By Robert Fikes, Jr., Librarian
San Diego State University
There are many and varied reasons why people, particularly well-known Americans of African descent, would choose to use aliases instead of their names given at birth. Donning a different name might be considered a deliberate act of self-reinvention. A name change, nickname, pseudonym, or nom de guerre might also be assigned by others and eventually replace the birth name because of some special quality a person has. The motivation for the individual to allow and maintain such a modification of his or her identity is most often influenced by the perception of its acceptance by the general public or an intended audience. Still, some changes come about because of, among other things, dislike of the parent's choice for a birth name, a religious conversion, because the person wanted to make a socio-cultural or political-historical statement, an attempt to advance one's career, or merely the desire to make the name fit the profession or make the name easier to remember. Name changes can be quite drastic or may only entail changing an alphabet letter here or a syllable there, dropping the first name or the surname, or camouflaging a disagreeable or embarrassing name by using initials. Adopted names are often times ingenious and obviously required careful thought.
The most intriguing thing is not the recreated names themselves but rather the story of how they came about. Why did the parents of former Republican Congressman J.C. Watts decide to name him Julius Caesar Watts? Or why was Michael Luther King Jr.'s name changed to Martin Luther King Jr. when he was age six? With the hope that the following will encourage further research, here, then, is an extensive list of aliases and birth names of famous, and infamous, black folk from the worlds of literature, sports, entertainment, politics and civil rights.
| Popular Name | Birth Name |
|---|---|
| 50 Cent, rap singer | Curtis James Jackson III |
| Aaliyah, pop singer | Aaliyah Dana Haughton |
| Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, basketball star | Fredrick Ferdinand Lewis Alcindor, Jr |
| Mumia Abu-Jamal, imprisoned activist | Wesley Cook |
| Canonball Adderly, jazz saxophonist | Julian Edwin Adderley |
| Na'im Akbar, Afrocentric educator | Luther B. Weems |
| Akon, R&B singer | Aliaune Badara Akon Thiam |
| Muhammad Ali, boxer | Cassius Marcellus Clay |
| Byron Allen, talk show host | Byron Allen Folks |
| Famous Amos, cookie mogul | Wallace Amos, Jr. |
| Maya Angelou, poet-novelist | Marguerite Annie Johnson |
| Little Anthony, pop singer | Anthony Gourdine |
| Louie Armstrong, jazz trumpeter | Daniel Louis Armstrong |
| Molefi Asante, educator | Arthur L. Smith Jr. |
| Ashanti, R&B singer | Ashanti S. Douglas |
| Babyface, pop singer-composer | Kenneth Brian Edmonds |
| Erykah Badu, pop singer | Erica Abi Wright |
| Dusty Baker, baseball coach | Johnnie B. Baker, Jr. |
| Josephine Baker, dancer-singer | Freda Josephine McDonald |
| Hank Ballard, R&B singer | John Henry Kendricks |
| Afrika Bambaataa, hip hop producer | Kevin Donovan |
| Toni Cade Bambara, novelist | Miltona Mirkin Cade |
