Curtis Mayfield

My teacher told me I'd never amount to anything. I left high school at 15, after one year. But my real teachers were all the people around me. And I was a good listener.

We weren't the Temptations, but when we came out onstage, the people always gave us a special respect because our songs were of an inspirational quality.

Being a young black man, observing and sensing the need for race equality and women's rights, I wrote about what was important to me.