Ink: The Indelible J. Mayo Williams (coming soon - July 23, 2024)

Ink: The Indelible J. Mayo Williams (coming soon - July 23, 2024)The product of a hardscrabble childhood, J. Mayo Ink Williams parlayed an Ivy League education into unlikely twin careers as a foundational producer of Black music and pioneering Black player in the early NFL. Clifford R. Murphy tells the story of an ambitious, upwardly mobile life affected, but never daunted, by white societys racism or the Black communitys class tensions. Williams caroused with Paul Robeson, recorded the likes of Ma Rainey and Blind

and honest

and more to signal authority

and the journey to radically shift one’s sense of self in the face of trauma

”—Shelf-Awareness (starred) ★ "A sharply rendered portrait

when a White mob numbering in the thousands decimated the thriving Black community of Greenwood in Tulsa

Nigeria—and her aunt

Have you ever awakened from a sleepy delirium one morning and imagined that you lived in a different and glorious world where all the recognized masterpieces in the Western pantheon of art history were painted by women

"—Mary Beth Keane

A renowned cultural critic untangles the twisted history and future of racism through its most volatile word

Celebrating a new generation of bestselling and acclaimed Black writers

provocative voice and a stark look at Viper’s Black American experience weave with endless plot twists to offer readers a stunningly original

#1 New York Times bestselling author of Basketball (And Other Things)) essays