| Amiri Baraka, writer-activist | Everett LeRoy Jones |
| Tiki Barber, pro football star | Atiim Kiambu Barber |
| Richmond Barthe, sculptor | James Richmond Barthe |
| Count Basie, band leader | William James Basie |
| Peg Leg Bates, tap dancer | Clayton Bates |
| Harry Belafonte, pop singer-actor | Harold George Belafonte, Jr. |
| Al Bell, soul singer-producer | Alvertis Isbell |
| "Cool Papa" Bell, baseball pitcher | James Thomas Bell |
| Eric Benet, pop singer | Eric Benet Jordan |
| Brook Benton, pop singer | Benjamin Franklin Peay |
| Halle Berry, actress | Maria Halle Berry |
| Frankie Beverly, R&B singer | Howard Beverly |
| Beyonce, pop singer | Beyonce Giselle Knowles |
| Chuck Berry, pop singer | Charles Edward Anderson Berry |
| Notorious B.I.G., rap singer | Christopher George Latore Wallace |
| Eubie Blake, songwriter-musician | James Hubert Blake |
| Julian Bond, civil rights activist | Horace Julian Bond |
| Brandy, pop singer | Brandy Rayanna Norwood |
| Foxy Brown, rapper | Inga Fung Marchand |
| H. Rap Brown, 1960s militant | Hubert Gerold Brown |
| Tony Brown, television producer-host | William Anthony Brown |
| William Wells Brown, abolitionist | Sandford (slave name) |
| Donald Byrd, jazz trumpeter | Donaldson Toussaint L'Ouverture Byrd II |
| Peabo Bryson, pop singer | Robert Peapo Bryson |
| John Bubbles, tap dancer-actor | John William Sublett |
| Ed Bullins, playwright | Edward Artie |
| Bundini, Muhammad Ali boxing trainer | Drew Bundini Brown |
| LeVar Burton, actor | Levardis Robert Martyn Burton, Jr. |
| Donald Byrd, jazz trumpeter | Donaldson Toussaint L'Ouverture Byrd II |
| Cab Calloway, band leader-singer | Cabell Calloway III |
| Diahann Carroll, actress-singer | Carol Diahann Johnson |
| Nell Carter, actress-singer | Nell Ruth Hardy |
| George Washington Carver, scientist | George (slave name) |
| Cedric The Entertainer, comedian-actor | Cedric Antonio Kyles |
| Wilt Chamberlain, basketball star | Wilton Norman Chamberlain |
| Chris Chambliss, pro baseball star | Carroll Christopher Chambliss |
| Gene Chandler, R&B singer | Eugene Dixon |
| Ray Charles, pop singer | Ray Charles Robinson |
| Chubby Checker, pop singer | Ernest Evans |
| Cherrell, pop singer | Cheryl Week Norton |
| Neneh Cherry, pop singer | Neneh Mariann Karlsson |
| Chingy, hip hop singer | Howard Bailey Jr. |
| Sonny Clark, jazz pianist | Conrad Yeatis Clark |
| John Henrik Clarke, historian | John Henry Clark |
| Roberto Clemente, baseball star | Roberto Clemente Walker |
| Eldridge Cleaver, activist-author | Leroy Eldridge Cleaver |
| Jimmy Cliff, reggae singer | James Chambers |
| Nat King Cole, pop singer | Nathaniel Adams Coles |
| Lucille Clifton, poet | Thelma Lucille Sayles |
| Wanda Coleman, poet | Wanda Evans |
| Ward Connerly, conservative activist | Wardell Anthony Connerly |
| Sam Cooke, pop singer | Samuel Cook |
| Coolio, rap singer | Artis Ivey, Jr. |
| J. California Cooper, writer | Joan California Cooper |
| Kid Creole, pop singer | Thomas August Darnell Browder |
| Scatman Crothers, actor | Benjamin Sherman Crothers |
| Ice Cube, rap singer-actor | O'Shea Jackson |
| Countee Cullen, poet-novelist | Countee Leroy Porter |
