Birthday Celebrations — September 10

Born on this day. These are the birthdays we celebrate on September 10 — the people whose lives added to the story of Black history.

John R. Lynch

Full name: John Roy Lynch

Born September 10, 1847 — died November 2, 1939

Reconstruction congressman, Mississippi House speaker, and historian.

Born enslaved, Lynch became Speaker of the Mississippi House at 24 and a U.S. congressman at 25, later writing The Facts of Reconstruction to correct the era’s slanders.

Georgia Douglas Johnson

Birth name: Georgia Douglas Camp

Born September 10, 1880 — died May 15, 1966

Poet, playwright, and Harlem Renaissance salon host.

Author of The Heart of a Woman, Johnson hosted Washington’s S Street Salon, a weekly gathering that nurtured Langston Hughes, Jean Toomer, and a generation of Black writers; some sources give her birth year as circa 1877.

Roy Brown

Full name: Roy James Brown

Born September 10, 1925 — died May 25, 1981

Jump-blues singer and songwriter.

Brown wrote and first recorded "Good Rocking Tonight," a cornerstone of rock and roll later cut by Wynonie Harris and Elvis Presley; census research suggests 1920 as his birth year.

Roy Ayers

Full name: Roy Edward Ayers Jr.

Born September 10, 1940 — died March 4, 2025

Vibraphonist and godfather of neo-soul.

"Everybody Loves the Sunshine" became one of the most sampled recordings in hip-hop history.

Marlin Briscoe

Full name: Marlin Oliver Briscoe

Born September 10, 1945 — died June 27, 2022

Professional football trailblazer.

In 1968 Briscoe became the first Black starting quarterback of the modern era, then remade himself into a Pro Bowl receiver and two-time Super Bowl champion.

Bob Lanier

Full name: Robert Jerry Lanier Jr.

Born September 10, 1948 — died May 10, 2022

Basketball Hall of Fame center and union president.

The eight-time All-Star devoted his post-playing decades to players’ rights and youth literacy as the NBA’s global ambassador.

Big Daddy Kane

Birth name: Antonio Hardy

Born September 10, 1968

Golden-age rap master.

"Ain’t No Half-Steppin’" set new standards for speed and showmanship, influencing Jay-Z and The Notorious B.I.G.

Ben Wallace

Full name: Ben Camey Wallace

Born September 10, 1974

Basketball Hall of Famer.

Undrafted from Virginia Union, Wallace won four Defensive Player of the Year awards and anchored the 2004 champion Pistons.

Misty Copeland

Full name: Misty Danielle Copeland

Born September 10, 1982

Ballerina and author.

In 2015 Copeland became the first Black woman principal dancer in American Ballet Theatre’s 75-year history.