# List of people from Memphis, Tennessee

This is a list of notable people who were born in, residents of, or otherwise closely associated with Memphis, Tennessee.
This list is in alphabetical order by last name.

## A

* Johnny Ace (1929–1954) — rhythm and blues singer
* Mo Alexander (born 1970) — comedian
* Heather Armstrong (1975–2023) — author and blogger, Dooce.com
* Kristin Armstrong (born 1973) — professional road bicycle racer and three-time Olympic gold medalist
* George Awsumb (1880–1959) — Norwegian-American architect
* Gwen Robinson Awsumb (1915–2003) — first woman elected to Memphis City Council
* Estelle Axton (1918–2004) — co-founder of Stax Records

## B

* Julien Baker (born 1995) — singer, songwriter, and guitarist
* Michael A. Baker (born 1953) — astronaut
* Adrian Banks (born 1986) — American-Israeli basketball player
* The Bar-Kays (formed in 1966) — musicians
* Lloyd Barbee (1925–2002) — Wisconsin legislator and civil rights activist
* Marion Barry (1936–2014) — mayor of Washington, D.C.
* Charles Bartliff (1886–1962) — soccer player and 1904 Olympian
* Daren Bates (born 1990) — NFL player
* Kathy Bates (born 1948) — Academy Award-winning actress
* Kenneth Lawrence Beaudoin (1913–1995) — poet
* Michael Beck (born 1949) — actor, best known for The Warriors and Xanadu
* Reginald Becton (born 1991) — basketball player who currently plays for Yokohama B-Corsairs of the B. League
* William Bedford (born 1963) — basketball player
* Diane Meredith Belcher (born 1960) — concert organist, teacher, and church musician
* Chris Bell (1951–1978) — musician
* William Bell (born 1939) — singer
* Charles T. Bernard (1927–2015) — businessman and Arkansas politician, died in Memphis in 2015
* Big Scarr (2000-2022) — rapper
* Big Star (formed in 1971) — rock band
* Big30 — rapper
* Greg Bird — Major League Baseball first baseman
* Blac Youngsta (born 1990) — rapper; born Samuel Marquez Benson
* Tarik Black (born 1991) — basketball player
* James Blackwood (1919–2002) — gospel singer, founding member of quartet The Blackwood Brothers
* Bobby "Blue" Bland (1930–2013) — musician
* BlocBoy JB — rapper
* Elizabeth Bolden (1890–2006) — oldest person in the world during most of 2006
* Charles Boyce (born 1949) — syndicated cartoonist
* Cory Branan (born 1974) — singer/songwriter
* Craig Brewer (born 1971) — film director
* Aris Briggs (born 1996) — soccer player
* Ben Browder (born 1962) — actor, best known for Farscape and Stargate SG-1
* Dave Brown (born 1946) — TV meteorologist, professional wrestling announcer
* Joe Brown (born 1947) — politician
* Isaac Bruce (born 1972) — former NFL player
* Matt Brucker (born 2004) — soccer player
* Antonio Burks (born 1980) — former basketball player
* Dorsey Burnette (1932–1979) — rockabilly pioneer, singer-songwriter
* Johnny Burnette (1934–1964) — rockabilly pioneer, singer-songwriter
* Leonard Burton (born 1964) — NFL player
* Mike Butler (1946–2018) — basketball player
* Derrick Byars (born 1984) — basketball player
* Latasha Byears (born 1973) — basketball player