| King Curtis, pop singer-musician | Curtis Ousley |
| Chuck D, rap singer-promoter | Carlton Douglas Ridenhour |
| Heavy D, rap singer | Dwight Errington Myers |
| D'Angelo, pop singer | Michael D'Angelo Archer |
| Allison Davis, anthropologist | William Boyd Allison Davis |
| Chili Davis, baseball star | Charles Theodore Davis |
| Miles Davis, jazz trumpeter | Miles Dewey Davis, III |
| Ossie Davis, actor | Raiford Chatman Davis |
| Ruby Dee, actress | Ruby Ann Wallace |
| Mos Def, rap singer-actor | Dante Terrell Smith |
| R. Nathaniel Dett, composer | Robert Nathaniel Dett |
| Ophelia DeVore, model-entrepreneur | Madame Emma Ophelia DeVore |
| Deadwood Dick, cowboy | Nat Love |
| Bo Diddley, blues singer | Otha Elias Bates McDaniel |
| P. Diddy, rap/hip hop promoter | Sean John Combs |
| Taye Diggs, actor | Scott L. Diggs |
| Father Divine, religious cult leader | George Baker, Jr. |
| Junk Yard Dog, pro wrestler | Charles Ritter |
| Snoop Dogg, rap artist | Cordozar Calvin Broadus Jr |
| Fats Domino, pop singer | Antoine Dominique Domino |
| Frederick Douglass, activist | Frederick Augustus Washington Bailey |
| St. Clair Drake, sociologist | John Gilbert St. Clair Drake |
| Dr. Dre, rap artist | Andre Ramelle Young |
| Shirley Graham Du Bois, social activist | Lola Shirley Graham |
| W.E.B. Du Bois, social activist-author | William Edward Burghardt Du Bois |
| El Duque, baseball pitcher | Orlando P. Hernandez |
| Lee Elder, golfer | Robert Lee Elder |
| Joycelyn Elders, doctor-administrator | Minnie Lee Jones |
| Duke Ellington, jazz composer | Edward Kennedy Ellington |
| Missy Elliott, hip hop singer | Melissa Arnette Elliott |
| Mike Espy, Congressman-bureaucrat | Alphonso Michael Espy |
| Lola Falana, pop singer | Loletha Elaine Falana |
| Louis Farrakhan, Muslim leader | Louis Eugene Walcott |
| Stepin Fetchit, actor-comedian | Lincoln Theodore Monroe Andrew Perry |
| Grandmaster Flash, rap singer | Joseph Saddler |
| Flavor Flav, rap singer | William Jonathan Drayton Jr. |
| Sleepy Floyd, basketball star | Eric Augustus Floyd |
| Lola Falana, dancer-actress | Loletha Elaine Falana |
| Jamie Foxx, actor | Eric Marlon Bishop |
| Redd Foxx, comedian | James Elroy Sanford |
| Rev. C.L. Franklin, preacher-singer | Clarence LaVaughn Franklin |
| E. Franklin Frazier, educator | Edward Franklin Frazier |
| World B Free, basketball star | Lloyd Bernard Free |
| Leonora Fulani, political activist | Leonora Branch |
| A.G. Gaston, businessman | Arthur George Gaston |
| Cito Gaston, baseball coach | Charles Edward Gaston |
| Marvin Gaye, pop singer | Marvin Pentz Gay, Jr. |
| Gloria Gaynor, singer | Gloria Fowles |
| Bob Gibson, pro baseball pitcher | Pack Robert Gibson |
| Dizzy Gillespie, jazz trumpeter | John Birks Gillespie |
| Ginuwine, pop singer | Elgin Baylor Lumpkin |
| Nikki Giovanni, poet | Yolande Cornelia Giovanni, Jr. |
| Whoopi Goldberg, comedian | Caryn E. Johnson |
| Daddy Grace, religious cult leader | Charles Manuel Grace |
| Al Green, R&B singer | Albert Greene |
| "Mean Joe" Greene, football star | Charles Edward Greene |
| Rosy Grier, football star | Roosevelt Grier |
