Ysaye M. Barnwell holds a doctorate in speech pathology and a postdoctoral degree in public health. Since 1979, she has performed and recorded with the internationally renowned a cappella quintet Sweet Honey in the Rock and composed some of the group’s most popular songs. She appears on more than 20 recordings, has composed music for Sesame Street and many other projects, and is also an actress and an author. In August of 2016 President Obama appointed her a member of the National Council on the Arts.