## C

* Herman Cain (1945–2020) — businessman, talk show host, and candidate for the 2012 Republican presidential nomination
* Tyrone Calico (born 1980) — NFL player for the Tennessee Titans
* Dixie Carter (1939–2010) — actress known for Designing Women and Desperate Housewives
* Lorenzo Carter (born 1995) — linebacker for the Atlanta Falcons
* Bob Caruthers (1864–1911) — Major League Baseball player
* Kellye Cash (born 1965) — Miss America 1987
* Rosanne Cash (born 1955) — singer-songwriter
* Cy Casper (1912–1968) — NFL player for the Green Bay Packers, St. Louis Gunners, and Pittsburgh Pirates
* Dave Catching (born 1961) — musician
* Alex Chilton (1950–2010) — musician
* NLE Choppa — rapper
* Robert Reed Church Sr. (1839–1912) — entrepreneur and philanthropist
* Mary Church Terrell — civil and women's rights activist
* Ian Clark (born 1991) — basketball player
* Philip Claypool — musician
* Jack Clement — singer, songwriter, and record and film producer
* Antonius Cleveland (born 1994) — basketball player in the Israeli Basketball Premier League
* Lashundra Trenyce Cobbin (born 1980) — American Idol contestant
* Steve Cohen (born 1949) — politician
* Olivia Cole (1942–2018) — actress
* George Coleman (born 1935) — musician
* Barron Collier (1873–1939) — businessman
* Jazzie Collins (1958–2013) — African American trans woman activist and community organizer
* John Cooper (born 1975) — musician, Skillet
* Zack Cozart — baseball shortstop and third baseman for the Cincinnati Reds and Los Angeles Angels
* Hank Crawford (1934–2009) — musician
* Steve Cropper (born 1941) — musician, Booker T. and the M.G.'s and The Blues Brothers
* Edward H. Crump (1874–1954) — political boss and U.S. Representative
* Randy Culpepper (born 1989) — basketball player

## D

* Chastity Daniels (born 1978) — musician
* Janette Davis (1916–2005) — singer
* Rick Dees (born 1950) — radio personality
* Nancy Denson — mayor of Athens, Georgia
* Duke Deuce — rapper
* Eric Jerome Dickey (1961–2021) — author
* Jim Dickinson (1941–2009) — musician; producer
* Peter C. Doherty (born 1940) — Nobel laureate; scientist at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital
* Shannen Doherty (1971–2024) — actress known for Beverly Hills, 90210
* Young Dolph (1985–2021) — rapper (grew up in Memphis)
* Johnny Dowd (born 1948) — musician
* Drumma Boy (born 1983) — hip hop music producer
* William B. Dunavant (1932–2021) — businessman, CEO of Dunavant Enterprises
* Donald "Duck" Dunn (1941–2012) — musician in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

## E

* Johanna Edwards (born 1978) — author
* William Eggleston (born 1939) — photographer
* Egypt Central (2002–2014) — band
* Eightball & MJG (established in 1991) — musicians

## F

* Charlie Feathers — rockabilly musician, died here in 1998
* Ben Ferguson — nationally syndicated talk radio host
* Paul Finebaum — television and radio sports-talk host
* Finesse2tymes — rapper
* Marjorie Finlay — opera singer and television personality
* Veronica Finn — pop singer of now-disbanded group Innosense
* Ric Flair — professional wrestler (adopted at six weeks; raised in Minnesota)
* Rey Flemings — music commissioner
* Avron Fogelman — former owner of Kansas City Royals and various Memphis-based sports teams; namesake of southeastern leg of Interstate 240
* Shelby Foote — author
* George L. Forbes — Cleveland City Council President, President of the Cleveland NAACP
* Clementine Ford — actress
* Harold Ford Jr. — politician
* Jacob Ford — NFL player, Tennessee Titans
* Abe Fortas — politician and U.S. Supreme Court justice
* Cary Fowler — agriculturalist, established the Svalbard Global Seed Vault
* Morgan Jon Fox — film director
* Aretha Franklin (1942–2018) — singer in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
* Frayser Boy — Academy Award-winning rapper
* Nelson Frazier Jr. — wrestler
* Morgan Freeman — Academy Award-winning actor
* Judy Freudberg — writer
* John Fry — music producer, engineer, founder of Ardent Studios

## G

* David Galloway — novelist, international art curator, journalist and academic
* Gangsta Boo (1979–2023) — rapper
* TM Garret — author, producer, filmmaker, radio personality, activist
* The Gentrys — 1960s rock band with Larry Raspberry and Larry Wall
* Cassietta George — gospel singer and composer
* David Gest — event and concert producer
* Lee Giles — academic and computer scientist
* Key Glock — rapper
* GloRilla — rapper
* Ginnifer Goodwin — actress
* Robert Gordon — filmmaker and writer
* Clare Grant — actress
* Al Green — singer, musician in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
* Larkin Grimm — folk singer
* Logan Guleff — MasterChef Junior Season 2 winner
* Gyft — rapper signed to E1 Music, known for his single "They Just Don't Know"