| Dick Gregory, comedian-activist | Richard Claxton Gregory |
| Robert Guilluame, actor | Robert Peter Williams |
| Alex Haley, author | Alexander Murray Palmer Haley |
| MC Hammer, rap singer | Stanley Kirk Burrell |
| W.C. Handy, composer-musician | William Christopher Handy |
| Penny Hardaway, basketball star | Anfernee Deon Hardaway |
| Ollie Harrington, cartoonist | Oliver Wendell Harrington |
| E. Lynn Harris, novelist | Everette Lynn Harris |
| Hollywood Henderson, football | Thomas Henderson |
| Jimi Hendrix, pop singer-guitarist | Johnny Allen Hendrix |
| A. Leon Higginbotham Jr., judge | Aloyisus Leon Higginbotham, Jr. |
| Billie Holiday, blues singer | Eleanora Gough Fagan |
| bell hooks, educator | Gloria Jean Watkins |
| Cissy Houston, pop singer | Emily Cissy Drinkard Houston |
| Langston Hughes, author-poet | James Mercer Langston Hughes |
| D.L. Hughley, comedian-actor | Darryl Lynn Hughley |
| Reverend Ike, preacher | Frederick Joseph Eikerenkoetter, II |
| Iman, fashion model | Iman Abudulmajid |
| Rocket Ismail, football star | Raghib Ramadian Ismail |
| Dr. J, basketball star | Julius Winfield Erving |
| LL Cool J, rap singer | James Todd Smith |
| Bo Jackson, football and baseball star | Vincent Edwards Jackson |
| Mahalia Jackson, gospel singer | Mahala Jackson |
| Samuel L. Jackson, actor | Samuel Leroy Jackson |
| Tito Jackson, pop singer | Toriano Adaryll Jackson |
| Reggie Jackson, baseball star | Reginald Martinez Jackson |
| Jaheim, R&B singer | Jaheim Hoagland |
| Bishop T.D. Jakes, cleric-entrepreneur | Thomas Dexter Jakes |
| Jimmy Jam, pop music producer | James Harris, III |
| C.L.R. James, scholar-activist | Cyril Lionel Robert James |
| Chappie James, Air Force general | Daniel James Jr. |
| Etta James, pop singer | Jamesetta Hawkins |
| Jesse James, R&B singer | Jesse McClelland |
| Rick James, pop singer | James Johnson, Jr. |
| Al Jarreau, jazz singer | Alwyn Lopez Jarreau |
| Jay-Z, hip hop artist promoter | Shawn Corey Carter |
| DJ Jazzy Jeff, record producer | Jeffrey A. Townes |
| Lyfe Jennings, R&B singer | Chester Jennings |
| Dr. Ben-Jochanan | Yosef Aflredo Antonio ben-Jochanan |
| Jack Johnson, boxer | Arthur John Johnson |
| Magic Johnson, basketball star | Earvin Johnson |
| Deacon Jones, football star | David Jones |
| Grace Jones, model-singer | Grace Mendoza |
| Quincy Jones, pop music composer | Quincy Delight Jones, Jr. |
| Star Jones, TV host-attorney | Starlet Marie Jones |
| E.J. Josey, librarian | Lonnie Junius Josey |
| Big Daddy Kane, rap singer | Antonio Hardy |
| Karl Kani, fashion designer | Carl Williams |
| Maulana Karenga, educator | Ronald McKinley Everett |
| Kashif, pop singer | Michael Jones |
| R. Kelly, pop singer | Robert Sylvester Kelly |
| Flo Kennedy, activist | Flornyce Rae Kennedy |
| Jomo Kenyatta, Kenyan leader | Kamau wa Ngengi |
| Chaka Khan, pop singer | Yvette Marie Stevens |
| Lil' Kim, rapper | Kimberly Denise Jones |
| Jamaica Kincaid, novelist | Elaine Cynthia Potter Richardson |
| Albert King, blues guitarist | Albert Nelson |
| BB King, blues singer | Riley B. King |
| Ben E. King, singer-songwriter | Benjamin Earl Nelson |
