James Marshall Hendrix, a boy born in November 27, 1942 in Seattle, WA, playing guitar fully inspired by blues greats and early rockers. Not knowing that he would later be known as the most innovative guitarists in rock ‘n’ roll, and impacting music and the Black community.

James Hendrix joined the army in 1959, only serving for three years as a paratrooper. Many think it’s because he broke his ankle, but really, he had a passion more for music than continuing in the military. He would be discharged in 1961.  Hendrix would later be a pickup guitarist backing up for the most popular artists at the time, being Little Richard and Sam Cooke. He would later move to New York and perform side gigs in coffee houses.

He would be recognized by a bassist player named Chas Chandler who was in the band called The Animals. He would take Hendrix in and would manage him. He would be brought to London and form a band with Mitch Mitchel as drums and Noel Redding as bassist.

Hendrix would be known as ‘paying white rock for white people,’ in the Black community, causing him to go on a quest to be accepted by his own people. In the honor of reconnecting with his black audience, he would replace his two white band members with his two friends, Billy Cox on bass guitar and Buddy Miles on Drums.

Hendrix would write protest themed songs and would perform with his new group Band Of Gypsys for free in the heart of Harlem. Hendrix would inspire future musicians like Prince, Eric Gales, Buddy Miles and even white artists like Stevie Ray Vaughan and Eric Clapton.

He died on September 18, 1970, but would be known as “arguably the greatest guitarist in the history of rock music,” as announced by the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.