Carl Bean has been played over 10 times on NTS, first on 11 May 2015. Carl Bean's music has been featured on 19 episodes.

Disco/soul artist, born in 1944, which released several stuff through the Motown label. Probably best known for his '77 vinyl single "I Was Born This Way", which got also remixed by alot of DJ's in the late 80's and even later as well. Carl Bean gave up a promising entertainment career to pursue his vocation as a clergyman. He felt the call to found a church to minister to the particular needs of glbtq Christians of color, and thus the Unity Fellowship Church was born. The Reverend Bean and his denomination have shown a strong commitment to caring for people with AIDS.

Bean realized from a very early age that he was attracted to men but "somehow knew not to talk to anyone about it" at first. When at the age of twelve he did acknowledge to his foster parents that he was gay, they sought pastoral counseling for him. The session left him feeling so rejected and despondent that he attempted suicide by taking all the medicines that he could find in the house.