| Martin Luther King Jr., social activist | Michael Luther King, Jr. |
| Eartha Kitt, singer-actress | Eartha Mae Kitt-Fields |
| Suge Knight, rap music promoter | Marion Hugh Knight Jr. |
| Yusef Komunyakaa, poet | James Willie Brown, Jr. |
| Patti LaBelle, pop singer | Patricia Louise Holt |
| Nella Larsen, novelist | Nellie Walker |
| Queen Latifah, rap singer-actress | Dana Elaine Owens |
| Yusef Lateef, jazz artist | William Evans Huddleston |
| Leadbelly, blues singer-guitarist | Huddie William Ledbetter |
| Canada Lee, actor | Leonard Lionel Cornelius Canegata |
| Spike Lee, movie director | Shelton Jackson Lee |
| Mickey Leland, Texas Congressman | George Thomas Leland |
| Meadowlark Lemon, athlete-comedian | Meadow George Lemon |
| John Legend, pop singer | John Stephens |
| Carl Lewis, Olympic track star | Frederick Carlton Lewis |
| Edmonia Lewis, sculptor | Mary Edmonia Lewis |
| Abbey Lincoln, pop singer | Anna Marie Wooldridge |
| C. Eric Lincoln, educator | Charles Eric Lincoln |
| Sonny Liston, boxer | Charles Liston |
| Tone Loc, rap singer | Anthony Terrell Smith |
| Davey Lopes, baseball coach | David Earle Lopes |
| Audre Lorde, poet | Audrey Geraldine Lorde |
| Joe Louis, boxer | Joseph Louis Brown |
| Frankie Lymon, pop singer | Franklin Joseph Lymon |
| Moms Mabley, comedian | Loretta Mary Aiken |
| Bernie Mac, comedian-actor | Bernard Jeffrey McCullough |
| Maceo, James Brown's saxophonist | Maceo Parker |
| Claude McKay, poet-novelist | Festus Claudius McKay |
| Butterfly McQueen, actress | Thelma McQueen |
| Haki Madhubuti, poet-editor | Don Luther Lee |
| Kweisi Mfume, NAACP president | Frizzell Gerald Gray |
| Taj Mahal, folk singer | Henry St. Clair Fredericks |
| Mario, R&B singer | Mario Dewar Barrett |
| Pigmeat Markham, comedian | Dewey M. Markham |
| Bob Marley, reggae singer | Robert Nesta Marley |
| Ziggy Marley, reggae singer | David Nesta Marley |
| Paule Marshall, writer | Valenza Pauline Burke |
| Thurgood Marshall, Supreme Court | Thoroughgood Marshall |
| Johnny Mathis, pop singer | John Royce Mathis |
| Willie Mays, baseball star | William Howard Mays, Jr. |
| Kweisi Mfume, NAACP president | Frizzell Gerald Gray |
| Dorie Miller, World War II hero | Doris Miller |
| Minnie Minoso, baseball star | Saturnino Orestes Armas Minoso Arrieta |
| Monica, pop singer | Monica Arnold |
| Mo'Nique, actress-comedienne | Monique Imes-Jackson |
| Wes Montgomery, jazz guitarist | John Leslie Montgomery |
| Warren Moon, football quarterback | Harold Warren Moon |
| Archie Moore, boxer | Archibald Lee Wright |
| Melba Moore, pop singer-actress | Beatrice Melba Hill |
| Mercury Morris, football star | Eugene Edward Morris |
| Queen Mother Moore, social activist | Audley Eloise Moore |
| Greg Morris, actor | Francis Gregory Alan Morris |
| Toni Morrison, writer | Chloe Anthony Wofford |
| Jelly Roll Morton, jazz pianist | Ferdinand Joseph La Menthe Morton |
| Askia Muhammad, poet-journalist | Charles King Moreland Jr. |
| Elijah Muhammad, Muslim leader | Elijah Poole |
| Khallid Muhammad, Muslim leader | Harold Moore Vann |
| Eddie Murphy, comedian-actor | Edward Regan Murphy |
