Legendary Black History on February 6: Celebrating Tolson, Marley, Cole & Ashe
Today in history, for Black History Month: February 6th is one of those dates that sneaks up on you — quiet on the calendar but loaded once you start digging. It’s a day stitched together by poets, musicians, and athletes who didn’t just make headlines; they shifted the culture in ways we still feel. From a Texas classroom shaping a future literary giant, to a Kingston studio rewriting global music, to a tennis court where grace met grind, the stories tied to this date land with real weight. It’s a good reminder that history isn’t always loud. Sometimes it’s steady, steady, steady… and then suddenly everything changes.
Melvin B. Tolson
Poet Melvin B. Tolson was born on February 6, 1898. Tolson was an educator, poet, politician, and columnist. As a professor at Wiley College in Marshall, Texas, he led a debate team, which was depicted in the 2007 film “The Great Debaters,” starring Denzel Washington as Tolson. His groundbreaking team was the first historically black college to debate against white colleges in the South amid segregation. Tolson’s parents emphasized education, motivating him to graduate with honors from Lincoln University in Pennsylvania in 1923. He began his teaching career at Wiley in 1924, teaching speech and English and establishing its award-winning debate team, transforming black history. As a poet, Tolson is most famous for his poem “Dark Symphony.”
Bob Marley
Bob Marley was a Jamaican reggae artist and songwriter who popularized both reggae and Rastafarian music worldwide. His life, from February 6, 1945, to May 11, 1981, was short but impactful. He became an international sensation in the 1970s for his musical forms in reggae, rocksteady, and early ska, which evolved into the electrically infused rock that catapulted him to superstar status.
Marley’s homeland influenced his poetic worldview, and growing up in the tough streets of West Kingston shaped his music. As a schoolboy, he was exposed to jazz and ska, Jamaica’s forms of rhythm and blues, and calypso. He formed the Wailers, and they began recording albums together in 1963 until Marley’s superstar status in 1974, reshaping the musical landscape of black history.
Natalie Cole
Born February 6, 1950, Natalie Marie Cole is the daughter of legendary singer Nat King Cole and Maria Cole, a jazz singer. Her musical environment encouraged her natural musical talents, and she recorded her first song with her father at six. Cole began performing solo in her community by age eleven. After her father’s death when she was fifteen, she ventured away from music, but began performing again during a summer break in college.
Cole solidified her musical stardom in black history by garnering four gold and two platinum albums, “Unpredictable” and “I’ve Got Love on My Mind.” She was awarded her own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1979. Cole is best known for her 1991 album “Unforgettable…with Love,” featuring Nat King Cole’s recording, which was dubbed over. Cole leaves a legacy as one of the most iconic and celebrated women in R&B.
Arthur Ashe
Arthur Ashe was born on July 10, 1943, and passed away on February 6, 1993. He is the first and only black male tennis player to win Wimbledon and U.S. Open singles titles. Also, he’s the first black male to earn the No. 1 world ranking in tennis and to be inducted into the Tennis Hall of Fame. Ashe discovered tennis at age seven when he picked up his first racket at a park near his home. Later, he was noticed by Dr. Robert Walter Johnson, an active member of the Black tennis community, and he excelled under his direction. Ashe won junior national titles in 1960 and 1961.
As the fifth-best junior player in the United States, he accepted a scholarship to UCLA. Ashe was the first black player to be recruited by the U.S. Davis Cup team. In 1968, he captured the U.S. Open title while still an amateur. The Australian title came two years later. And in 1965, he upset the No. 1 tennis player, Jimmy Connors, to win Wimbledon. As a black history maker and committed activist, he spoke out against apartheid in South Africa.
February is Black History Month
Today in black history, February 6th, is an important day that marks the birth of a significant professor, poet, and two accomplished artists. Sadly, it commemorates the untimely death of one of the world’s outstanding athletes who broke records, defying the times in which he lived. This day in black history will forever be celebrated as a day of legends.