## H

* Lucy Hale — singer and actress
* Richard Halliburton — explorer and author
* George Hamilton — Golden Globe Award-winning actor
* W.C. Handy — musician
* Anne Haney — actress
* Rebecca Hanover — (B.A. English/creative writing 2001), television writer, winner of Daytime Emmy Award for Guiding Light
* Anfernee "Penny" Hardaway — former NBA player, NCAA Basketball coach
* E. Hunter Harrison — CEO of Canadian Pacific Railway
* Jimmy Hart — singer, pro wrestling personality
* Lori Harvey — model
* Jon Hassell — musician
* Isaac Hayes — actor and Academy Award-winning musician
* Samuel Henderson – former slave and Catholic convert
* Austin Hollins (born 1991) — basketball player for Maccabi Tel Aviv of the Israeli Basketball Premier League
* Olivia Holt — singer and actress
* John Lee Hooker — blues musician
* Benjamin L. Hooks — civil rights activist and executive director of the NAACP
* Julia Britton Hooks — musician and civil rights activist
* Howlin' Wolf — blues musician in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
* Lewis C. Hudson — brigadier general in the Marine Corps, Navy Cross recipient
* John Hulse — college professor
* Andy Hummel — musician
* Alberta Hunter — singer

## I

* iLoveMemphis (real name Richard Colbert) — rapper, also known as iHeartMemphis
* Ingram Hill — band

## J

* Al Jackson Jr. — musician
* Quinton "Rampage" Jackson — mixed martial arts fighter
* Raji Jallepalli — Indian-born chef and restaurateur
* Antonio D. James (born 1985) — filmmaker; producer
* Jimi Jamison — singer, songwriter
* Roland Janes — musician; producer
* Josh Jasper — All-American college football placekicker
* John Wayles Jefferson — mixed-race grandson of Thomas Jefferson and Sally Hemings, colonel in the Union Army, cotton broker in Memphis after the Civil War
* Michael Jeter — actor
* Ashley Jones — actress
* Booker T. Jones — musician
* Leslie Jones — actress known for Saturday Night Live and Ghostbusters
* Mary Harris "Mother" Jones — prominent labor and community organizer
* Mary Jane Richardson Jones — abolitionist and activist
* Rich Jones (born 1946) — basketball player
* Juicy J — rapper
* Rob Jungklas — musician

## K

* K. Michelle — musician
* Florence Kahn — early Ibsen actress and wife of Max Beerbohm
* The Kat — professional wrestler
* Makky Kaylor — professional songwriter, recording artist, entertainer, and radio personality
* Tay Keith — record producer
* George "Machine Gun" Kelly — Great Depression-era bank robber and kidnapper
* Larry Kenon — basketball player, led Memphis State to 1973 NCAA title game
* Carlton W. Kent — Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps
* Key Glock — rapper, cousin to Young Dolph
* Albert King — blues musician
* B.B. King — blues musician, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
* Betty Klepper — scientist
* Francis M. Kneeland — early African American physician who located her practice on Beale Street

## L

* Snooky Lanson — singer and television personality
* Chuck Lanza — NFL player
* Brian Lawler — professional wrestler
* Jerry Lawler — professional wrestler
* Arthur Lee (1945–2006) — singer-songwriter
* Fannie Lewis — Cleveland Ohio's longest serving councilwoman
* Furry Lewis — blues musician
* Jerry Lee Lewis — musician in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
* Eddie Lightfoot — minstrel dancer
* Alan Lightman — novelist and physicist
* Lil Wyte — rapper
* Booker Little — musician
* Charles Lloyd — musician
* London on da Track — record producer
* Lord T & Eloise — musicians
* Andre Lott — football player
* Matt Lucas — singer-songwriter, drummer
* Jimmie Lunceford — musician
* Herb Lusk — NFL player and clergyman

