Harry Belafonte, a Jamaican-American singer, actor, and activist was born on March 1, 1927, and died on April 25, 2023, helped make calypso music popular around the world in the 1950s.

His seminal album Calypso (1956) was the first single-artist LP to sell one million copies.

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Day-O (The Banana Boat Song), Jump in the Line (Shake, Senora), Jamaica Farewell, and Mary's Boy Child are among Belafonte's best-known compositions.

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Among the many genres he recorded and performed in were blues, folk, gospel, show tunes, and American standards.

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Additionally, he appeared in films like Odds Against Tomorrow (1959), Island in the Sun (1957), and Carmen Jones (1954).

Belafonte was the recipient of a Tony Award, an Emmy Award,[3] three Grammy Awards, including a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.

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He was awarded the Kennedy Centre Honours in 1989. In 1994, he received the National Medal of Arts. At the 6th Annual Governors Awards ceremony held by the Academy in 2014, he was presented with the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award.