William Brown (1938, Jackson, Mississippi – October 20, 2004, Jacksonville, Florida) was an African-American operatic tenor. 　　Brown earned a Bachelor of Music degree from Jackson State University in 1960 and a Masters of Music degree from the Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University in 1962. He later earned a doctorate of music from the Peabody Institute in 1971. From 1962 to 1966, he was a soloist with the United States Navy Band and Choir, with whom he performed for Presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson.