Antoine DeRay Davis (born February 26, 1982) is an American stand-up comedian and actor.Todd Davis (February 2, 2008)
Steph Jones: Heart & Soul
''HHNLive''. Accessed July 18, 2008.

Life and career

Davis was born in

Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

. He began his career in comedy clubs. Shortly after moving to

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

, he won the

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 ...

Laugh Riots Competition and appeared on the

Cedric the Entertainer Cedric Antonio Kyles (born April 24, 1964), better known by his stage name Cedric the Entertainer, is an American stand-up comedian and actor. He hosted BET's ''ComicView'' during the 1993–1994 season and ''Def Comedy Jam'' in 1995. He is bes ...

Tour. Known for his role as Ray the Hustle Guy in '' Barbershop'' and '' Barbershop 2: Back in Business'', Davis has also appeared in other films, including ''

Semi-Pro ''Semi-Pro'' is a 2008 American sports comedy film. The film was directed by Kent Alterman in his directorial debut, written by Scot Armstrong, and produced by Jimmy Miller. It stars Will Ferrell, Woody Harrelson, André Benjamin and Maura Tier ...

'', ''

21 Jump Street ''21 Jump Street'' is an American police procedural television series that aired on the Fox network and in first run syndication from April 12, 1987, to April 27, 1991, with a total of 103 episodes. The series focuses on a squad of youthful-loo ...

'', and '' How High 2''. Davis' television roles and appearances have included programs such as

's ''

Reno 911 ''Reno 911!'' is an American comedy television series airing on Comedy Central. It is a mockumentary-style parody of law enforcement documentary shows, specifically '' Cops'', with comic actors playing the police officers. Thomas Lennon, Rober ...

'',

BET Black Entertainment Television (acronym BET) is an American basic cable channel targeting African-American audiences. It is owned by the CBS Entertainment Group unit of Paramount Global via BET Networks and has offices in New York City, Los A ...

's ''

ComicView ''ComicView'' is an American stand-up comedy show that aired on BET on Tuesdays and Fridays from September 1992 to December 2008. In May 2014, BET announced the return of ''ComicView''. The show has been the launching pad for such comedians as D. ...

'',

FOX Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush''). Twelve sp ...

's ''

Empire An empire is a "political unit" made up of several territories and peoples, "usually created by conquest, and divided between a dominant center and subordinate peripheries". The center of the empire (sometimes referred to as the metropole) ex ...

'',

MTV MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...

's ''

Wild 'n Out ''Wild 'N Out'' is an American sketch comedy and improv game show series that was created and is hosted by musician and comedian Nick Cannon currently airing on VH1. It debuted on July 28, 2005 on MTV. In April 2019, the series had been rene ...

'' and ''

Short Circuitz ''Nick Cannon Presents: Short Circuitz'' is a sketch comedy show starring Nick Cannon on MTV that debuted April 5, 2007. The show was cancelled and pulled from MTV on April 30, 2007, due to low ratings. A month after the show's cancellation, the ...

'', FX's ''

Snowfall Snow comprises individual ice crystals that grow while suspended in the atmosphere—usually within clouds—and then fall, accumulating on the ground where they undergo further changes. It consists of frozen crystalline water throughout ...

'', and

HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American premium television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is ba ...

's ''

Entourage An entourage () is an informal group or band of people who are closely associated with a (usually) famous, notorious, or otherwise notable individual. The word can also refer to: Arts and entertainment * L'entourage, French hip hop / rap collecti ...

''. He hosted his first game show, '' Mind of a Man'', on

Game Show Network Game Show Network (GSN) is an American basic cable channel owned by Sony Pictures Television. The channel's programming is primarily dedicated to game shows, including reruns of acquired game shows, along with new, first-run original and revive ...

, and later appeared on the

Oxygen Oxygen is the chemical element with the symbol O and atomic number 8. It is a member of the chalcogen group in the periodic table, a highly reactive nonmetal, and an oxidizing agent that readily forms oxides with most elements as wel ...

reality show ''Living with Funny.'' He is also the host of the revival of ''

Hip Hop Squares ''Hip Hop Squares'' is an American television game show originally hosted by Peter Rosenberg, which debuted on MTV2 on May 22, 2012. The show is a licensed format of CBS Television Distribution's ''Hollywood Squares'' (King World Productions, CBS ...

