Mari Evans was born in Toledo, Ohio on July 16, 1923. She attended the University of Toledo. She was a major figure in the Black Arts Movement of the 1960s and 1970s. She was a poet, a playwright, a children's book author, and an essayist on American culture. Her collections of poetry included A Dark and Splendid Mass, Nightstar: 1973-1978, I Am a Black Woman, and Where Is All the Music? Her children's books included Dear Corinne, Tell Somebody! Love, Annie: A Book about Secrets; Singing Black: Alternative Nursery Rhymes for Children; Jim Flying High; Rap Stories; and J.D. She was also the author of the plays Eye and River of My Song. She wrote, directed, and produced The Black Experience from 1968-1973. She taught at several colleges and universities including Spelman College, Purdue University, Indiana University, and Cornell University. In 1997, her photo appeared on a Ugandan postage stamp. She died on March 10, 2017 at the age of 93.