Chester Gregory, also known as CHΞSS (born December 10, 1972), is an American actor, singer and songwriter from Gary, Indiana. His breakthrough came with his portrayal of

Jackie Wilson Jack Leroy Wilson Jr. (June 9, 1934 – January 21, 1984) was an American singer and performer of the 1950s and 60s. He was a prominent figure in the transition of rhythm and blues into soul. Nicknamed "Mr. Excitement", he was considered a mas ...

in ''The Jackie Wilson Story'', which led to his

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

debut as Seaweed in ''

Hairspray Hairspray may refer to: * Hair spray, a personal grooming product that keeps hair protected from humidity and wind * ''Hairspray'' (1988 film), a film by John Waters ** ''Hairspray'' (1988 soundtrack), the film's soundtrack album ** ''Hairspray ...

''. Gregory's other credits include principal roles in ''Tarzan'', ''Cry-Baby'', ''Dreamgirls'' and ''Sister Act''. Gregory produced and starred in a look into the life of Jackie Wilson in ''The Eve of Jackie''. Gregory has received numerous awards including the Joseph Jefferson and NAACP Theatre Award. Aside from acting, Gregory worked on numerous albums and mixtapes before releasing ''In Search of High Love''. He has been awarded the key to two cities: The key to his hometown the City of Gary, Indiana and the Key to the City of East Chicago, Indiana. He has also been awarded Honorary State Representative for the state of Indiana.

Early life and education

Chester Gregory was born in Gary, Indiana on December 10, 1978, to steel mill worker, Chester Gregory, Sr., and school teacher, Edith Gregory. Growing up in the same hometown as

Michael Jackson Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the "King of Pop", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. Over a ...

inspired Gregory to become an artist. After years of performing in local talent shows and workshops for young performers, Gregory auditioned for the Emerson School for Visual and Performing Arts. His first two attempts were unsuccessful, but he was accepted on his third by the time he reached high school. He progressed to Columbia College Chicago, where he majored in Musical Theatre. Shortly before graduating with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree, Gregory earned the leading role as Jesus in ''Jesus Christ Superstar''. The production was co-directed by

David Cromer David Cromer (born October 17, 1964) is an American theatre director, and stage, film, and TV actor. He has received recognition for his work on Broadway, Off-Broadway, and in his native Chicago. Cromer has won or been nominated for numerous aw ...

. After graduating, Gregory began teaching acting classes and directing several productions at East Chicago Central High School and Indiana University Northwest.

Career

Acting career

Theatre ''The Jackie Wilson Story'' culminated at New York's

Apollo Theater The Apollo Theater is a music hall at 253 West 125th Street between Adam Clayton Powell Jr. Boulevard (Seventh Avenue) and Frederick Douglass Boulevard (Eighth Avenue) in the Harlem neighborhood of Upper Manhattan in New York City. It is a not ...

and received rave reviews from the ''New York Times''. In 2003, Gregory met and performed for the legendary "King of Pop,"

, who gave Gregory a standing ovation. That same week, Gregory made his

debut as Seaweed in the Tony Award-winning musical ''Hairspray''. He remained in the cast for two and a half years, then moved on to originate and star in other principal roles on Broadway including ''Tarzan'' (Terk), ''Cry-Baby'' (Dupree), ''Sister Act'' (Eddie Souther) and '' Motown: The Musical'' (Berry Gordy). He also performed internationally while touring with ''Motown: the Musical'', ''Dreamgirls'', and ''Sister Act''. Other work includes

August Wilson August Wilson ( Frederick August Kittel Jr.; April 27, 1945 – October 2, 2005) was an American playwright. He has been referred to as the "theater's poet of Black America". He is best known for a series of ten plays, collectively called ' (or ...

’s ''Fences'' and ''

Two Trains Running ''Two Trains Running'' is a 1990 play by American playwright August Wilson, the sixth in his ten-part series ''The Pittsburgh Cycle''. The play takes place in 1968 in the Hill District, an African-American neighborhood in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. ...

''. Television/Film Gregory's television and film work include roles in ''Revival!'' produced by

Harry Lennix Harry Joseph Lennix III (born November 16, 1964) is an American actor. He is known for his roles as Terrence "Dresser" Williams in the Robert Townsend film ''The Five Heartbeats'' (1991) and as Boyd Langton in the science-fiction series ''Dollh ...

, ''Ish'', ''The Testing Camera'', and ''American Dreams and Films'' produced by

Todrick Hall Todrick Hall (born April 4, 1985) is an American singer, choreographer, and YouTuber. He gained national attention on the ninth season of the televised singing competition ''American Idol''. Following this, he amassed a huge following on YouTu ...

. He has also appeared on ''

The Daily Show ''The Daily Show'' is an American late-night talk and satirical news television program. It airs each Monday through Thursday on Comedy Central with release shortly after on Paramount+. ''The Daily Show'' draws its comedy and satire form from ...

'' (

Comedy Central Comedy Central is an American basic cable channel owned by Paramount Global through its network division's MTV Entertainment Group unit, based in Manhattan. The channel is geared towards young adults aged 18–34 and carries comedy programming ...

