Sade grew up listening to American soul music, particularly the wave led in the 1970’s by artists such as Curtis Mayfield, Donny Hathaway, and Bill Withers. As a teenager, she saw the Jackson 5 at the Rainbow Theatre in Finsbury Park, London where she worked behind the bar at weekends. “I was more fascinated by the audience than by anything that was going on on the stage. They’d attracted kids, mothers with children, old people, white, black. I was really moved. That’s the audience I’ve always aimed for”.

June 16, 1971

September 13, 1996

Tupac Shakur's parents were both members of the Black Panther Party.

At 13 Tupac played Travis Younger in 'A Raisin in the Sun' at the Apollo Theater to raise funds for presidential candidate Jesse Jackson.

Before the East Coast/West Coast rap feud started, Tupac and Biggie Smalls were friends.

Tamalpais High School, Paul Laurence Dunbar High School, Baltimore School for the Arts

New York, New York

Las Vegas, Nevada

Its melancholy title track reached No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100, while the hits "When Doves Cry" and "Let's Go Crazy" both reached No. 1. While "Crazy" readily joined the pantheon of wild, electrifying rock songs, "Doves Cry" had one-of-a-kind signatures, displaying an otherworldly meld of electronic and funk elements without a traditional chorus. The soundtrack offered two other hits: "I Would Die 4 U" and "Take Me With U." Prince simultaneously became a well-known visual icon with his trademark curls, flowing jackets and ruffled attire with punk embellishments.

Marvin Gaye was a soul singer-songwriter with Motown in the 1960s and 1970s. He produced his own records and often addressed controversial themes.

Singer Marvin Pentz Gaye, Jr., also known as the "Prince of Soul," was born in Washington, D.C., on April 2, 1939. Gaye was raised under the strict control of his father, Reverend Marvin Gay Sr.—Marvin Gaye Jr. added the "e" on the end of his name later in life—the minister at a local church, against a bleak backdrop of widespread violence in his neighborhood.

Throughout his childhood, Gaye often found peace in music, mastering the piano and drums at a young age. Until high school, his singing experience was limited to church revivals, but soon he developed a love for R&B and doo-wop that would set the foundation for his career. In the late 1950s, Gaye joined a vocal group called The New Moonglows.
In 1970, inspired by escalating violence and political unrest over the Vietnam War, Gaye wrote the landmark song "What's Going On." Despite clashes with Motown over the song's creative direction, the single was released in 1971 and became an instant smash. Its success prompted Gaye to take even more risks, both musically and politically. When it was released in the spring of 1971, the What's Going On album served to open Gaye up to new audiences while maintaining his Motown following.