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Countee Cullen was one of the celebrated and influential poets of the Harlem Renaissance. Born in 1903 as Countee LeRoy Porter to parents that abandoned him, he was raised by his grandmother. It is unclear where he was born, some say Kentucky, others say Baltimore or Louisiana. However, this is all speculation, and according to Cullen himself, he was born in New York City, or at least his spirit was. Countee Cullen received attention for his poems from a young age, and it continued throughout his schooling, especially during his time at New York University, and later when he went on to complete a Masters degree at Harvard University. In 1925, shortly after he graduated from NYU, his works were published for the first time.

The collection of poems, called "COLOR" included works celebrating blacks and their heritage.

The book included some of his greatest poems, including probably his most famous,"Yet Do I Marvel." He often touched upon racial themes but wasn't overly controversial; he wrote in a romantic-based, sonnet form. Throughout his life he published over six volumes of poems, including two for younger readers,a novel, and he even did some work at the end of his life for the theater, adapting novels into plays.Cullen died in 1946 of Uremic poisoning.