Daveed Diggs facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Daveed Diggs
Diggs at the Worldcon 75 in 2017
Born	Daveed Daniele Diggs (1982-01-24) January 24, 1982 (age 43) Oakland, California, U.S.
Alma mater	Brown University (BA)
Occupation	Actor rapper singer songwriter screenwriter film producer
Years active	2003–present
Partner(s)	Emmy Raver-Lampman (2015-present)
Children	1
Musical career
Genres	Experimental hip hop industrial hip hop noise
Instruments	Vocals
Labels	Sub Pop Deathbomb Arc
Associated acts	Clipping Rafael Casal

Daveed Daniele Diggs (born January 24, 1982) is an American actor, rapper, and singer. He is well-known for his amazing talent in many different areas of entertainment.

Daveed is the lead singer of an experimental hip hop group called Clipping. In 2015, he became famous for playing two characters, Marquis de Lafayette and Thomas Jefferson, in the hit musical Hamilton. For his roles in Hamilton, he won a Tony Award in 2016. He also won a Grammy Award with the rest of the Hamilton cast in the same year.

After Hamilton, Daveed has appeared in many TV shows and movies. He was in the TV series Black-ish (2016–2018) and movies like Wonder (2017), Velvet Buzzsaw (2019), and The Little Mermaid (2023). He also helped write, produce, and star in the 2018 film Blindspotting. This movie earned him a nomination for a special acting award. He also helped create a TV show based on Blindspotting in 2021. From 2020 to 2024, he starred in the TV show Snowpiercer. In 2021, he was nominated for an Emmy Award for his performance in the filmed version of Hamilton.

Early Life and Education

Daveed Diggs was born in Oakland, California. His mother, Barbara, is a social worker, and his father, Dountes, is a bus driver. His mother is Jewish, and his father is African-American. His parents named him "Daveed," which is the Hebrew way to say "David." Daveed explained that "David" means "beloved" in Hebrew, and his dad liked how "Daveed" looked with two "E"s.

Daveed says that the different cultures in his family never felt separate. He had many friends from different backgrounds. When he was young, he felt connected to being Jewish, but he also embraced his father's side of the family.

Daveed went to Berkeley High School and then to Brown University. He graduated from Brown in 2004 with a degree in theater arts. He was chosen to join Brown's team because of his amazing track skills. He even broke a school record in the 110-meter hurdles! After college, he worked as a substitute teacher for a while.

Career Highlights

Theater Performances

Early in his career, Daveed performed in special, experimental plays. One notable show was Word Becomes Flesh, which was about a young, single father's journey through a nine-month pregnancy. He also often performed in local Shakespeare plays.

Diggs (right) performs with Hamilton castmates at the White House (2016)

Daveed met writer and actor Lin-Manuel Miranda through Thomas Kail while performing with a freestyle rap group called Freestyle Love Supreme (FLS). In 2012, Lin-Manuel Miranda invited Daveed to hear early versions of Hamilton. Daveed was very impressed by the songs and Miranda's passion for the project. He saw that using rap in a musical was a great idea.

He played the roles of Thomas Jefferson and Marquis de Lafayette in Hamilton when it was performed off-Broadway in 2015. He continued these roles when the show moved to Broadway later that year. For his incredible performance, Daveed won a Tony Award in 2016. He also won a Grammy Award for the cast album. Daveed's last performance in Hamilton was on July 15, 2016.

Music Projects

Daveed is the lead singer and writer for the experimental hip-hop and rap group clipping.. William Hutson and Jonathan Snipes started the group in 2009, and Daveed joined in 2010. The three of them released their first album, midcity, in 2013. They later signed with Sub Pop and released more albums like CLPPNG (2014) and Splendor & Misery (2016).

In 2017, they released a song called The Deep. This song tells the story of a society of people living underwater who are descendants of slaves. In 2018, the song was nominated for a Hugo Award. They also released new albums in 2019 and 2020.

Daveed is also part of another group called True Neutral Crew. This group has released two EPs (shorter albums) and a debut album called soft rules in 2016.

In 2010, he made an album with Rafael Casal called The BAY BOY Mixtape. Daveed also started a hip hop group called The Getback. In 2012, he released his first solo rap album, Small Things to a Giant. Both The BAY BOY Mixtape and Small Things to a Giant included other artists from The Getback.

He is also a member of Lin-Manuel Miranda and Thomas Kail's freestyle rap group Freestyle Love Supreme, which performs across the country.

