1970-2025: Every Black Artist Who Has Performed at Rodeo Houston

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In 1931, a small group men met for lunch at the Texas State Hotel with a goal: Preserving the cattle industry along the Texas Gulf Coast area. One year later, The Houston Fat Stock Show and Livestock Exposition was created. One year later, what is now known as The Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo was born.

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Since then the rodeo has grown to include parades, a carnival, cooking competitions and of course.. music. The very first musical act to be featured at the rodeo took place in 1942, when Gene Autry “The Singing Cowboy,” and his majestic horse Champion, trodded onto the scene and kicked off what would become a long-held tradition of featuring a big name act to entertain the crowd.

In 1970, Charley Pride would also make history — becoming the first black entertainer to hit the rodeo soundstage. The decades that followed would see more black entertainers including The Jackson 5, The Isley Brothers, Kool & The Gang, Ray Charles, Bun B, Drake, Beyonce and even a few popular comedians!

As previously reported, the origins of Black cowboys are hard to pinpoint, but according to BlackPast, the earliest evidence of Black people as cattle herders dates back to colonial South Carolina. Slaves were brought to the early colony from what is now Senegal in West Africa, specifically for their unique skill sets.

Click here to read more about Black cowboys,

Scroll below for a look back at the history of black performers at Rodeo Houston.