Enlightened Free Thinking Nubian Kings And Queens

Born Leroy Nicholas Barnes on October 15, 1933, in Harlem, New York was one of the most powerful New York drug dealers of the 1970s.  His career as a drug lord began in 1965 when he was imprisoned for heroin consumption. While in New York Green Haven Penitentiary he met the Italian mafia leader “Crazy” Joe Gallo.  After both were released, Gallo helped Barnes form a mass drug-dealing organization. Despite “Crazy” Joe Gallo’s murder on April 7, 1972, Leroy “Nicky” Barnes continued to expand his business. During this period Barnes acquired the nicknamed “Mr. Untouchable” as New York City police attempts to charge him for his crimes always failed because of absence of evidence or unreliable witnesses.  By 1973, Barnes gather together the main drug kingpins in New York City to form for the first time a city-wide organization called “the Council.” Modeled on the similar Italian mafia organizations, the aim of this council was to bring order to the drug dealing market by r...

Contemporary gospel's preeminent group, the Mighty Clouds Of Joy carried the torch for the traditional quartet vocal style throughout an era dominated by solo acts and choirs; pioneering a distinctively funky sound that over time gained grudging acceptance even among purists, they pushed spiritual music in new and unexpected directions, even scoring a major disco hit entitled, "Mighty High".  More importantly, they were the first group to add bass, drums, and keyboards to the standard quartet accompaniment of solo guitar, resulting in a sound that horrified traditionalists but appealed to younger listeners -- so much so, in fact, that the Mighty Clouds became the first gospel act ever to appear on television's Soul Train. Joe Ligon formed the group in 1955 during his high school days in Los Angeles, CA. He spent his childhood in Alabama, then moved west to live with his uncle. He found several other young men from the South in his Watts neighborhood, including, ...

Entrepreneur and philanthropist Annie Turnbo Malone was born to Robert Turnbo and Isabella Cook in Metropolis, Illinois on August 9, 1869.  Her parents were former slaves and her father joined the Union Army during the Civil War. Turnbo attended school in Peoria, Illinois, but she never finished high school.  Instead, she practiced hairdressing with her sister.  When she and her family moved to Lovejoy, Illinois, Annie decided she wanted to become a "beauty doctor."  At the age of 20 she had already developed her own shampoo and scalp treatment to grow and straighten hair.  Taking her creation to the streets, she went around in a buggy making speeches to demonstrate and promote the new shampoo. By 1902, Annie Turnbo's home shampoo venture thrived and she moved to St. Louis, Missouri, home of the nation's fourth-largest African American population, to expand her business.  She was largely successful and she trademarked her beauty products under the name "...