Diggy Simmons facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Diggy Simmons |
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Diggy Simmons in 2013
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Daniel Dwayne Simmons III |
| Also known as | Diggy |
| Born | March 21, 1995 Queens, New York, U.S. |
| Genres | |
| Occupations |
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| Years active | 2009–present |
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Daniel Dwayne Simmons III (born on March 21, 1995), also known as Diggy, is an American rapper, singer, and actor. He grew up in Queens, New York City. Diggy is the fourth child of Run DMC's Joseph "Rev. Run" Simmons.
He started his music career in 2009 and signed with Atlantic Records in 2010. In 2011, his song "Do It Like You" became popular. He also appeared on Mindless Behavior's song "Mrs. Right". Both songs made it onto the Billboard music charts. His first album, Unexpected Arrival (2012), was well-received and reached number 11 on the Billboard album chart. In 2011, XXL magazine chose him as one of their top new artists. He also joined a rap group called All City Chess Club.
As an actor, Simmons has played Doug Edwards on the TV show Grown-ish since 2018. This show is a spin-off of Black-ish. Before that, he and his family were featured in the MTV reality TV show Run's House from 2005 to 2009.
Contents
Music Career
Starting in Music
Diggy Simmons released his first mixtape called The First Flight in 2009. A mixtape is like a collection of songs, often shared for free. Over 100,000 people downloaded it from his blog. After this, five different record labels wanted to sign him. He decided to join Atlantic Records.
In 2010, Simmons shared a video of himself freestyling over a Nas song. Freestyling means making up rap lyrics on the spot. This video became very popular online and was praised by famous rapper Kanye West. Kanye West even tweeted that he knew Diggy would be "fresh," meaning cool and talented.
Later that year, his song "Oh Yeah!" featuring Pharrell Williams and Lupe Fiasco was shared online. He then released his second mixtape, Airborne. One song from this mixtape, "Great Expectations," was even used in a national AT&T TV commercial.
In December, Simmons released his third mixtape, Past, Present(s), Future. This mixtape was put together by DJ Premier and used parts of songs from the 1980s and 1990s. These parts are called samples. He used samples from artists like Nas and A Tribe Called Quest. A music video was also made for his song "Shook Ones," which sampled a song by Mobb Deep.
Success and First Album
In 2011, Billboard magazine named Simmons one of their "Artists to Watch." He was also chosen for XXL magazine's annual "Freshmen" list, which highlights new and promising hip-hop artists.
In early 2011, Diggy joined a group of rising music artists called "B(before 20)12." He then went on his first tour, the BET 106 & Park Closer to My Dreams Tour. He released his first official song with a major record label, "Copy, Paste." This song reached number 24 on the US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. He performed "Copy, Paste" at the 2011 BET Awards.
Later that year, he went on another tour called Scream Tour's Next Generation Tour. Diggy was also featured on songs by other artists, including "Like 'Em All" by Jacob Latimore and "Mrs. Right" by Mindless Behavior. His song "Yeah Right" with Dionne Bromfield reached number 36 on the UK Singles Chart.
In October 2011, Diggy released "Do It Like You" as the second song from his first album, Unexpected Arrival. The music video for this song featured Jeremih. His debut album, Unexpected Arrival, came out on March 20, 2012, just one day before his 17th birthday. Billboard magazine said the album was "easy to find yourself nodding along" to. Diggy also had his own tour called Life of The Jetsetter Tour in 2012. He continued to tour with Scream Star Entertainment, even getting his own headlining spot on the Scream Tour: Next Generation (Part 2).
New Music and Projects
Simmons announced that he was working on his fourth mixtape, Out of This World, in 2013. However, it has not been released yet. In December 2013, he released a song called "Mama Said" featuring B.o.B and Key Wane. In May 2014, he released "My Girl" featuring Trevor Jackson, with an official music video.
In 2015, Diggy released "Ain't Bout To Do" featuring French Montana. He then released "Can't Relate" featuring Yo Gotti. He also performed at the Scream Nation's Back 2 School Fest in September 2015.
Other Ventures
Acting Career
Diggy Simmons had a small part in the 2012 comedy movie Parental Guidance. The movie starred Billy Crystal and Bette Midler. However, his part was cut from the final movie.
Simmons also starred in a two-hour TV movie pilot for BET called The Start Up. In this movie, he played Blake, a 19-year-old college student. Blake tries to make his blog successful with the help of his friends. The movie first aired on September 19, 2015.
Since 2018, Simmons has had a regular role on the TV series Grown-ish. He plays Doug, who is Jazlyn's (Chloe Bailey's) boyfriend on the show.
Clothing Line
In 2010, Simmons started his own line of urban sneakers called Chivalrous Culture. He said he got ideas from other artists like Kanye West and Jay Z. The first shoe model was called the "Hamachi." However, he later shared that his "Chiv Culture" clothing line has been stopped.
Artistry
Influences
Diggy Simmons has said that many rappers have inspired his music. These include Jay Z, Nas, Kanye West, Lupe Fiasco, A Tribe Called Quest, and Wu-Tang Clan. He also likes bands like Maroon 5, Passion Pit, and Arctic Monkeys. Simmons has mentioned that he might want to try making music in their style in the future.
Awards and Nominations
Diggy Simmons has been recognized for his talent with several awards and nominations:
- BET Awards
- 2011: Nominated for YoungStars Award
- 2012: Won YoungStars Award
- 2012: Nominated for Best New Artist
- BET Hip Hop Awards
- 2011: Nominated for Rookie of the Year
- NAACP Image Awards
- 2012: Won Outstanding New Artist
- Teen Choice Awards
- 2007: Nominated for Choice TV: Male Reality/Variety Star
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