Born in Tucson, Arizona, Dr. Edward L. Wright spent most of his early years in Denver, Colorado. He is the youngest of eight siblings. He was raised in a musically talented family that led to his playing the clarinet as well as, the saxophone. Additionally, he enjoyed reading various literary authors, e.g., James Baldwin, Richard Wright, and Gwendolyn Brooks. At the age of twelve, the poetic works of Langston Hughes and Countee Cullen enamored him. He recalled that much of Cullen’s poetry was considered “race-less” and depicted a truism of America.