1. Ramsey Lewis
By:Akieba Alexander

2. Born
Ramsey Emmanuel Lewis Jr. was born May 27, 1935 in Chicago, Illinois.

3. Early Life
At 15 he joined his first jazz band, The Cleffs. The seven-piece group provided Lewis his first involvement with jazz; he would later join Cleffs drummer Isaac "Redd" Holt and bassist Eldee Young to form the Ramsey Lewis Trio

4. Later Life
Since 1957, Lewis has performed concerts in all the major clubs, jazz festivals and summer venues in the United States and with more than twenty-five symphony orchestras.

5. Family
Lewis has been married to Janet Tamillow Lewis since 1990 and is the father of seven children, grandfather of twelve and great-grandfather of one.

6. Honored
Pianist and composer Ramsey Lewis has been referred to as “the great performer,” a title reflecting his performance style and musical selections that display his early gospel roots and classical training

7. Awards
He is the winner of three Grammy Awards, and from 1967to 1976 earned five gold records. His major hits include "The In Crowd," "Wade in the Water" and "Hang On Sloopy."

8. Radio Personality
In addition to recording albums and performing live, Mr. Lewis hosts WNUA-FM Chicago’s weekday morning drive- time radio show for which he has been awarded R&R’s 1999 and Personality of the Year Award

9. Television Show
This acclaimed series “Legends of Jazz with Ramsey Lewis” has aired on PBS featuring emerging and established jazz musicians

10. Giving Back
Lewis is on the board of the Merit Music Program, which provides free music lessons to youth; Cycle, an inner-city self- help high school program; and the Ravinia Mentor Program. He serves as honorary chairman of the Cares for Kids Foundation.