Black Music Sunday: A tribute to Lou Rawls’ talent and iconic telethon

Black Music Sunday is a weekly series highlighting all things Black music, with 240 stories covering performers, genres, history, and more, each featuring its own vibrant soundtrack. I hope you’ll find some familiar tunes and perhaps an introduction to something new.

Thanks to Vice President Kamala Harris being a graduate of Howard University, her historic presidential campaign helped more people in the U.S. learn about the nation’s Historically Black Colleges and Universities. “Black Music Sunday” has showcased music from HBCUs in the past, including musical Howard alumni like Shirley Horn, Geri Allen, Roberta Flack, and Donny Hathaway. We’ve also highlighted the groundbreaking work of the Fisk (University) Jubilee Singers, and featured the magic of HBCU marching bands and drumlines.

Yet we have not explored the musical career and passionate work of singer, actor, and philanthropist Lou Rawls or his work funding HBCUs via the United Negro College Fund, an organization founded in 1944 whose work continues today

Rawls was born in Chicago on Dec. 1, 1933, and for his birthday, we celebrate both his music and his commitment to supporting Black educational achievement.