissieretta Jones, an opera singer who was considered the greatest black American in her field in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Encyclopedia Britannica
Encyclopedia Britannica: Robert Mc Ferrin, Sr.
This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features Robert McFerrin, Sr., an American opera singer who became the first African-American male to solo at the Metropolitan Opera (Met) when he made his 1955 debut as Amonasro in Giuseppe...
Encyclopedia Britannica
Encyclopedia Britannica: John E. Carter
This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features John E. Carter, an American singer born June 2, 1934, Chicago, Ill.
Encyclopedia Britannica
Encyclopedia Britannica: R. Kelly
This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features R. Kelly, an American singer, songwriter, producer, and multi-instrumentalist who became one of the best-selling rhythm-and-blues (R&B) artists of the 1990s and early 21st century....
Encyclopedia Britannica
Encyclopedia Britannica: Jackie Wilson
This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features Jackie Wilson, an American singer who was a pioneering exponent of the fusion of 1950s doo-wop, rock, and blues styles into the soul music of the 1960s.
Encyclopedia Britannica
Encyclopedia Britannica: Janet Jackson
This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features Janet Jackson, an American singer and actress whose increasingly mature version of dance-pop music made her one of the most popular recording artists of the 1980s and '90s.
Encyclopedia Britannica
Encyclopedia Britannica: Jennifer Hudson
This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features Jennifer Hudson, an American actress and singer who won an Academy Award for best-supporting actress for her role in Dreamgirls (2006).
Encyclopedia Britannica
Encyclopedia Britannica: Jimmy Reed
This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features Jimmy Reed, an American singer, harmonica player, and guitarist who was one of the most popular blues musicians of the post-World War II era.
Encyclopedia Britannica
Encyclopedia Britannica: Lou Rawls
This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features Lou Rawls, an American singer whose smooth baritone adapted easily to jazz, soul, gospel, and rhythm and blues.
Encyclopedia Britannica
Encyclopedia Britannica: Mariah Carey
This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features Mariah Carey, an American pop singer, noted for her remarkable vocal range. She was one of the most successful female performers of the 1990s.
Encyclopedia Britannica
Encyclopedia Britannica: Mississippi John Hurt
This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features Mississippi John Hurt, an American country-blues singer and guitarist who first recorded in the late 1920s but whose greatest fame and influence came when he was rediscovered in the early...
Encyclopedia Britannica
Encyclopedia Britannica: Odetta
This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features Odetta, an American folk singer who was noted especially for her versions of spirituals and who became for many the voice of the civil rights movement of the early 1960s.
Encyclopedia Britannica
Encyclopedia Britannica: Professor Longhair
This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features Professor Longhair, an American singer and pianist who helped shape the sound of New Orleans rhythm and blues from the mid-1940s.
Encyclopedia Britannica
Encyclopedia Britannica: Sonny Terry
This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features Sonny Terry, an American blues singer and harmonica player who became the touring and recording partner of guitarist Brownie McGhee in 1941.
Encyclopedia Britannica
Encyclopedia Britannica: Teddy Pendergrass
This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features Teddy Pendergrass, an American rhythm-and-blues singer who embodied the smooth, Philly soul sound of the 1970s as lead vocalist for Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes before embarking on a...
Encyclopedia Britannica
Encyclopedia Britannica: Tommy Johnson
This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features Tommy Johnson, an African-American singer-guitarist, one of the most evocative and influential of blues artists.
Encyclopedia Britannica
Encyclopedia Britannica: Whitney Houston
This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features Whitney Houston, an American singer and actress who was one of the best-selling musical performers of the 1980s and '90s.
Other
The Official Johnny Cash
More than a country legend, the late Johnny Cash is a household name. Take a look into his long musical career that spanned nearly five decades.