), ''The View'' (

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

) and David Tutera’s CELEBrations with

Kym Whitley Kym Elizabeth Whitley is an American comedian and actress. She is best known for her roles on television sitcoms, such as ''My Brother and Me'', '' Sparks'', ''Animal Practice'', ''The Boondocks'', ''Young & Hungry'', ''The Parkers'', ...

. Current/Future Work In the spring of 2013, Gregory created, produced and starred in the one-man show, ''The Eve of Jackie'', which premiered in New York to sold out audiences at

54 Below 54 Below is a cabaret and restaurant in the basement of Studio 54 in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. Owned by Broadway producers Steve Baruch, Richard Frankel, Marc Routh and Tom Viertel, 54 Below has hosted shows by such performers as Patt ...

and at Chicago's Black Ensemble Theatre. That summer his production was selected to headline The National Black Theatre Festival. To date, Gregory continues to perform ''The Eve of Jackie'' to sold out audiences across the country. In 2015, Gregory founded a workshop titled “Manifest Your Inner Shine”. That same year he received his honorary doctorate degree from his alma mater, Columbia College, and had the honor of giving the commencement address. The following year Gregory founded Lucid Life, an organization and production company that provides workshops and master classes to high school students, college students, and artists who seek professional development. He has also led acting and singing workshops at Donda’s House and other schools and organizations throughout New York, Florida, and the Chicago area.

Recording career

Gregory, who records under his artist name CHΞSS, has spent much of his career in the studio. He has released several albums and worked with music legends such as

Phil Collins Philip David Charles Collins (born 30 January 1951) is an English singer, musician, songwriter, record producer and actor. He was the drummer and lead singer of the rock band Genesis and also has a career as a solo performer. Between 1982 and ...

Marc Shaiman Marc Shaiman (; born October 22, 1959) is an American composer and lyricist for films, television, and theatre, best known for his collaborations with lyricist and director Scott Wittman. He wrote the music and co-wrote the lyrics for the Broadw ...

Henry Krieger Henry Krieger (born February 9, 1945 in New York City) is an American musical theatre composer. He most notably wrote the music for the Broadway shows ''Dreamgirls'' (1981, with lyrics and book by Tom Eyen), ''The Tap Dance Kid'' (1983), and ''S ...

and

Artie Butler Arthur Butler (born December 2, 1942) is an American composer, arranger, songwriter, and session musician. In a long career, he has been involved in numerous hit records and other recordings, and has been awarded over 60 gold and platinum albums ...

. Dr. Gregory worked with

PJ Morton P.J. Morton (born Paul Morton Jr.; March 29, 1981) is an American Grammy winning musician, singer, songwriter and record producer. Since 2012, he has been one of the keyboardists, alongside Jesse Carmichael, for the pop rock band Maroon 5. Mort ...

and

Eric Roberson Eric Roberson (born September 27, 1976) is an American singer, songwriter, former rapper and music producer. He is sometimes referred to simply as Erro, the name which he later used as part of his label Blue Erro Soul. His first single, "Represen ...

for his album ''In Search of High Love''. Other collaborations include

Ledisi Ledisi Anibade Young (; born March 28, 1972), better known simply as Ledisi, is an American R&B and jazz recording artist, songwriter, music producer, author and actress. Her name means "to bring forth" or "to come here" in Yoruba.Ledisi AllMusi ...

Keyon Harrold Keyon Karim Harrold (born November 18, 1980) is an American jazz trumpeter, vocalist, songwriter, and producer. Early life and family Keyon Harrold was born and raised in Ferguson, Missouri, United States, one of 16 children in a family of music ...

Dot Da Genius Oladipo Omishore, known professionally as Dot da Genius is an American record producer and audio engineer from Brooklyn, New York City. He first gained recognition in 2008 for producing "Day 'n' Nite" by American musician Kid Cudi, with whom he ...

, MaliMusic,

88-Keys Charles Misodi Njapa (born March 5, 1976), better known by his stage name 88-Keys, is an American record producer and rapper from New York City. Biography Born in New York City to West African parents from Cameroon, he was raised in the Eastches ...

9th Wonder Patrick Denard Douthit (born January 15, 1975),
better known as 9th Wonder, is a The Pocket Queen ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...

Cory Henry Cory Alexander Henry (born February 27, 1987) is an American singer-songwriter, pianist, organist, and record producer. A former member of Snarky Puppy, Henry launched his solo artist career in 2018 with ''Art of Love'', his first independent ...

, and

Chance The Rapper Chancelor Johnathan Bennett (born April 16, 1993), known professionally as Chance the Rapper, is an American rapper, singer-songwriter, and record producer. Born and raised in Chicago, Bennett released his debut mixtape '' 10 Day'' in 2012. He ...

. Gregory has a new project titled RETRO(GRADE) under his artist name, CHΞSS.

Stage credits

References

External links

Official WebsiteTwitter
*https://m.imdb.com/name/nm2457435 {{DEFAULTSORT:Gregory, Chester American male musical theatre actors Living people 1978 births People from Gary, Indiana