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Bo Diddley

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The late Bo Diddley of Archer, near Gainesville, was one of rock music's principal architects in the 1950s. He is generally credited as the man who gave rock its beat—the "rock" upon which the "roll" was built. His innovative and original style of…

Gloria Estefan

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Gloria Fajarda was born in Havana, Cuba in 1957 but didn’t spend much time there. Her father took the family to live in Miami following the Cuban Revolution in 1959. As a teenager Gloria had little time for a social life. While her mother worked to…

Lawrence Hankins "Hank " Locklin

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Florida native Hank Locklin was one of country music's early honky-tonk singers. A three-time Grammy finalist, Locklin saw more than 15 million copies of his songs sold worldwide before his death in 2008. In a career that spanned nearly seven…

Mel Tillis

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Mel Tillis has ranked in the top echelon of country music singers and songwriters for nearly 40 years. Best known for his performing, Tillis also is a force in songwriting, having penned hit songs that made profound impacts on other performers'…