African Americans From Missouri

American basketball player Jayson Tatum was one of the best players in his school basketball team and played for the Duke University’s team, Duke Blue Devils, before being drafted by Boston Celtics of the NBA in 2017. Jayson Tatum is fast becoming one of Celtic’s most impactful player and also has the potential to become an NBA superstar.

Chuck Berry was an American singer-songwriter. Referred to as the Father of Rock and Roll, Berry is credited with pioneering rock and roll music. He is also credited with influencing the attitude with which the rock music lifestyle is usually associated. Also revered for his guitaring skills, Berry is often included in lists like the Greatest Artists of All Time.

Akon is one of the most successful R&B, hip hop and rap singers in the world. His albums Trouble, Konvicted, Freedom, El Negreeto and Akonda have many chartbusters songs. He has also founded record labels Akonik Label Group, KonLive Distribution and Konvict Mizik. He courted controversy in 2007 for an onstage act involving simulated sex with a 15-year-old girl.

American mathematician Dorothy Vaughan was also known as a "human computer." Initially a math teacher, she became the first African-American supervisor of NACA, later part of NASA, at a time when racial segregation was rampant in the U.S. Her contribution to the early American space programs is invaluable.

Ryan Michelle Bathe is an American actress best known for her portrayal of Sara Holt in the legal comedy-drama TV series Boston Legal, for which she received a Screen Actors Guild Award nomination under the Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series category.

Grace Bumbry is an American opera singer who was part of a pioneering generation of African-American classical and opera singers. Bumbry's rich and dynamic voice helped establish her as one of the most important and popular mezzo-sopranos of her generation. Grace Bumbry is also known for her dramatic intensity and fiery temperament on stage.