Category: Black Excellence

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tim_Howard

Timothy Matthew Howard (born March 6, 1979) is an American former professional soccer player who played as a goalkeeper. Nicknamed the “Secretary of Defense“, Howard is regarded as one of the greatest American players of all time.^[4][5][6]

Howard began his career with the North Jersey Imperials, before making a move to the MetroStars. He was signed by English club Manchester United in 2003, replacing Fabian Barthez as the team’s first-choice keeper. In his second season at the club, Howard competed for the first-choice spot with Roy Carroll. Howard enjoyed relative success with the club, as they won the 2003 FA Community Shield, the 2003–04 FA Cup and the 2005–06 League Cup. He was listed on the PFA Team of the Year for the 2003–04 season.^[7]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deantoni_Parks

Deantoni Parks (born November 2, 1977) is an American musician. He is the co-founder, co-producer and drummer of the New York band Kudu, along with artist Sylvia Black, and a member of the TV/film-scoring duo We Are Dark Angels which also comprises Kudu member Nicci Kasper. Parks was a member of progressive rock band The Mars Volta and (together with Kasper) a member of the alternative rock act Bosnian Rainbows. Parks is a composer and performer on the André 3000 album, New Blue Sun (2023), and contributed to Flea‘s debut solo album, Honora (2026).

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alika_Hope

Alika Hope is the founder and primary vocalist for the Ray of Hope Project. She was born in Oregon and received a Bachelor of Arts in sociology from the University of Notre Dame. Hope also minored in dance at St. Mary’s College. She went on to receive a Master of Arts in early childhood special education from Teachers College at Columbia University.^[1] She is currently an Arts Administration professor at Wagner College^[2]

Shannon Lamb (she/her) is an accomplished actor and singer who has been blessed to perform on various stages across the country. Current WAM credit: Cabaret Performer. Previous WAM credits: Charlotta Bass in Letters to Kamala. Selected Theatre Credits Elsewhere: Bertha in  Joe Turner’s Come and Gone, and Rachel Twymon Sr in Common Ground Revisited (Huntington Theatre), Marlena Madison in The Buddy Holly Story (Majestic Theater), It Happened in Little Rock, Because of Winn Dixie (Arkansas Repertory Theatre), Temptation in Pendemoniun (Cherry Lane Theatre, NYC – world premiere); Building The Wall (Academy of Music – rolling world premiere); Jar the Floor, Gee’s Bend, Mary Poppins, and The Full Monty (Arkansas Repertory Theatre); Smokey Joe’s Café, Little Shop of Horrors, and Annie (Murray’s Dinner Playhouse). TV/Film Credits Include: Mighty Real, The Dave Chapelle Show, This Revolution, The Empty Hand, and Fight Knight. Memberships/Affiliations:  a proud member of Actors Equity Association. Career highlights include: singing the national anthem at Madison Square Garden and appearing on the cover of American Theatre Magazine for the world premiere of It Happened in Little Rock. Last word: All my love to Gil and our children!

Fannie: The Music and Life of Fannie Lou Hamer

Chester Theatre Company in Chester, Mass.
Written by Cheryl L. West
Directed by Gilbert McCauley

“I am sick and tired of being sick and tired.”

Chester Theatre Company has a hit on its hands, on its stage. “Fannie: The Music and Life of Fannie Lou Hamer” is the best one-person play I have seen in a very long time. It tells the story, the true-to-life tale, of a Black woman in Mississippi who was not content with just being a traditional woman. She wanted to change things, and after years of trying, she succeeded. Fannie registered to vote, she inspired others to demand their natural rights, and she made an impact on the world she inhabited. She was immortal even before she earned that right. Shannon Lamb, who plays her, is going to join her thanks to a marvelous, emotional performance.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jude_Bellingham

Jude Victor William Bellingham (born 29 June 2003) is an English professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for La Liga club Real Madrid and the England national team. Regarded as “one of the best players in the world”, he is known for his athleticism and ball-winning ability.^[4][5][6]

https://www.gilbertmccauley.com/about-gilbert-mccauley

Gilbert McCauley is a masterful theatrical storyteller and a Full Professor in the Department of Theater at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. He has served as the Producing Artistic Director of Oakland Ensemble Theatre, Resident Director at Rites and Reason Theatre, as an acting company member of the Repertory Theatre of St. Louis, and he is an alum of the New York Drama League’s Directors Project. Mr. McCauley has directed Off-Broadway and at regional theatres around the country including Arena Stage, Arkansas Repertory Theater, Goodman Theatre, Hartford Stage, Old Globe Theatre, Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Playwrights Horizons, SeattleRepertory Theatre, Syracuse Stage and the National Theatre of Ghana.

https://www.joshjohnsonmusic.com/#about

Josh Johnson  is a saxophonist, composer, multi-instrumentalist, and Grammy Award-winning producer. His second solo album, Unusual Object, a striking work of futuristic jazz and modern composition, was recently released on Northern Spy Records. This spare work for processed saxophone and subtle samples shows Johnson further sharpening his unique compositional voice. Unusual Object, Johnson says, “is a development and documentation of a more personal world of sound. What’s it like for me to create the context for my sound, to frame it myself?”

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Hamid

Abdul Bilal “Bill” Hamid (/həˈmiːd/ hə-MEED; born November 25, 1990) is an American professional soccer player who plays as a goalkeeper.

Born in Annandale, Virginia, Hamid was the first D.C. United Academy player to sign for the first team in September 2009. He made his professional debut in May 2010 as the youngest goalkeeper to win a game in Major League Soccer history. He helped the team to victory in the 2013 U.S. Open Cup and received the MLS Goalkeeper of the Year Award in 2014. In January 2018 he joined FC Midtjylland, winning the Danish Superliga in his first season. He returned to D.C. United in August, initially on loan, and totaled 296 appearances (232 league). He was released at the end of the 2022 season, with franchise records of 89 shutouts and 976 saves.

Hamid made his senior debut for the United States national team in January 2012, playing eight games up to December 2020. He was part of their teams that won the CONCACAF Gold Cup in 2013 and 2017.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_F._McAfee

Charles Francis McAfee, FAIA, NOMA (born December 25, 1932),^[1] is an American architect, building material manufacturer, and housing activist. He was the founding president of Charles F. McAfee Architects, Engineers, and Planners firm (now McAfee³) which was headquartered in Wichita, Kansas.^[2] McAfee has had a distinguished career, and has been considered one of the most important African-American architect in the United States for his social activism in designing affordable housing.^[3][4] He was a mentor to many of Black architects, including two of his own daughters.^[5]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kylian_Mbapp%C3%A9

Kylian Mbappé Lottin (French pronunciation: [kiljan (ɛ)mbape lɔtɛ̃]; born 20 December 1998) is a French professional footballer who plays as a forward for La Liga club Real Madrid and captains the France national team. Widely regarded as one of the greatest players of all time, he is known for his pace, dribbling, and clinical finishing.