COMPILED BY KRISTINA DIXON
Mary Alice – 85 – Born Dec. 3, 1936. Died July 27. Award-winning actress.
David A. Arnold – 54 – Born March 15, 1968. Died Sept. 7. Comedian.
Marion Barber III – 38 – Born June 10, 1983. Died June 1. Retired NFL player was found dead in a Texas apartment during a wellness check.
Traci Braxton – 50 – Born April 2, 1971. Died March 12. Singer alongside her sisters on “Braxton Family Values”. She spent the past year in treatment for esophageal cancer.
Stephen “tWitch’ Boss – 40 – Born Sept. 29, 1982 Died Dec. 14. TV personailty on “The Ellen DeGeneres show.”
Johnny Brown – 84 – Born June 11, 1937. Died March 2. Actor, singer and comedian known for his role “Good Times.”
Joyce Bryant - 95 – Born Oct. 14, 1927. Died November 20. Singer, dancer, and civil rights activist. She passed away after a long bout with Alzheimer’s disease.
Rev. Calvin Butts III – 73 – Born July 19, 1949. Died Oct. 28. Pastor at Abyssinian Baptist Church in New York City’s Harlem.
Irene Cara – 63- Born March 18, 1959. Died Nov. 25. An academy award-winning actress, singer, songwriter and producer, known for her hit film and song “Fame.”
Jessie Lee Daniels – 57 – Born July 4, 1963. Died January 5. Hip-Hop and R&B artist of the Force MDs.
Adrian Dingle – 45 – Born June 25, 1977. Died Nov. 8. Former college football star and NFL player.
Denise Dowse – 64 – Born Feb. 21, 1958. Died August 13. Actress best known for her role on the original Beverly Hills 90210.
Jaylon Ferguson – 26 – Born Dec. 14, 1995. Died June 21. NFL player for the Baltimore Ravens. There were no immediate reports of the cause of his death, but police in Baltimore called it “questionable.”
Hurricane G – 52 – Born Jan. 13, 1970. Died Nov. 6. Rapper. Member of the Hit Squad.
Janis Hunter Gaye – 66 – Born Jan. 6, 1956. Died Dec. 3. The second wife of celebrated soul singer Marvin Gaye and the mother of singer-actress Nona Gaye.
Sam Gilliam – 88 – Born Nov. 30, 1933. Died June 25. Abstract Painter.
Clarence Gilyard Jr. – 66 – Born Dec. 24, 1955. Died Nov. 28. Actor known for “Matlock,” “Walker, Texas Ranger”.
Jeff Gladney – 25- Born Dec. 12, 1996. Died May 30. NFL player died in a crash in Dallas. He played for the Arizona Cardinals.
Lani Guinier – 71 – Born April 19, 1950. Died Jan. 7. Civil rights attorney, legal scholar and professor. Died from complications of Alzheimer’s disease.
Lusia Harris – 66 – Born Feb.10, 1955. Died Jan. 18. Member of the first-ever women’s silver medal Olympic team in 1976 and drafted into the NBA — the first and still only time that the world’s premier professional basketball league selected a woman.
William “Poogie” Hart – 77 – Born Jan. 17, 1945. Died July 14. Lead singer of the Delfonics.
Dwayne Haskins – 24 – Born May 3, 1997. Died April 9. NFL quarterback for the Pittsburgh Steelers, was killed after being hit by a vehicle.
Michael Henderson – 71 – Born July 7, 1951. Died July 20. Singer of “Be My Girl,” and “Valentine Love,” duet with Jean Carn.
Fred Hickman – 66 – Born Oct. 17, 1956. Died Nov. 9. Award-winning sports broadcaster.
Cheryl A. Hickman – 60 – Born May 11, 1962. Died Jan. 20. National President of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. She served Delta for more than 37 years.
Max Julien – 88 – Born July 12, 1933. Died Jan.1. Actor, writer, director. “The Mack” and “Cleopatra Jones” are a few films he is remembered for.
Jay Knight – 28 – Born Nov. 6, 1993. Died July 15. Comedian and writer.
Cheslie Kryst – 30 – Born April 28, 1991. Died Jan. 30. Television correspondent, model, and beauty pageant titleholder who was crowned Miss USA 2019.