'' produced & narrated by

Ice Cube An ice cube is a small piece of ice, which is typically rectangular as viewed from above and trapezoidal as viewed from the side. Ice cubes are products of mechanical refrigeration and are usually produced to cool beverages. They may be produc ...

. The comedian also sounds on several skits on

rapper Rapping (also rhyming, spitting, emceeing or MCing) is a musical form of vocal delivery that incorporates "rhyme, rhythmic speech, and street vernacular". It is performed or chanted, usually over a backing beat or musical accompaniment. The ...

Kanye West Ye ( ; born Kanye Omari West ; June 8, 1977) is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, and fashion designer. Born in Atlanta and raised in Chicago, West gained recognition as a producer for Roc-A-Fella Records in the ea ...

's albums ''

The College Dropout ''The College Dropout'' is the debut studio album by American rapper and producer Kanye West. It was released on February 10, 2004, by Def Jam Recordings and Jay-Z's Roc-A-Fella Records. In the years leading up to release, West had received pra ...

'' and ''

Late Registration ''Late Registration'' is the second studio album by American rapper and producer Kanye West. It was released on August 30, 2005, through Def Jam Recordings and Roc-A-Fella Records. West recorded the album over the course of a year during sessions ...

'', impersonating

Bernie Mac Bernard Jeffrey McCullough (October 5, 1957 – August 9, 2008), better known by his stage name Bernie Mac, was an American comedian and actor. Born and raised on Chicago's South Side, Mac gained popularity as a stand-up comedian. He joined fell ...

in the former album's opening track "Intro", and appearing as the lead of the fictitious fraternity "Broke Phi Broke." Davis, also appeared in West's music video for "

Through the Wire "Through the Wire" is the debut single by American rapper and producer Kanye West, who wrote and recorded the song with his jaw wired shut after a car crash in October 2002. The song samples Chaka Khan's 1985 single " Through the Fire" and was rel ...

." Other music video appearances for Davis include

Lil' Flip Wesley Eric Weston Jr. (born March 3, 1981), better known by his stage name Lil' Flip, is an American rapper. He embarked on his musical career as a freestyle and battle rapper before earning a record deal with Suckafree Records in 1999. Lil' F ...

's "

Game Over (Flip) "Game Over (Flip)" is the lead single released from Lil' Flip's third album ''U Gotta Feel Me''. The song became Flip's first top 40 hit, peaking at number 15 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, while also reaching the top 10 on both the R&B and rap s ...

Chris Brown Christopher Maurice Brown (born May 5, 1989) is an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and actor. According to '' Billboard'', Brown is one of the most successful R&B singers of his generation, having often been referred to by many contempo ...

's "

Yo (Excuse Me Miss) "Yo (Excuse Me Miss)" is a song recorded by American singer Chris Brown. It served as the second single from Brown's debut album '' Chris Brown'' (2005) and was released in November 2005 in the US and February 2006 worldwide. "Yo (Excuse Me Miss ...

Three 6 Mafia Three 6 Mafia is an American Hip hop music, hip hop group from Memphis, Tennessee, formed in 1991. Emerging as a horror-themed underground hip hop group, they would eventually go on to enjoy mainstream success. The group's 1995 debut album ''Mys ...

's "

Doe Boy Fresh "Doe Boy Fresh" is a song by rap group Three 6 Mafia, originally the first single from their ninth studio album, ''Last 2 Walk'', but was ultimately cut from the album. The final track listing does not include the song, possibly due to the numer ...

", Outkast's "

Roses A rose is either a woody perennial flowering plant of the genus ''Rosa'' (), in the family Rosaceae (), or the flower it bears. There are over three hundred species and tens of thousands of cultivars. They form a group of plants that can be e ...

", and

Cassie Cassie is a feminine given name and a short form of various other given names mostly used in English-speaking countries. It is more rarely a surname. People and fictional characters named Cassie include: People with the name Given name or nickna ...

's "

Long Way 2 Go "Long Way 2 Go" is a song by American recording artist Cassie Ventura, Cassie from her debut studio album, ''Cassie (album), Cassie'' (2006). It was co-written by Cassie herself in collaboration with the song's producer, Ryan Leslie. The song wa ...

Filmography

Film

Television

References

External links

Official DeRay Davis website
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Davis, DeRay American stand-up comedians Living people American male film actors African-American male comedians American male comedians African-American game show hosts Male actors from Chicago African-American male actors American male television actors Comedians from Illinois 21st-century American comedians 1982 births 21st-century African-American people