9 to watch in the '90s: talented and daring, they are expected to make a major impact in their fields this decade

Ebony, Feb, 1990

9 To watch In The '90s

AS a new decade dawns, a few relatively unknown individuals will, accordingly to experts, capture national attention in the 1990s. Having already made noteworthy contributions, they are expected to achieve even greater levels of distinction.

From this group of nine individuals, experts say, will most likely come the next Anita Baker or Wynton Marsalis or even the next Black NFL coach. That's not to suggest that the nine names presented here exhaust the list of people with emerging importance. Certainly there are hundreds, if not thousands, of others who will make a substantial impact on the nation and the world in the fateful '90s.

The accomplishments of the talented individuals on the following pages, however, are examples of what we can expect from emerging Black movers and shakers. That's what makes them nine to watch in the '90s.

Michael Morgan is considered one of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra's greatest hopes for the '90s. He has received excellent reviews for his work as the assistant conductor of the symphony, considered "the world's greatest," and resident conductor of the Chicago Civic Orchestra, the symphony's training arm. At 32, this Leonard Bernstein protege is one of the youngest maestros of a major orchestra. The Washington-born, Oberlin College graduate began conducting at the age of 12. In 1980, Morgan won the Swarowsky International Conductors Competition in Vienna and has been on the apprentice conductors circuit since then. He established a noteworthy artistic identity as maestro with the Buffalo Philharmonic and the New York City Opera, and joined the Chicago Symphony in 1986.

Regina Belle was on her way to becoming a musical force with her first album, All By Myself. With her second effort, Stay With Me, an even bigger success, the pint-sized singer with a silky voice is being hailed as the next great female singer. Belle, 26, nearly stole the show as an opening act during her Broadway debut last summer. Her sultry style also helped her draw record audiences for a neophyte during her first national tour. With a booming voice that has jazzy undertones and gospel verve, she won high school talent shows and a scholarship to the prestigious Manhattan School of Music. Since Belle's success in England in the mid '80s, she's had successive hits, such as "All I Want Is Forever," the duet she sang with Jamest Taylor for the Tap movie soundtrack, and "Baby Come To Me."

Bernice King, (below,) the youngest child of the late Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., is expected to make a name for herself in civil rights and law. A powerful speaker with the resonance of a Baptist minister, King is an eloquent advocate for human rights. With a bachelor's degree in psychology and pre-law from Spelman College, King interned at an Atlanta juvenile detention center and worked as a hospital chaplain. At 26, she is studying both law and divinity at Emory University. While completing her dual-degree requirements, King is working at the Atlanta city attorney's office and fulfilling speaking commitments. After graduating this year, she hopes to establish a prison ministry for teen offenders and work in advocacy law.

Dr. Mae Jemison, the first Black female astronaut, is highly skilled technically and is sensitive to social needs. A Chicago-born physician and chemical engineer, Jemison has been named mission specialist for the June 1991 flight of the space shuttle Discovery. She'll conduct experiments, deploy payloads or satellites and, if necessary, do space walks. The Cornell Medical School graduate also acts as a liaison between the astronauts at the Johnson Space Center in Houston, where she is based, and the NASA crew in Cape Canaveral, Fla. Before joining the space program in 1986, Jemison was a staff physician in Africa for the Peace Corps and a general practitioner in Los Angeles.

Jesse Jackson Jr., 24, so impressed the chairman of the Democratic National Committee (DNC) at the 1988 national convention that he gave up one of his appointments to make it possible for Jackson to be seated. Now one of the youngest members of the DNC, Jackson is destined to make his mark in politics and religion, observers say. The eldest son of former presidential candidate Jesse Jackson says he's "studying the development of different theologies and the implications for our people" as a student at the Chicago Theological Seminiary. Jackson, who also is vice president of Operation PUSH, says he hopes to make the Chicago-based organization his father founded a viable political force. He adds: "As we approach the year 2000, our church must develop some sort of theology, particularly one that is relevant and liberating to oppressed people."

Roy Hargrove, a 19-year-old jazz trumpeter, has been blowing away audiences for the last two years at nightclubs in New York and Europe. Since borrowing a horn at his Dallas high school, Hargrove has developed a big-horn sound reminiscent of Louis Armstrong's style. Critics say Hargrove, who is studying classical music at Boston's Berklee College of Music, will be the next Wynton Marsalis. He's already toured Europe with Marsalis and Woody Shaw, and will release his first album this year.