Diggs was born inOakland, California, the son of Barbara, a social worker, and Dountes Diggs, a bus driver.[6][7][8] His mother isJewish, and his father isAfrican-American.[9] His parents named him "Daveed", theHebrew pronunciation ofDavid. Diggs has said,"'David' means beloved in Hebrew... They spelled it with two Es because my dad liked the look of it."[9] His parents' ethnic and racial identities have contributed to his ownself-identification: "The cultures never seemed separate—I had a lot of mixed friends. When I was young, I identified with being Jewish, but I embraced my dad's side too."[10]
Diggs performed in experimental theater early in his career, most notably when he was on the national tour forMarc Bamuthi Joseph's choreopoem,Word Becomes Flesh, about a nine-month pregnancy through the eyes of a young, single father.[16][17] He also frequently performed in regional Shakespeare productions.
Diggs (right) performs withHamilton castmates at the White House (2016)
Diggs met playwright, composer, actor, and rapperLin-Manuel Miranda throughThomas Kail while performing with the freestyle rap group Freestyle Love Supreme, or FLS.[18] In 2012, Miranda invited Diggs to read and hear early versions ofHamilton. Diggs was impressed by Miranda's demos and passion for the project, and saw that the concept was a prospective use of the rap-musical medium. He played the roles ofThomas Jefferson andMarquis de Lafayette off Broadway in 2015, continuing with the roles when the show was moved to Broadway later in the year.[19] For his performance, Diggs won the 2016Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Musical, as well as a 2016Grammy Award for the cast album.[20] Diggs played his final performance in the show on July 15, 2016.[21]
Music
Diggs is the vocalist of and writer for theexperimental hip-hop andrap groupclipping. The group was founded by William Hutson and Jonathan Snipes in 2009, with Diggs joining in 2010. The trio self-released their first mixtape albummidcity in 2013 to fairly positive reviews. Signing withSub Pop, they released their albumCLPPNG in 2014, which they promoted with their CLPPNG Tour. In 2016, they released an EP titledWriggle, then the albumSplendor & Misery. In 2017, they releasedThe Deep, a five-and-a-half minute track that tells the story of a society of the descendants of the enslaved living underwater. In 2018, the song was nominated for a Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation (Short Form).[22] In 2019, they released an album titledThere Existed an Addiction to Blood; additionally, in 2020, the group released the albumVisions of Bodies Being Burned.
Diggs is a member of True Neutral Crew, withBrian Kinsman, Margot Padilla, and Signor Benedick the Moor.[23] The group has released two EPs,#MONSANTO (2013)[24][better source needed][25] and 2014's#POPPUNK,[26] as well asLive, a 20-minute short film of a live performance.[27] They released their debut albumsoft rules in 2016.
In 2010, he made an album withRafael Casal titledThe BAY BOY Mixtape. Diggs also founded a hip hop triumvirate withChinaka Hodge and Casal known as The Getback.[28] The Getback later became a collaborative ensemble composed of Diggs, Hodge, Casal and other artists along with a band formed by drummer Chukwudi Hodge, turntablist Dion Decibels and Max Miller-Logan on trumpet and Keys. Though the band have diversified themselves from their work with the ensemble, they are still known as The GetBack (Get:Band) on Facebook.[29] Two years later, in 2012, he released his first solo rap album,Small Things to a Giant, composed of original music he had written. BothThe BAY BOY Mixtape andSmall Things to a Giant included other artists in The Getback collective.
In December 2020, Diggs, along with lifelong friends William Hutson and Johnathan Snipes, partnered withDisney Channel to produce a festive song for Hanukkah. The released track, titled "Puppy for Hanukkah", is described by Disney Music and Soundtracks V.P. Steven Vincent as "inventive, humorous, and relevant".[30]
Diggs served as an executive producer of the 2017ABC seriesThe Mayor. In addition, he wrote original music for it, as well as guest starring on it.[34][35][36] Starting in early 2017, Diggs played one ofMr. Noodle's brothers, Mr. Noodle, in the "Elmo's World" segment ofSesame Street.[37]
In early 2018, Diggs was featured in several television commercials for theZelle digital payment service.[38]
In September 2020, it was confirmed that the critically acclaimedCasal and Diggs written filmBlindspotting would be spun-off as a comedy-drama seriesBlindspotting, with Diggs set to write and executive produce.Blindspotting the TV series, follows Ashley Rose, portrayed byJasmine Cephas Jones both in the film and show, as she navigates life after longtime partner Miles is unexpectedly incarcerated. The series was picked up byLionsgate Television, produced by Dreams with friends Inc. and Snoot Entertainment, and was distributed byStarz. The series had its world premiere at theTribeca Film Festival on June 11, 2021. The series became available for streaming June 13, 2021, on Starz andStarzPlay.[40] On October 14, 2021, it was announced that the series would be renewed for a second season.[41]
In September 2024, it was announced that Diggs would join the fifth season of the showThe Boys, in an undisclosed role.[42]
Film
Diggs had his Hollywood film debut in theDisney animated filmZootopia, for which he wrote and performed the "Parlez Vous Rap".
Diggs appeared in the 2017 filmWonder, starring Julia Roberts and Owen Wilson. Diggs played the schoolteacher of the protagonist, a boy with afacial deformity. Diggs had a voice role in the 2017 animated filmFerdinand, in which he played the character Dos.
Alongside his lifelong friend Rafael Casal, Diggs co-wrote, co-produced, and co-starred in the 2018 filmBlindspotting, which premiered at Sundance in January 2018. He received theAtlanta Film Festival's inaugural Innovator Award in April, prior to the film's theatrical release on July 27, 2018.[43] Diggs plays Collin, a felon living inOakland, as he tries to get through the last three days of his year-long probation without incident. Diggs and Casal wrote the film over nine years to tell a story about their quicklygentrifying hometown as they knew it.[44] Diggs received critical praise for his performance in the film.[45][46]
^abcdefghijk"Daveed Diggs (visual voices guide)". Behind The Voice Actors. RetrievedDecember 21, 2024. A green check mark indicates that a role has been confirmed using a screenshot (or collage of screenshots) of a title's list of voice actors and their respective characters found in its credits or other reliable sources of information.
^Danzig, Christopher (November 10, 2020)."The Def Poetry of Rafael Casal". East Bay Express.Archived from the original on March 5, 2019. RetrievedDecember 20, 2020.
^Hemmerling, Joe."Midcity".Tiny Mix Tapes.Archived from the original on January 25, 2021. RetrievedDecember 20, 2020.
^Ham, Robert (June 11, 2014)."Clipping: CLPPNG Review".Paste. Paste Media Group.Archived from the original on August 21, 2023. RetrievedDecember 20, 2020.
^Falisi, Frank."Wriggle".Tiny Mix Tapes.Archived from the original on September 19, 2021. RetrievedDecember 20, 2020.
