Raised in the Pine Bluff area, Big Bill Broonzy carried the sounds of Arkansas to Chicago, where his innovative blend of country blues, ragtime, and swing helped shape the emerging sound of urban blues. A prolific songwriter, recording artist, and masterful guitarist, he later carried the blues to Europe, profoundly influencing the British musicians who would help transform rock and roll.

From Timbo, Arkansas, Jimmy Driftwood transformed history and Ozark tradition into songs heard around the world. A teacher and Grammy-winning songwriter, he wrote the American classic “The Battle of New Orleans” and used his national success to champion Ozark music and culture. Driftwood was also a driving force behind the creation of the Ozark Folk Center in Mountain View, preserving those traditions for generations.

One of those classroom songs became his unlikely breakthrough. Driftwood wrote “The Battle of New Orleans” to help students understand the War of 1812. After he began recording for RCA under the guidance of Chet Atkins, Johnny Horton heard the song and recorded a revised version. Horton’s 1959 recording became a major country and pop hit, and Driftwood and Horton received Grammy honors for Song of the Year. Driftwood went on to perform at the Grand Ole Opry, Carnegie Hall, and major folk festivals, while songs such as “Tennessee Stud” became part of the American folk and country repertoire.

But national success never pulled Driftwood away from the Ozarks for long. Returning to Stone County, he helped organize the Rackensack Folklore Society and the Arkansas Folk Festival and became a driving force behind the creation of the Ozark Folk Center in Mountain View. His preservation work extended beyond music: Driftwood also helped advocate for the Buffalo River’s designation as America’s first national river and for the development of Blanchard Springs Caverns. More than a successful songwriter, he became one of Arkansas’s great cultural preservationists, demonstrating that the music of the Ozarks was not simply a relic of the past, but a living American tradition.

Born in the Arkansas Ozarks, Almeda Riddle became a living archive of traditional music, preserving an extraordinary repertoire of hundreds of ballads, hymns, and children’s songs, some dating back centuries. Carrying generations of Ozark musical tradition to audiences across the nation, she became a monumental figure in the American folk music revival.

Beginning his musical journey in Little Rock and North Little Rock, Pharoah Sanders became one of the most adventurous saxophonists in modern jazz. His powerful sound, spiritual intensity, and groundbreaking work with John Coltrane made him a vital bridge between free jazz and spiritual jazz, while recordings such as “The Creator Has a Master Plan” expanded the boundaries of jazz for generations.

Shaped by his formative years and early musical education in Texarkana, Arkansas, Scott Joplin became the King of Ragtime and one of America’s most important composers. Through works including “Maple Leaf Rag,” “The Entertainer,” and the opera Treemonisha, Joplin brought remarkable sophistication and formal artistry to ragtime, helping establish it as one of America’s great original musical forms.

From Cotton Plant, Arkansas, Sister Rosetta Tharpe electrified audiences with a revolutionary blend of gospel, blues, and virtuosic guitar playing that helped give birth to rock and roll. Her fearless artistry broke musical and cultural boundaries, forever changing popular music and inspiring generations of performers, from Elvis Presley and Little Richard to Johnny Cash, Chuck Berry, and countless others.

Growing out of the rich musical soil of Turkey Scratch and Marvell, Levon Helm helped redefine American roots music. As the unmistakable voice and heartbeat of The Band, his soulful singing, drumming, and musicianship helped inspire the modern Americana movement. Throughout his remarkable career, Helm wove the sounds, stories, and sense of place of the Arkansas Delta into some of the most enduring music of his generation.

Growing up in Helena, Arkansas, Harold Jenkins began performing on local radio and formed his first band before becoming Conway Twitty, taking his stage name from Conway, Arkansas, and Twitty, Texas. From early rock and roll success to one of country music’s most extraordinary hit-making careers, his smooth, intimate singing and remarkable versatility helped define the sound of modern country music.

From the airwaves of Helena's King Biscuit Time, Sonny Boy became one of the defining voices and harmonica players of the blues. His sly vocals, masterful playing, and classic recordings carried Delta blues around the world, influencing generations of musicians and helping connect Arkansas's blues tradition to the rise of British blues and rock.

Raised in Forrest City, Arkansas, Al Green became one of the most unmistakable and defining voices of soul music, captivating the world with unmatched passion, elegance, and emotional depth. The timeless recordings in Al Green’s catalog continue to influence artists and stand among the greatest achievements in American popular music.

Howlin’ Wolf spent formative years in Arkansas before settling in West Memphis, where he formed an electric band, took to the airwaves on KWEM, and made the recordings that launched his career. Carrying his powerful voice and electrified Delta sound to Chicago, Wolf became one of the defining figures of Chicago blues and one of the most influential musicians in American music.

Raised and musically formed in Little Rock, William Grant Still broke barriers in American classical music while creating a powerful musical language that brought the blues and other African American traditions into the concert hall. His Afro-American Symphony became the first symphony by a Black composer performed by a major American orchestra, establishing Still as one of the most important American composers of his generation.

Born in Huntsville and raised in Fayetteville, Ronnie Hawkins joined forces with Levon Helm in Helena before taking his explosive rock and roll show to Canada. There, “The Hawk” became a towering figure in Canadian music and forged the Hawks into the band that became The Band. Hawkins’ greatest legacy was not only the music he made, but the musicians he helped make.

Born and raised in Brinkley, Arkansas, Louis Jordan transformed American popular music by blending jazz, blues, swing, and irresistible showmanship into the groundbreaking sound of jump blues. As one of the most successful recording artists of the twentieth century, his music helped lay the foundation for rhythm and blues and directly influenced the emergence of rock and roll.

After making his radio debut in El Dorado, Arkansas, at age twelve, Lefty Frizzell became one of the most influential singers in country music. His relaxed, conversational delivery and distinctive phrasing changed the language of country singing, leaving an unmistakable imprint on Willie Nelson, Merle Haggard, George Jones, and generations of country vocalists.

From the small town of Delight, Arkansas, Glen Campbell rose from legendary session guitarist to one of the world’s most beloved entertainers. A virtuoso musician with an unmistakable voice, Campbell moved effortlessly across country and pop, creating enduring recordings including “Wichita Lineman,” “Galveston,” and “Rhinestone Cowboy” while bringing country music to an enormous international audience.

Born and raised in Little Rock, Florence Price created a distinctive American classical voice, drawing upon spirituals, blues, and African American musical traditions with extraordinary beauty and originality. In 1933, her Symphony No. 1 became the first symphony by a Black woman performed by a major American orchestra, breaking a historic barrier and establishing Price as one of America’s most important composers.

Born in Colt and raised in the Forrest City area, Charlie Rich was shaped by the blues, gospel, country, and jazz traditions of eastern Arkansas. Known as the Silver Fox, his soulful singing and piano-driven style crossed musical boundaries, carrying him from Sun Records to country and pop stardom with classics including “Behind Closed Doors” and “The Most Beautiful Girl.”

Raised in Forrest City, Arkansas, Albert King began playing professionally in Osceola and transformed blues guitar with a powerful, unmistakable style that set the bar for musicians around the world. As one of the legendary Three Kings of the Blues, his influence can be heard in the music of Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton, Stevie Ray Vaughan, and countless guitarists and musicians who followed.

Born in Brinkley and raised in North Little Rock, Al Bell became a driving force behind Stax Records during a transformative era in American music. He led the legendary label to new heights of musical innovation, cultural influence, and social change, propelled the Stax sound around the world, and wrote the Staple Singers’ soul classic “I’ll Take You There” while back home in North Little Rock.