Martin Luther McCoy (born August 1, 1973) is an American musician and actor.

Early life

McCoy is a San Francisco native from the Bayview-Hunters Point neighborhood.

Career

Martin collaborated extensively with musicians like

The Roots The Roots are an American hip hop band formed in 1987 by Tariq "Black Thought" Trotter and Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. The Roots serve as the house band on NBC's ''The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy F ...

and

Cody ChesnuTT Cody Chesnutt (stylized as Cody ChesnuTT; born October 21, 1968) is an American R&B and neo soul musician from Atlanta, Georgia. Biography Chesnutt's music blends elements of rock, funk, soul, hip hop, and blues. After relocating to Los Ang ...

and appears as one of the six lead characters in the

2007 File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple's first iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakistani Prime Minister of Pakistan, Pr ...

Beatles The Beatles were an English rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the most influential band of all time and were integral to the developme ...

musical Musical is the adjective of music. Musical may also refer to: * Musical theatre, a performance art that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance * Musical film and television, a genre of film and television that incorporates into the narr ...

Across the Universe "Across the Universe" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles. It was written by John Lennon and credited to Lennon–McCartney. The song first appeared on the 1969 various artists' charity compilation album ''No One's Gonna Change Our W ...

'' in the role of "Jo-Jo", who reflects

Jimi Hendrix James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. Although his mainstream career spanned only four years, he is widely regarded as one of the most ...

. In the film, McCoy performs the song "

While My Guitar Gently Weeps "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles from their 1968 double album '' The Beatles'' (also known as "the White Album"). It was written by George Harrison, the band's lead guitarist. Harrison wrote "While ...

", and " Don't Let Me Down" and also provides guitar and vocals on others. McCoy goes by the

stage name A stage name is a pseudonym used by performers and entertainers—such as actors, comedians, singers, and musicians. Such professional aliases are adopted for a wide variety of reasons and they may be similar, or nearly identical, to an individu ...

of "Martin Luther" in his music career. For his acting work he is credited under his full name. Martin Luther developed his mix of musical genres as a child where he was raised on choir hymns through his religious parents. At the same time, he learned how to play piano and was exposed to the sounds of

Parliament Funkadelic In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government via hearings and inquiries. Th ...

. These eclectic tastes redirected Martin Luther's interests as he experimented with the sounds of funk. He taught himself how to play the drums and the piano, incorporating the wider range of instruments into his music. Martin Luther blends gospel with rock and R&B in his music with the release of his first solo album The Calling in 1999, and followed it with an independent release of his second album Rebel Soul Music in 2004 on his own label Rebel Soul Records; his third album "Love is the Hero" was released in 2012. While pursuing a music career, Martin Luther continued his education, receiving a degree in Media Arts from

Morehouse College , mottoeng = And there was light (literal translation of Latin itself translated from Hebrew: "And light was made") , type = Private historically black men's liberal arts college , academic_affiliations ...

with a concentration in Entertainment Law and Marketing and graduated in 1992.

Discography

Albums

* ''The Calling'' (1999) * ''Rebel Soul Music'' (2004) * ''Love is the Hero'' (2012)

References

External links

Official Site
*
Martin Luther Biography
Living people Singers from San Francisco The Roots members 1970 births Male actors from San Francisco Guitarists from San Francisco 21st-century American singers Morehouse College alumni Bayview–Hunters Point, San Francisco {{US-musician-stub