ALPHA Massaquoi Jr. is a Baltimore based artist that works primarily with large drawings made with charcoal and pastels. Alpha was born in West Africa, Liberia, as the youngest of four to an upper-middle-class family; his father worked for the United States embassy in Liberia, and his mother was a talior with a small charcoal business. At age fourteen, Alpha and his family moved to the U.S. seeking the "American dream" However, life wasn't easy, the 2008 recession just happened, and racism and colorism were new challenges Alpha and his family had to face. He got his BA from Towson University and his MFA from SMFA at Tufts. His works have been a part of major group shows in the United States, which include Novo Legado & Black Creatives at The Chicago Museum of Science and Industry. Also, He has a few many major solo shows: Black Noise (Baltimore ), Black Noise (Boston) and  Led by The Holy Spirit. . Alpha won the Macon art prize, Free Fall Baltimore grant and Awesome Baltimore grant in 2021, and in 2022 he won he went on to win the Montague Travel grant and The Masc. Independent Artist Award. He was a finalist for the AXA art prize in 2024. He founded Hot Sauce Artist Collective, supporting artists and bridging the gap between the everyday person and the arts.