January 1978

Chic, led by Nile Rodgers and Bernard Edwards, releases Le Freak, which becomes the best-selling single in Atlantic Records history up to that point and defines sophisticated funk-disco.

Funkadelic releases One Nation Under a Groove, which crosses over to mainstream pop success while delivering a politically conscious funk anthem. The title track reaches number one on the R&B chart.

Sylvester, an openly gay Black artist, releases You Make Me Feel (Mighty Real), which becomes an international dance hit and one of the defining songs of the disco era, pioneering the visibility of Black queer artistry.

Funkadelic releases One Nation Under a Groove, which crosses over to mainstream pop success while delivering a politically conscious funk anthem. The title track reaches number one on the R&B chart.

The Commodores release Three Times a Lady, written by Lionel Richie, which reaches number one on the pop charts and marks the band's transition from funk to ballads, demonstrating Lionel Richie's songwriting gifts.

NASA selects its first class of diverse astronaut candidates in 1978 including Guion Bluford and Ronald McNair among Black men, and while no Black woman is selected, the class signals NASA's expanding diversity in the Space Shuttle era.