## M

* Jim Mabry — Arkansas Razorbacks football All-American
* Bill Madlock (born 1951) — Major League Baseball player
* Terry Manning — music producer, photographer
* The Mar-Keys — musicians
* Nick Marable — freestyle wrestler who competed for USA's national team
* Wink Martindale — radio and television personality
* Tim McCarver — professional baseball player and broadcaster
* Hilton McConnico — designer and artist
* Kenneth D. McKellar — long-serving U.S. Senator
* The Memphis Horns — musicians
* Matthew Melton — musician
* Memphis Minnie — blues singer
* Memphis Slim — musician
* Shaun Micheel — professional golfer
* Cary Middlecoff — professional golfer, Masters and U.S. Open champion
* Ryan Miller — professional hockey player
* Lola Mitchell — musician
* Willie Mitchell — musician and music producer
* Chips Moman — music producer
* Moneybagg Yo (born 1991) — rapper
* Sputnik Monroe — professional wrestler
* Lecrae Moore — musician and music executive
* Scotty Moore — guitarist
* Allen B. Morgan Jr. — businessman, founded Morgan Keegan
* Haley Morris-Cafiero — photographer
* Wendy Moten — singer
* Steven J. Mulroy — District Attorney General, law professor
* David W. Mullins Jr. — former Vice Chairman of the Federal Reserve
* Charlie Musselwhite — blues musician
* Zach Myers — lead guitarist for rock band Shinedown

## N

* Elise Neal (born 1966) — actress
* Hal Needham (1931–2013) — stuntman, film director, actor and writer
* Pat and Gina Neely — celebrity chefs on Food Network
* Latrivia Nelson (born 1980) — author
* Johnny Neumann (1950–2019) — basketball player and coach
* Phineas Newborn Jr. (1931–1989) — jazz musician
* Nights Like These — Victory Records metalcore band

## O

* Michael Oher — NFL player, subject of The Blind Side
* Roy Orbison — singer

## P

* Woody Paige (born 1946) — sportswriter, panelist on ESPN's Around the Horn
* Hermes Pan (1909–1990) — dancer and choreographer
* Cindy Parlow Cone (born 1978) — athlete
* Chris Parnell (born 1967) — actor, known for Saturday Night Live
* Gilbert E. Patterson (1939–2007) — bishop of Church of God in Christ
* DJ Paul — rapper
* Ann Peebles (born 1947) — singer
* Paul Penczner (1916–2010) — Hungarian-born artist
* Art Pennington (1923–2017) — all-star negro league baseball player
* Carl Perkins (1932–1998) — musician
* Luther Perkins (1928–1968) — musician
* Elliot Perry (born 1969) — professional basketball player
* Dewey Phillips (1926–1968) — early rock 'n' roll disc jockey
* Sam Phillips (1923–2003) — founder of Sun Records
* Marguerite Piazza (1920–2012) — opera singer
* Danny Pittman (born 1958) — athlete
* David Porter (born 1941) — musician
* Elvis Presley (1935–1977) — singer and actor
* Lisa Marie Presley (1968–2023) — singer-songwriter; child of singer and actor Elvis Presley
* Project Pat (born 1973) — rapper
* Tommy Prothro (1920–1995) — football coach, UCLA and Los Angeles Rams
* Missi Pyle (born 1972) — actress and singer

## Q

* Lisa Quinn (born 1967) — actress, author, designer

## R

* Michael Ramirez (born 1961) — Pulitzer Prize-winning editorial cartoonist
* Jay Reatard (1980–2010) — musician
* Otis Redding — musician in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
* Kennedy J. Reed (1944–2023) — theoretical atomic physicist
* Brent Renaud (1971–2011) — journalist and writer
* Charlie Rich — Grammy Award-winning musician
* Austin Riley — MLB Player
* Loren Roberts — professional golfer
* Russell Roberts — economist
* Claire Robinson — television host, author and cook
* Kali Rocha (born 1971) — actress
* Arabella Page Rodman - civic leader
* Adrian Rogers — former pastor of Bellevue Baptist Church and president of the Southern Baptist Convention
* Joe Russell — former world backgammon champion
* Lance Russell — pro wrestling announcer