Bob Lanier – 73 – Born Sept. 10, 1948. Died May 10. NBA Hall of Famer, eight-time NBA all-star in 14 seasons with the Detroit Pistons and the Milwaukee Bucks.
Quentin Oliver Lee – 34 – Born Jan. 28, 1988. Died Dec. 1. Broadway actor. He passed away after a battle with stage 4 colon cancer.
Ramsey Lewis – 87 – Born May 27, 1935. Died Sept.12. Contemporary jazz legend.
Donald McEachin – 61 – Born Oct. 10, 1961. Died Nov. 28. Politician and lawyer who served as the U.S. representative for Virginia’s 4th congressional district from 2017 until his death.
Charles McGee – 102 – Born Dec. 7, 1919. Died Jan. 16. Brigadier General. Member of the Tuskegee Airmen in World War II, Korean War and Vietnam. According to the National World War II Museum, McGee flew more combat missions in the three wars than any other pilot.
Tytyana Miller – 29 – Born June 15, 1992. Died May 28. Daughter of Rapper Master P. Tytyana battled substance abuse and mental illness.
Moses J. Moseley – 31 – Born Dec. 24, 1990. Died Jan. 26. Actor from the TV show, “The Walking Dead.”
James Mtume – 76 – Born Jan. 3, 1946. Died Jan. 9. Grammy award-winning musician.
Nichelle Nichols – 89 – Born Dec. 28, 1932. Died July 30. Actress best known for her role as Lt. Uhura in the original Star Trek series.
Tame One – 52- Born March 20, 1970. Died Nov. 6. Rapper who was one half of the Hip-Hop duo, the Artifacts.
Bill Owens – 84 – Born July 6, 1937. Died Jan. 22. Politician and first Black state senator in Massachusetts history and a civil rights icon.
Sidney Poitier – 94 – Born Feb. 20, 1927. Died Jan. 6. Actor, film director and activist. First Black actor to win an Academy Award.
Jesse Powell – 51 – Born Sept. 12, 1971. Died Sept.13. R&B and soul singer and songwriter.
Teddy Ray – 32 – Born July 30, 1990. Died Aug. 12. Comedian and cast member on the eighth season of Wild N’ Out.
Jim Redmond – 81 – Born Sept. 3, 1965. Died Oct. 2. Father of a British Olympian, he leaped onto the track to help his injured son, Derek, make his way across the finish line.
Bill Russell – 88 – Born Feb.12, 1934. Died July 31. NBA legend who spent 13 seasons with the Boston Celtics. Inducted into the NBA’s Hall of Fame, he was also its first Black head coach.
Kevin Samuels – 53 – Born March 13, 1965. Died May 5. Social media influencer. Died after suffering cardiac arrest.
Earnie Shavers – 78 – Born Aug. 31, 1944. Died Sept. 1. Professional boxer.
Bernard Shaw – 82 – Born May 22, 1940. Died Sept. 8. Journalist and award-winning cable news anchor.
Charles Sherrod – 92 – Born Jan. 2, 1937. Died Oct. 11. Civil rights icon and leader of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC). Served on the front lines of the Civil Rights Movement.
DJ Kay Slay – 55 – Born Aug. 14,1966. Died April 17. Hip-Hop star. Passed away from complications from COVID-19.
Ronnie Spector – 78 – Born Aug.10, 1943. Died Jan. 12. Pop music singer of the girl group the Ronnettes.
Caleb Swanigan – 25 – Born April 18, 1997. Died June 20. Former NBA player. Swanigan died of “natural causes.”
Austin Stoker – 92 – Born Oct.r 7, 1930. Died Oct. 7. Actor on the hit TV show, Mod Squad.
Takeoff – 28 – Born June 18, 1994. Died Nov. 1. Rapper from the rap group Migos was shot and killed in Houston.
André Leon Talley – 73 – Born Oct. 16, 1948. Died Jan. 18. Fashion icon and news editor at Vogue.
Charley Taylor – 80 – Born Sept. 28, 1941. Died Feb. 19. Former NFL player and coach. Played in eight Pro Bowls and still has the most receptions in league history.
Andrew Woolfolk – 71 – Born Jan. 26, 1980. Died April 24. Saxophonist with Earth, Wind & Fire.
