O'Shea Jackson Jr. (born February 24, 1991), also known by the stage name OMG, is an American actor, rapper and songwriter. He is the oldest son of

Ice Cube O'Shea Jackson Sr. (born June 15, 1969), known professionally as Ice Cube, is an American rapper, songwriter, actor, and film producer. His lyrics on N.W.A's 1989 album '' Straight Outta Compton'' contributed to gangsta rap's widespread popu ...

and, in his feature film debut, he portrayed his father in the 2015 biopic ''

Straight Outta Compton ''Straight Outta Compton'' is the debut studio album by American hip-hop group N.W.A, released on January 25, 1989, through Priority Records, Priority and Ruthless Records. It was Record producer, produced by N.W.A members Dr. Dre, DJ Yella, a ...

''.

Early life

Jackson was born in

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

, to O'Shea Jackson Sr., better known as

, and Kimberly Woodruff. Jackson was raised in the

San Fernando Valley The San Fernando Valley, known locally as the Valley, is an urbanized valley in Los Angeles County, Los Angeles County, California. Situated to the north of the Los Angeles Basin, it comprises a large portion of Los Angeles, the Municipal corpo ...

, and is the oldest of four children. He has two younger brothers, Darrell—who is also a rapper—and Shareef, as well as a younger sister, Kareema. Like his father, Jackson attended William Howard Taft High School in

Woodland Hills, California Woodland Hills is a neighborhood bordering the Santa Monica Mountains in the San Fernando Valley region of Los Angeles, California, United States. History The area was inhabited for around 8,000 years by Native Americans in the United States, ...

, from which he graduated in 2009. Jackson attended the

University of Southern California The University of Southern California (USC, SC, or Southern Cal) is a Private university, private research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1880 by Robert M. Widney, it is the oldest private research university in ...

, where he studied screenwriting, but dropped out to pursue his acting career.

Career

Film

In June 2014, it was announced that Jackson had been cast to portray his father,

, in ''

'', a

biographical film A biographical film or biopic () is a film that dramatizes the life of an actual person or group of people. Such films show the life of a historical person and the central character's real name is used. They differ from Docudrama, docudrama films ...

about

N.W.A N.W.A (an abbreviation for Niggaz Wit Attitudes) was an American hip-hop group formed in Compton, California in 1987. Among the earliest and most significant figures of the gangsta rap subgenre, the group is widely considered one of the great ...

. The film was released on August 14, 2015, to positive reviews. Jackson is noted for his physical resemblance to his father, which Ice Cube described to

Jimmy Kimmel James Christian Kimmel (born November 13, 1967), known professionally as Jimmy Kimmel, is an American television host, comedian, writer, voice actor, and producer. He has been the host and executive producer of '' Jimmy Kimmel Live!'', a late-n ...

in October 2014 as "spot-on. He was born to play the part." In 2017, Jackson played Dan Pinto, the

Batman Batman is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. Batman was created by the artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in Detective Comics 27, the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on M ...

-obsessed aspiring screenwriter, landlord and love interest of

Aubrey Plaza Aubrey Christina Plaza (born June 26, 1984) is an American actress, comedian, and producer. She began performing Improvisational theatre, improv and sketch comedy at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre. After graduating from New York University ...

's character Ingrid Thorburn in the film '' Ingrid Goes West'', with many critics—including the ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...

'',

Vulture A vulture is a bird of prey that scavenges on carrion. There are 23 extant species of vulture (including condors). Old World vultures include 16 living species native to Europe, Africa, and Asia; New World vultures are restricted to Nort ...

, and

Collider A collider is a type of particle accelerator that brings two opposing particle beams together such that the particles collide. Compared to other particle accelerators in which the moving particles collide with a stationary matter target, collid ...

—commenting on his scene-stealing abilities. In 2018, Jackson starred in the film '' Den of Thieves'', which also included

50 Cent Curtis James Jackson III (born July 6, 1975), known professionally as 50 Cent, is an American rapper, actor, and television producer. Born in Queens, a borough of New York City, Jackson began pursuing a musical career in 1996. In 1999–2000, ...

and

Gerard Butler Gerard James Butler (born 13 November 1969) is a Scottish actor and film producer. After studying law, he turned to acting in the mid-1990s with small roles in productions such as '' Mrs Brown'' (1997), the James Bond film ''Tomorrow Never ...