| Pauli Murray, priest-civil rights activist | Anna Pauline Murray |
| Musiq, R&B singer | Taalib Johnson |
| Walter Dean Myers, novelist | Walter Milton Myers |
| Ray Nagin, mayor of New Orleans | Clarence Ray Nagin Jr. |
| Najee, jazz musician | Jerome Najee Rasheed |
| Nas, rapper | Nasir bin Olu Dara Jones |
| Ne Yo, singer-songwriter | Shaffer Chimere Smith |
| Itabari Njeri, journalist-social critic | Jill Stacey Moreland |
| Milton Obote, President of Uganda | Apollo Milton Opeto Obote |
| Chad Ochocinco, pro football player | Chad Javon Johnson |
| Billy Ocean, pop singer | Leslie Sebastian Charles |
| Odetta, singer | Odetta Holmes Felious Gordon |
| Blue Moon Odom, baseball pitcher | Johnny Lee Odom |
| Omarion, R&B singer | Omari Ismael Grandberry |
| Jesse Owens, Olympic track star | James Cleveland Owens |
| Z.Z. Packer, short stories author | Zuwena Packer |
| Pele, soccer star | Edson Arantes do Nacimento |
| Master P, rap artist-promoter | Perry Miller |
| Satchel Paige, baseball star | Leroy Robert Page |
| Charlie Parker, jazz saxophonist | Charles Christopher Parker, Jr. |
| Gordon Parks, author-photographer | Gordon Roger Alexander Buchanan Parks |
| Billy Paul, R&B singer | Paul Williams |
| Tyler Perry, playwright-director | Emmitt R. Perry, Jr. |
| Brock Peters, actor | George Fisher |
| P.B.S. Pinchback, Louisiana governor | Pinckney Benton Stewart Pinchback |
| Mammy Pleasant, businesswoman | Mary Ellen Pleasant |
| Fritz Pollard, pioneer football coach | Frederick Douglass Pollard |
| Leontyne Price, opera singer | Mary Violet Leontine Price |
| Maxi Priest, reggae singer | Max Alfred Elliott |
| Prince, pop singer | Prince Rogers Nelson |
| Richard Pryor, comedian-actor | Aaron Richard Pryor |
| Sun Ra, jazz artist | Herman Poole Blount |
| Ma Rainey, blues singer | Gertrude Malissa Pridgett |
| A. Philip Randolph, civil rights activist | Asa Philip Randolph |
| Shabba Ranks, Jamaican rap singer | Rexton Rawlston Fernando Gordon |
| Ahmad Rashad, sportscaster | Bobby Moore |
| Louisiana Red, blues guitarist | Iverson Minter |
| J. Saunders Redding, author-educator | James Thomas Saunders Redding |
| Ishmael Reed, author-critic | Emmett Coleman |
| Della Reese, pop singer | Deloreese Early |
| Ving Rhames, actor | Irving Rameses Rhames |
| Busta Rhymes, rap singer | Trevor Tahiem Smith, Jr. |
| Willy T. Ribb, race car driver | William Theodore Ribbs Jr. |
| Jerry Rice, football star | Jerome Lee Rice |
| Little Richard, pop singer | Richard Wayne Penniman |
| J.R. Richard, baseball pitcher | James Rodney Richard |
| Beah Richards, actress | Beulah Richardson |
| Rihanna, singer | Robyn Rihanna Fenty |
| Doc Rivers, baseball pitcher-coach | Glenn Anton Rivers |
| Jackie Robinson, baseball star | Jack Roosevelt Robinson |
| Smokey Robinson, pop singer | William Robinson, Jr. |
| Sugar Ray Robinson, boxer | Walker Smith Jr. |
| The Rock, pro wrestler | Dwayne Johnson |
| J.A. Rogers, self-taught historian | Joel Augustus Rogers |
| Sonny Rollins, jazz saxophonist | Theodore Walter Rollins |
| Diana Ross, pop singer | Diane Ernestine Ross |
| David Ruffin, pop singer | Davis Eli Ruffin |
| Ja Rule, rap singer | Jeffrey Atkins |