## S

* Saliva — musical group
* Sam and Dave (Sam Moore and David Prater) — musicians in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
* Sam the Sham — musician, leader of Sam the Sham and the Pharaohs
* William Sanderson — actor known for Newhart and Blade Runner
* J. Peter Sartain — Archbishop of Seattle
* Clarence Saunders — founder of the world's first self-service supermarket, Piggly Wiggly
* Jerry Schilling — associate of Elvis Presley, The Beach Boys
* Dan Schneider — actor
* Josey Scott — musician
* Will Shade — musician
* Gwen Shamblin — author and founder of the Weigh Down Workshop and Remnant Fellowship Church
* Paul Shanklin — personality on Rush Limbaugh's radio program
* Cybill Shepherd — actress known for Moonlighting and Cybill
* Pooh Shiesty (born 1999) — rapper
* George Sherrill — MLB player
* Lee Shippey — journalist
* Hampton Sides — author
* McKinley Singleton — NBA player, New York Knicks
* Arthur Smith — head coach of the Atlanta Falcons
* Bingo Smith (born 1946) — basketball player
* Fred Smith — founder and chairman of FedEx
* Lane Smith — actor known for My Cousin Vinny and The Final Days
* George W. Snedecor (1881–1974) — mathematician and statistician
* Bobby Sowell — musician
* Speech (born 1968) — rapper
* Ben Spies (born 1984) — motorcycle road racer
* Marvin Stamm — musician
* Kay Starr — singer
* Ricky Stenhouse Jr. — NASCAR driver
* Jody Stephens — musician
* Andrew Stevens — actor and producer
* Stella Stevens — Golden Globe Award-winning actress
* Jim Stewart — record producer and co-founder of Stax Records
* Frank Stokes — blues musician
* Jarnell Stokes (born 1994) — basketball player
* Tyler Stone (born 1991) — basketball player in the Israeli Basketball Premier League
* Lewis Ossie Swingler — editor of Memphis World, editor and publisher of Tri-State Defender

## T

* Gary Talley — musician and singer of The Box Tops
* Cliff Taylor — football player
* Raymond Taylor — catcher in Negro league baseball
* Lloyd Thaxton — television personality
* Adonis Thomas (born 1993) — basketball player in the Israeli Basketball Premier League
* Carla Thomas — musician and daughter of Rufus Thomas
* Danny Thomas — entertainer, actor and founder of St. Jude Children's Research Hospital
* Rufus Thomas — musician
* Fred Thompson — actor and U.S. Senator (alumnus of the University of Memphis)
* Harry Thompson — football player
* Linda Thompson — songwriter and actress
* Three 6 Mafia — Academy Award-winning rap musicians
* Justin Timberlake — Grammy Award-winning musician, actor and record producer
* Don Trip — rapper
* Leigh Anne Tuohy — businesswoman and interior designer
* Ike Turner — Grammy Award-winning musician

## V

* Guillaume de Van (1906–1949) — Franco–American musicologist
* Marcia Van Dresser (1877–1937) — operatic soprano, recitalist and actress
* Andrew VanWyngarden — musician of psychedelic rock group MGMT
* Alexey Vermeulen (born 1994) — cyclist

## W

* Barbara Jo Walker (1926-2000), Miss America 1947
* Sam Walton — football player
* Teddy Walton — composer, producer, writer and DJ
* Garrett Wang — actor
* Anita Ward — singer and schoolteacher; 1979 number one Billboard Hot 100 single "Ring My Bell"
* Thomas Waterson — police officer who captured Machine Gun Kelly in a Memphis raid in 1933
* Luke J. Weathers (1920–2011) — former U.S. Army Air Force officer and member of Tuskegee Airmen
* Ida B. Wells — civil rights advocate and women's rights advocate
* Junior Wells — musician
* David West — baseball player
* Red West — actor
* Kirk Whalum — musician
* Maurice White — musician, lead singer of Earth, Wind & Fire
* Reggie White — NFL player; began his career with the Memphis Showboats of the USFL
* Bobby Whitlock — musician, keyboardist in Derek and the Dominos
* Snootie Wild — rapper
* John Shelton Wilder — politician
* Elliot Williams — NBA player
* LaNell Williams — physicist and virologist
* Louis Williams — NBA player
* Tennessee Williams — playwright
* Kemmons Wilson — businessman, founder of Holiday Inn
* Mike Wilson — NBA player
* Jesse Winchester — singer/songwriter
* Francis Winkler — NFL player
* Ernest Withers — photojournalist
* Lorenzen Wright — NBA player

## Y

* Roy Yeager — musician
* Yo Gotti (born 1981) — rapper; born Mario Mims
* Thaddeus Young — NBA player (grew up in Memphis)
* Young Dolph (1985-2021) — Rapper/Philanthropist; Born: Adolph Robert Thornton Jr.