. Jackson appears in two May 2019 movies. He has a supporting role as Lance in the romantic comedy ''

Long Shot In photography, filmmaking and video production, a wide shot (sometimes referred to as a full shot or long shot) is a shot that typically shows the entire object or human figure and is usually intended to place it in some relation to its surro ...

'' alongside

Charlize Theron Charlize Theron ( ; ; born 7 August 1975) is a South African and American actress and producer. One of the world's highest-paid actresses, she is the recipient of various accolades, including an Academy Award and a Golden Globe Award. In 201 ...

and

Seth Rogen Seth Aaron Rogen (; born April 15, 1982) is a Canadian actor, comedian, and filmmaker. Known primarily for his comedic Leading actor, leading man roles in films, the accolades he has received include nominations for three Golden Globe Awards, ...

, playing the best friend of Rogen's character. In '' Godzilla: King of the Monsters'', he portrays Barnes, the leader of the G-Team, the special military forces group run specializing in battles involving Titans. Also in 2019, Jackson co-starred with

Michael B. Jordan Michael Bakari Jordan ( ; born February 9, 1987) is an American actor, producer and director. He is best known for his film roles in '' Fruitvale Station'' (2013), ''Creed'' (2015), ''Black Panther'' (2018), '' Black Panther: Wakanda Forever'' ...

Jamie Foxx Eric Marlon Bishop (born December 13, 1967), known professionally as Jamie Foxx, is an American actor, comedian, and singer. Known for his work in both the screen and music industries, his accolades include an Academy Award, a Grammy Award ...

, and

Brie Larson Brianne Sidonie Desaulniers (born October 1, 1989), known professionally as Brie Larson, is an American actress. She played supporting roles in comedies as a teenager, and has since expanded to leading roles in independent films and Blockbuste ...

in the drama ''

Just Mercy ''Just Mercy'' is a 2019 American biographical legal drama film co-written and directed by Destin Daniel Cretton and starring Michael B. Jordan as Bryan Stevenson, Jamie Foxx as Walter McMillian, Rob Morgan, Tim Blake Nelson, Rafe Spall, a ...

''. He portrays Anthony Ray Hinton, who spent 30 years behind bars after being wrongfully convicted of murder.

Music

In 2010, Jackson and his brother Darrell were featured on the songs "She Couldn't Make It On Her Own" and "Y'all Know How I Am", from their father's album '' I Am the West''. In March 2012, Jackson, under the name OMG, released his first

mixtape In the modern music industry, a mixtape is a musical project, typically with looser constraints than that of an album or extended play. Unlike the traditional album or extended play, mixtapes are labeled as laid-back projects that allow artists mo ...

, '' Jackin' for Beats'', online. Jazmine Gray of ''

Vibe Vibe, alternatively '' vibes,'' is short for ''vibration''. A "vibe" is an emotional reaction to the aura or energy felt to belong to a person, place or thing. Vibe may also refer to: People * DJ Vibe (born 1968), Portuguese DJ * Lasse Vibe (b ...

'' said, "True to its title, the hip-hop rookie offers his own lyrics over the beats of some of the most popular tracks of the year. The 10-track tape finds the son of a

hip hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hip- ...

icon off to a promising start." In an interview with ''

XXL Magazine ''XXL'' is an American hip hop magazine, published by Townsquare Media, founded in 1997. History In August 1997, Harris Publications released the first issue of ''XXL''. It featured rappers Jay-Z and Master P on a double cover. In December 200 ...

'', Jackson said that "Some people say I sound like OMG. No one has compared me or tried to match me up with other artists." In 2015, Jackson appeared in Pia Mia's music video for her song "Touch". He also appeared in American hip hop duo

Twenty88 ''Twenty88'' (stylized as ''TWENTY88'') is the debut studio album by American hip hop duo Twenty88, composed of rapper Big Sean and R&B singer-songwriter Jhené Aiko. It was released on April 1, 2016, by Def Jam Recordings, in a joint venture wi ...

's music video, "Out of Love", promoting their self-titled debut extended play.

Television

On February 6, 2018, Jackson played hip hop legend Kool Herc in a segment of

Drunk History ''Drunk History'' is an American educational comedy television series produced by Comedy Central, based on the Funny or Die web series created by Derek Waters and Jeremy Konner in 2007. Will Ferrell and Adam McKay are the show's executive p ...

