Matthew Jones (15)

African American singer-songwriter, freedom singer, and civil rights activist, September 17, 1936 – March 30, 2011. Matt Jones joined the Nashville Student Movement in 1960, and he was an outspoken participant in the movement in Danville, Virginia, where he organized the vocal group, the Danville Freedom Voices in 1963. In 1964, with his brother Marshall, he became affiliated with the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) and their music ensemble, the Freedom Singers. He became a Freedom Singers member and the group’s director. Matt Jones performed his repertoire around the world, including alongside freedom fighters in Northern Ireland. During the Anti-Vietnam War movement he recorded the 45-rpm record, 8972506, for example.