About Willard White
Sir Willard Wentworth White, OM, CBE is a Jamaican-born British operatic bass baritone. White first began to learn music by listening to the radio and singing Nat King Cole songs. In 1977, the first stereo recording of Porgy and Bess, conducted by Lorin Maazel, in which White sang the role of Porgy, received a Grammy Award. He won a scholarship and continued his studies with bass Giorgio Tozzi at the Juilliard School.
Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.