20th-century American male musicians

American artist, film director, and producer (1928–1987)

Heywood "Woody" Allen is an American filmmaker, actor, writer, and comedian. In a career spanning eight decades, he has written for film, television, and theater. Allen has received many accolades, including the most wins and nominations for the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay. He has won four Academy Awards, ten BAFTA Awards, two Golden Globe Awards and a Grammy Award, as well as nominations for an Emmy Award and a Tony Award. Allen has also received numerous honors, including an Honorary Golden Lion in 1995, the BAFTA Fellowship in 1997, an Honorary Palme d'Or in 2002, and the Golden Globe Cecil B. DeMille Award in 2014. Two of his films have been inducted into the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress.

Tupac Amaru Shakur was an American rapper and actor. He was one of the most influential musical artists of the 20th century, and a prominent political activist for Black America. He is among the best-selling music artists, having sold more than 75 million records worldwide. Some of Shakur's music addressed social injustice, political issues, and the marginalization of African Americans, but he was also synonymous with gangsta rap and violent lyrics.

David Keith Lynch was an American filmmaker, producer, actor, painter, and musician. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential filmmakers in the history of cinema, with his films often characterized by a distinctive surrealist sensibility that gave rise to the adjective "Lynchian". In a career spanning more than five decades, he received numerous accolades, including an Academy Honorary Award, the Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement at the Venice Film Festival, a Palme d'Or and Best Director Award at the Cannes Film Festival, two César Awards, and a (posthumous) Laurel Award for Screenwriting Achievement, in addition to nominations for four Academy Awards, two British Academy Film Awards, four Golden Globe Awards, and nine Primetime Emmy Awards.

American and Ghanaian singer-songwriter, composer and record producer (born 1950)

Adam Richard Sandler is an American actor, comedian, filmmaker, and musician. Primarily a comedic leading actor in films, his accolades include an Independent Spirit Award, alongside nominations for three Grammy Awards, seven Primetime Emmy Awards, three Golden Globe Awards, eight Golden Raspberry Awards, and a Screen Actors Guild Award. In 2023, Sandler was awarded the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor.

American record producer and rapper (born 1965)

American guitarist and singer

Paul Gardner Allen was an American businessman, computer programmer, and investor. He co-founded Microsoft Corporation with his childhood friend Bill Gates in 1975, which was followed by the microcomputer revolution of the 1970s and 1980s. Allen discovered the wrecks of various famous warships, like the IJN Musashi and USS Indianapolis, and was ranked as one of the richest people in American history by Forbes, with an estimated net worth of $20.3 billion at the time of his death in October 2018.

Shawn Corey Carter (born December 4, 1969), known professionally as Jay-Z, is an American rapper, businessman, and record executive. He was named the greatest rapper of all time by Billboard and Vibe in 2023. Rooted in East Coast hip-hop, Jay-Z is known for his complex lyricism that often uses double entendres, wordplay, and braggadocio. His music is built on a rags to riches narrative. He is the wealthiest musical artist in history, worth US$2.8 billion as of 2026.

Shaquille Rashaun O'Neal, commonly known as Shaq, is an American former professional basketball player and sports analyst on the television program Inside the NBA. Nicknamed "Diesel", he is a 7-foot-1-inch (2.16 m) and 325-pound (147 kg) center who played for six teams over his 19-year career in the National Basketball Association (NBA) and is a four-time NBA champion. O'Neal is widely regarded as one of the greatest basketball players and centers of all time.

Thomas Jacob "Jack" Black is an American actor, comedian, and musician. He has played leading roles in family and comedy films, in addition to his voice work in animated features. His accolades include an Emmy Award, a Grammy Award, and nominations for two Critics' Choice Awards and three Golden Globe Awards. In 2018, he was awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

American guitarist

American actor

American country singer (1938–2020)

American pop singer

Christopher George Latore Wallace, known professionally as the Notorious B.I.G. or Biggie Smalls, was an American rapper and songwriter. Rooted in the East Coast hip-hop and gangsta rap traditions, he is widely considered one of the greatest rappers of all time. Wallace became known for his distinctive, laidback lyrical delivery, offsetting his lyrics' often grim content. His music was semi-autobiographical, telling of hardship and criminality but also of debauchery and celebration.

Joseph Frank Pesci is an American actor and singer. He is best known for portraying tough, volatile characters in a variety of genres and for his collaborations with Martin Scorsese and Robert De Niro in the films Raging Bull (1980), Goodfellas (1990), Casino (1995), and The Irishman (2019).

British musician

American musician

American country singer, songwriter and actor (1936-2024)

Stephen Glenn Martin is an American comedian, actor, writer, producer, and musician. Known for his work in comedy films, television, and recording, he has received many accolades, including five Grammy Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, and a Screen Actors Guild Award as well as nominations for eight Golden Globe Awards and two Tony Awards. Martin received the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor in 2005, the Kennedy Center Honors in 2007, the Honorary Academy Award in 2013 and an AFI Life Achievement Award in 2015. In 2004, Comedy Central ranked Martin at sixth place in a list of the 100 greatest stand-up comics.

Founder of the Church of Satan, author of the Satanic Bible (1930-1997)

American musician, singer, songwriter and record producer

American jazz guitarist, country guitarist, songwriter and inventor (1915–2009)

Artis Leon Ivey Jr. (August 1, 1963 – September 28, 2022), known by his stage name Coolio, was an American rapper. He was best known for his single "Gangsta's Paradise" (1995), which won a Grammy Award, and was credited for changing the course of hip-hop by bringing it to a wider audience. Other singles included "Fantastic Voyage" (1994), "1, 2, 3, 4 (Sumpin' New)" (1996), and "C U When U Get There" (1997). He released nine albums, the first three of which achieved mainstream success: It Takes a Thief (1994), ''Gangsta's Paradise (1995), and My Soul'' (1997). Coolio first achieved recognition

American cellist (born 1955)

American violinist and conductor (1916–1999)

American bassist (1962–1986)

American singer and songwriter (1941–1967)

American musician

American rapper (born 1972)

Beck David Hansen (born Bek David Campbell; July 8, 1970), known mononymously as Beck, is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. He rose to fame in the early 1990s with his experimental and lo-fi style, and became known for creating musical collages of wide-ranging genres. He has musically encompassed folk, funk, soul, hip hop, electronica, alternative rock, country, and psychedelia. He has released 15 studio albums, as well as several non-album singles and a book of sheet music.

American singer, guitarist and songwriter (1941–2023)

American country music singer and songwriter

American rock musician (1948–2016)

Russian-American violinist (1901–1987)

Israeli-American violinist and conductor (born 1945)

American jazz saxophonist (1927–1991)

American jazz vocalist and composer (born 1950)

American jazz pianist (1909–1956)

Scottish-American musician (born 1952)

American actor, musician and comedian

Adam Jared Brody is an American actor. His breakout role was as Seth Cohen on the Fox television series The O.C. (2003–2007). For his performance as Noah Roklov in the Netflix romantic comedy series Nobody Wants This (2024–present), he earned nominations for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Television Series (Musical/Comedy) and the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series; he won the Critics' Choice Television Award for Best Actor in a Comedy Series.

American saxophonist

American comedic entertainer (1894–1974)

American musician

American jazz bassist (1951–1987)

American comedian

American actor and musician

American musician (1920–2001)

American guitarist (1924–2001)

American rock musician

American rock musician

American singer (1940–2010)

American jazz drummer and bandleader (1919–1990)

American actor

American musician (born 1945)

American jazz saxophonist (1904–1969)

American singer and songwriter