Born Donaldson Toussaint L'Ouverture Byrd II in Detroit, Michigan, Byrd got his start playing in military bands in the Air Force and moved to New York City in 1955.
The trumpeter, whose given name was Donaldson Toussaint L'Ouverture Byrd II, rose to national prominence when he joined Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers later that year, filling the seat in the bebop group held by his idol Clifford Brown.