The poetry of Langston Hughes pulses with the rhythms of jazz and blues, and the language of the streets. In describing the everyday lives of African Americans, he became the leading African-American poet of the world.

My whole spirit is what I blow on that horn," said Louis Armstrong of his love and commitment to jazz music. Armstrong overcame poverty and adversity to become one of the world's most influential jazz musicians.

Nonviolence is the answer." With powerful words and peaceful actions, Martin Luther King, Jr., led the way. He roused blacks and whites alike to work for a world without racism and segregation.

"I speak to the black experience," says Maya Angelou, "but I am always talking about the human condition." From the child raised by her grandmother in a small village in Arkansas to the writer known as a National Treasure, Angelou has lived a remarkable life.

You can have it all. You just can’t have it all at the same time," said Oprah Winfrey. Many of her fans might beg to differ. After all, Winfrey herself is smart, funny, compassionate, talented—and one of the richest and most powerful women in the world.

How did a stolen bicycle inspire Cassius Clay to become a boxer? Why did he decide to change his name to Muhammad Ali? Author Carin T. Ford’s action-packed account paints a colorful picture of the charismatic champ whose lightning-quick style and heckling rhymes made him a legend.

An actor, singer, and political activist, Paul Robeson spent much of his life in the spotlight and under scrutiny of the press. His presence on stage and his strong singing voice won him international acclaim

The music of Ray Charles blends the sounds of R&B, gospel, and rock and roll to create a unique sound that attracts music listeners everywhere.

All I was doing was trying to get home from work," said Rosa Parks. Raised in rural Alabama, Parks had never known a time when racial segregation was not the law. In her experience, blacks and whites did not live as equals.

From goofy kid to Grammy-winning rapper to A-list Hollywood actor, Will Smith has taken the fast track into superstardom

Mama exhorted her children at every opportunity to 'jump at de sun,'" says Zora Neale Hurston, "We might not land on the sun, but at least we would get off the ground."

As a boy, César Chávez picked peas, grapes, and other crops in the hot sun. It was a life of exhaustion, poverty, and despair. His experiences as a migrant farm worker had a profound effect on Chávez.