| RuPaul, drag queen | RuPaul Andre Charles |
| Nipsey Russell, comedian | Julius Russell |
| C.C. Sabathia, pro baseball pitcher | Carsten Charles Sabathia |
| Raphael Saadiq, R&B singer | Charlie Ray Wiggins |
| Sade, British pop singer | Helen Folasade Adu |
| Raymond St. Jacques, actor | James Arthur Johnson |
| Sonia Sanchez, poet | Wilsonia Benita Driver |
| Kalamu ya Salaam, poet-writer | Vallery Fernandez |
| Zoe Saldana, actress | Zoe Yadira Zaldaña Nazario |
| Victor Sejour, ex-patriate writer | Juan Victor Séjour Marcou et Ferrand |
| Haile Selassie, Ethiopian emperor | Ras Tafari Makonnen |
| Betty Shabazz, wife of Malcolm X | Betty Dean Sanders |
| Tupac Shakur, rap singer-actor | Lesane Parish Crooks |
| Ntozake Shange, playwright | Paulette Linda Williams |
| Shanice, pop singer | Shanice Lorraine Wilson |
| Rev. Al Sharpton, civil right activist | Alfred Sharpton, Jr. |
| Bobby Short, singer | Robert Waltrip Short |
| Rev. Fred Shuttleworth, social activist | Freddie Lee Robinson |
| O.J. Simpson, football star | Orenthal James Simpson |
| Will Smith, actor-singer | Willard Christopher Smith Jr. |
| Sinbad | David Adkins |
| Nina Simone, jazz vocalist | Eunice Kathleen Waymon |
| Sisqo, singer-actor | Mark Althavan Andrews |
| Iceberg Slim, novelist | Robert Lee Maupin |
| Tavis Smiley, radio and TV host | Tavis Roberts |
| O.C. Smith, pop singer | Ocie Lee Smith |
| Ozzie Smith, baseball star | Osborne Earl Smith |
| Tubby Smith, college basketball coach | Orlando Smith |
| Will Smith, actor-rapper | Willard Christopher Smith, Jr. |
| Sammy Sosa, baseball player | Samuel Sosa Montero |
| Sister Souljah, rap singer-activist | Lisa Williamson |
| Wole Soyinka, Nigerian writer | Akinwande Oluwole Soyinka |
| Edwin Starr, pop singer | Charles Hatcher |
| Willie Stargell, baseball star | Wilver Dornell Stargell |
| Karrine Steffans, model-author | Karin Stephens |
| Angie Stone, R&B singer | Angela Laverne Brown |
| Sly Stone, rock singer | Sylvester Stewart |
| Woody Strode, athlete-actor | Woodrow Wilson Woolwine Strode |
| Ruben Studdard, R&B singer | Christopher Ruben Studdard |
| Niara Sudarkasa, educator | Gloria Albertha Marshall |
| Donna Summer, pop singer | LaDonna Andrea Gaines |
| Sekeou Sudiata, poet | Robert Franklin Feaster |
| Al B. Sure, pop singer | Albert Joseph Brown III |
| Keith Sweat, R&B singer | Keith Douglas Sweat |
| Sylvester, pop singer | Sylvester James |
| Ice T, rap singer-actor | Tracey Morrow |
| Mr. T, actor | Lawrence Tureaud |
| Tammi Terrell, pop singer | Thomasina Winifred Montgomery |
| Joe Tex, R&B singer | Joseph Arrington Jr. |
| Piri Thomas, writer-poet | Juan Pedro Thomas |
| T.I., rapper | Clifford Joseph Harris Jr. |
| Luis Tiant, baseball star | Luis Clemente Tiant Vega |
| Tone-Loc, hip hop singer | Anthony Terrell Smith |
| Jean Toomer, novelist-poet | Nathan Pinchback Toomer |
| Peter Tosh, reggae singer | Winston Hubert McIntosh |
| Tonex, gospel singer | Anthony Charles Williams II |
| Sojourner Truth, abolitionist | Isabella Van Wagner (a.k.a. Isabelle Baumfree) |
| Harriet Tubman, abolitionist | Araminta Rose |
