| Episode cast overview, first billed only: |
 | Colin Solman | - | Narrator (voice) |
| Louis Jordan & The Tympany Five | - | Themselves (archive footage) |
| Portia Maultsby | - | Herself, professor, music ethnologist, Indiana University |
| Thomas Brenneck | - | Himself, musician (as Tom Brenneck) |
| Ruth Brown | - | Herself (archive footage) |
 | Martin Luther King | - | Himself (archive footage) |
 | John F. Kennedy | - | Himself (archive footage) |
 | Solomon Burke | - | Himself, musician (archive footage) |
 | Charlie Musselwhite | - | Himself, musician |
| Della Daniels | - | Herself, vocalist, The Como Mamas |
| Bobby O'Jay | - | Himself, musical director, WDIA Radio |
 | Rufus Thomas | - | Himself (archive footage) |
| Tim Sampson | - | Himself, curator, Stax Museum |
 | Nat 'King' Cole | - | Himself (archive footage) |
 | Brenda Russell | - | Herself, vocalist, composer |
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