. On October 4, 2019, Jackson made a guest appearance on the debut of ''

WWE SmackDown ''WWE SmackDown'', also known as ''Friday Night SmackDown'' or simply ''SmackDown'', is an American professional wrestling television program produced by WWE. It airs Live television, live every Friday at 8 p.m. Eastern Time (ET) on USA Netwo ...

'' on Fox. Jackson starred opposite

Dave Franco David John Franco (born June 12, 1985) is an American actor and filmmaker. He began his career with small roles in films such as '' Superbad'' (2007) and '' Charlie St. Cloud'' (2010). Following a starring role in the final season of the comed ...

in the comedy series ''

The Now The Now are an English punk rock group from Peterborough, England. Whilst never officially disbanding, they ceased recording and performing in 1979. In 2004, The Now recorded all of their original material and released as the '' Fuzztone Fizz ...

''. It was originally set to be released on

Quibi Quibi ( ) was an American short-form streaming platform that generated content for viewing on mobile devices. It was founded in Los Angeles in August 2018 as NewTV by Jeffrey Katzenberg and was led by Meg Whitman as CEO. The service raised $ ...

, but was ultimately released on

The Roku Channel The Roku Channel is an over-the-top video streaming service available in the U.S., Canada, Mexico and the UK. The service was launched in 2017, and is owned and operated by Roku, Inc. It is the most popular free ad-supported streaming televisio ...

on December 10, 2021. In the 2021 basketball drama show, ''

Swagger A swagger or swagga is a swaggering gait. Swagger also may refer to: * Swagger or swagman, a transient labourer in Australia and New Zealand * Swagger (software), a specification for defining the interface of a REST web service * Swagger Creek, ...

'', Jackson plays Ike Edwards, a former rising star who struggles to coach a young high-stake basketball team. The series premiered on October 29, 2021 on

Apple TV+ Apple TV+ is an American subscription over-the-top streaming service owned by Apple. The service launched on November 1, 2019, and it offers a selection of original production film and television series called Apple Originals. The service w ...

. He played Kawlan Roken in the

Disney+ The Walt Disney Company, commonly referred to as simply Disney, is an American multinational mass media and entertainment industry, entertainment conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios (Burbank), Walt Di ...

Star Wars ''Star Wars'' is an American epic film, epic space opera media franchise created by George Lucas, which began with the Star Wars (film), eponymous 1977 film and Cultural impact of Star Wars, quickly became a worldwide popular culture, pop cu ...

'' series, ''

Obi-Wan Kenobi Obi-Wan "Ben" Kenobi () is a character in the ''Star Wars'' franchise. In the original film trilogy, he is a Jedi Master who trains Luke Skywalker in the ways of the Force. In the prequel trilogy, he mentors Luke's father, Anakin Skywalke ...

''.

Personal life

Jackson has a daughter, Jordan Reign Jackson, born in August 2017 with his ex-girlfriend, Jackie Garcia. He is a fan of

professional wrestling Professional wrestling, often shortened to either pro wrestling or wrestling,The term "wrestling" is most often widely used to specifically refer to modern scripted professional wrestling, though it is also used to refer to Real life, real- ...

, the

Los Angeles Kings The Los Angeles Kings are a professional ice hockey team based in Los Angeles. The Kings compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division (NHL), Pacific Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Conference. ...

of the

NHL The National Hockey League (NHL; , ''LNH'') is a professional ice hockey league in North America composed of 32 teams25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. The NHL is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Cana ...

, the

Los Angeles Rams The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Greater Los Angeles, Greater Los Angeles area. The Rams compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West ...

in the

NFL The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The N ...

, anime and

Pokémon is a Japanese media franchise consisting of List of Pokémon video games, video games, Pokémon (TV series), animated series and List of Pokémon films, films, Pokémon Trading Card Game, a trading card game, and other related media. The fran ...

Filmography

Film

Television

Discography

;Guest appearances

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Jackson, OShea Jr. 1991 births 21st-century African-American male actors 21st-century American male actors 21st-century American rappers African-American male rappers 21st-century American male rappers American male film actors Jackson Jr., O'Shea Living people Male actors from Los Angeles Rappers from Los Angeles University of Southern California alumni William Howard Taft Charter High School alumni