| C. Delores Tucker, politician-activist | Cynthia DeLores Nottage |
| Kwame Ture, political activist | Stokely Carmichael |
| Morrie Turner, cartoonist | Morris Nolten |
| Tina Turner, pop singer | Anna Mae Bullock |
| Tyrese, hip hop singer-actor | Tyrese Darnell Gibson |
| Luther Vandross, pop singer | Luther Ronzoni Vandross |
| Iyanla Vanzant, motivational speaker | Ronda Eva Harris |
| Vanity, pop singer | Denise Katrina Mathews |
| Iyanla Vanzant, author | Rhonda Vanzant |
| Mo Vaughn, baseball player | Maurice Samuel Vaughn |
| Denmark Vessey, slave revolt leader | Telemanque |
| Junior Walker, singer-saxophonist | Autry DeWalt Mixon, Jr. |
| Madame C. J. Walker, entrepreneur | Sarah Breedlove |
| Jersey Joe Walcott, boxer | Arnold Raymond Cream |
| Fats Waller, jazz pianist | Thomas Wright Waller |
| Dionne Warwick, pop singer | Marie Dionne Warwick |
| Booker T. Washington, educator | Booker Taliaferro |
| Dinah Washington, blues singer | Ruth Lee Jones |
| Muddy Waters, blues singer | McKinley Morganfield |
| J.C. Watts, Republican Congressman | Julius Caesar Watts Jr. |
| Lil Wayne, hip hop singer | Dwayne Michael Carter Jr. |
| Chick Webb, drummer | William Henry Webb |
| Spud Webb, pro basketball star | Anthony Jerome Webb |
| Kim Weston, soul singer | Agatha Natalie Weston |
| Barry White, R&B singer-composer | Barrence Eugene Carter |
| Slappy White, comedian-actor | Melvin White |
| Douglas Wilder, Virginia governor | Lawrence Douglas Wilder |
| Dominique Wilkins, basketball star | Jacques Dominique Wilkins |
| Bernie Williams, baseball star | Bernabe Figueroa Williams |
| Bert Williams, comedian | Egbert Austin Williams |
| Billy Dee Williams, actor | William December Williams |
| Rev. Cecil Williams, minister-activist | Albert Cecil Williams |
| Deniece Williams, pop singer | June Deniece Chandler |
| Katt Williams, comedian | Micah S. Katt Williams |
| Joe Williams, jazz singer | Joseph Goreed |
| Ricky Williams, pro football star | Errick Lynne Williams, Jr. |
| Samm-Art Williams, playwright-actor | Samuel Arthur Williams |
| Venus Williams, tennis champion | Venus Ebony Starr Williams |
| Mykelti Williamson, actor | Michael T. Williamson |
| Ty Willingham, college football coach | Lionel Tyrone Willingham |
| August Wilson, playwright | Frederick August Kittel Jr. |
| Demond Wilson, actor | Grady Demond Wilson |
| Dooley Wilson, actor-singer | Arthur Wilson |
| Mookie Wilson, baseball star | William Hayward Wilson |
| Flip Wilson, comedian | Clerow Wilson Jr. |
| Jackie Wilson, pop singer | Jack Leroy Wilson Jr. |
| Bebe Winans, gospel singer | Benjamin Winans |
| Cece Winans, gospel singer | Priscilla Winans Love |
| Oprah Winfrey, talk show host | Orpah Gail Winfrey |
| Howlin' Wolf, blues singer-guitarist | Chester Burnett |
| Stevie Wonder, pop singer | Steveland Hardaway Judkins |
| Tiger Woods, golfer | Eldrick Tont Woods |
| Malcolm X, Muslim leader | Malcolm Little |
| Marvin X, poet-playwright | Marvin Ellis Jackson |
| Xzibit, rapper-TV host | Alvin Nathaniel Joiner |
| Yahweh Ben Yahweh, cult leader | Hulon Mitchell |
| A.S. "Doc" Young, journalist | Andrew Sturgeon Young |
Copyright ©2009 by Robert Fikes, Jr.