Daveed's rapping has been featured on songs by other artists like Busdriver and Leslie Odom, Jr.. He also wrote and performed a rap song for the 2016 animated movie Zootopia.

In December 2020, Daveed and his friends William Hutson and Johnathan Snipes worked with Disney Channel to create a fun Hanukkah song. The song, called "Puppy for Hanukkah," was described as "inventive, humorous, and relevant" by Disney.

Television Appearances

Daveed has had recurring roles in TV shows like The Get Down, Black-ish, and Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt. He also appeared in an episode of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.

Daveed was an executive producer for the 2017 ABC series The Mayor. He also wrote original music for the show and even made a guest appearance. In 2017, Daveed started playing one of Mr. Noodle's brothers in the "Elmo's World" part of Sesame Street.

In early 2018, Daveed was featured in several TV commercials for the Zelle digital payment service.

In 2020, he began starring in the TNT TV show Snowpiercer. He also played Frederick Douglass in the Showtime miniseries The Good Lord Bird.

In September 2020, it was announced that the film Blindspotting, which Daveed co-wrote, would become a TV series. Daveed helped write and produce the TV show Blindspotting. The show follows Ashley Rose as she deals with life after her partner, Miles, goes to jail. The series premiered in June 2021 and was renewed for a second season.

In September 2024, it was announced that Daveed would join the fifth season of the show The Boys.

Film Roles

Daveed made his Hollywood film debut in the Disney animated movie Zootopia. For this film, he wrote and performed the "Parlez Vous Rap."

Daveed appeared in the 2017 film Wonder, which starred Julia Roberts and Owen Wilson. Daveed played the kind schoolteacher of the main character, a boy with a facial difference. Daveed also lent his voice to the character Dos in the 2017 animated film Ferdinand.

Along with his friend Rafael Casal, Daveed co-wrote, co-produced, and co-starred in the 2018 film Blindspotting. The movie premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in January 2018. Daveed received an Innovator Award for his work on the film. In Blindspotting, Daveed plays Collin, a character living in Oakland who is trying to finish the last few days of his probation without any trouble. Daveed and Casal worked on this film for nine years to tell a story about their hometown, which was changing quickly due to gentrification (when an area changes as wealthier people move in, sometimes changing the culture and pushing out original residents). Daveed received great reviews for his acting in the film.

Daveed voiced Sebastian the Crab in Disney's live-action movie The Little Mermaid. This movie brought Daveed back together with Lin-Manuel Miranda, who helped write new songs for the film and was also a producer.

Personal Life

Daveed Diggs has one child, a son, with his partner Emmy Raver-Lampman. They met in 2015 when they were both performing in Hamilton.

Acting Credits and Works

Film (selected)

Television

Theatre Performances

Discography

Solo Albums

• The BAY BOY Mixtape (2010) - a collaboration with Rafael Casal
• Small Things to a Giant (2012)
• Blindspotting: The Collin EP (2018)
• Seven Nights in Chicago (2019) - a collaboration with Rafael Casal

With clipping.

• Dba118 (2012) - EP
• midcity (2013)
• CLPPNG (2014)
• Wriggle (2016) - EP
• REMXNG (2016) - EP
• Splendor & Misery (2016)
• There Existed an ... to Blood (2019)
• "Chapter 319" (2020)
• Visions of ... Being Burned (2020)
• "Puppy for Hanukkah" (2020) - a collaboration with Disney Channel

With True Neutral Crew

• #MONSANTO (2013) - EP
• #POPPUNK (2014) - EP
• soft rules (2016)

Featured Artist

• The Monster (2009) - featured on "Running Down" & "Wise Guys"
• Mean Ones (2012) - additional vocals
• Hamilton (2015) - original Broadway cast recording
• Thumbs (2015) - featured on "Surrounded by Millionaires"
• Good For You (2016) - single; featured rapper
• Maiden Voyage Suite (2016) - EP by Sir Benedick the Moor; featured on 1200am
• x Infinity (2016) - featured on Exquisite Corpse

Concerts

• midcity promotional concerts (5 shows, in the US and UK, February 19, 2013 –- March 18, 2014)
• CLPPNG Tour (19 shows, in the US and the UK, July 3 – November 10, 2014)
• #POPPUNK promotional concerts (3 shows, in the US, July 17, 2014 – June 5, 2015)

Awards and Honors

Special Honors

On May 28, 2017, Daveed Diggs received an honorary Doctor of Fine Arts degree from Brown University. This is a special award given by his former college to recognize his achievements.

See also

In Spanish: Daveed Diggs para niños