Omar Laquon Regan (born June 12, 1975) is an American

stand-up Stand-up comedy is a performance directed to a live audience, where the performer stands on a stage (theatre), stage and delivers humour, humorous and satire, satirical monologues sometimes incorporating physical comedy, physical acts. These ...

comedian A comedian (feminine comedienne) or comic is a person who seeks to entertainment, entertain an audience by making them laughter, laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting foolishly (as in slapstick), or employing prop c ...

actor An actor (masculine/gender-neutral), or actress (feminine), is a person who portrays a character in a production. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. ...

and former

musician A musician is someone who Composer, composes, Conducting, conducts, or Performing arts#Performers, performs music. According to the United States Employment Service, "musician" is a general Terminology, term used to designate a person who fol ...

Early life

Regan was born in

Detroit Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...

Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

and was raised in Highland Park, Michigan to

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

parents. Regan did not know his biological father. When he was five years old, his mother, Toya Monet Regan (born 1952),

converted to Islam Reversion to Islam, also known within Islam as reversion, is adopting Islam as a religion or faith. Conversion requires a formal statement of the '' shahādah'', the credo of Islam, whereby the prospective convert must state that "there is none w ...

from

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion, which states that Jesus in Christianity, Jesus is the Son of God (Christianity), Son of God and Resurrection of Jesus, rose from the dead after his Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion, whose ...

, and married Iman Lufman Ayman Abdullahi (born Christopher Thomas in 1956). Subsequently, Regan was raised as a

Muslim Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...

Music career

Regan started his career as a musician and started writing songs at the age of nine. He formed the group S.O.A (Servants of Allah) with his brother at the age of 11 and performed their first show at the age of 12. They opened for artists including Redman,

Method Man Clifford Smith, Jr. (born March 2, 1971), known professionally as Method Man, is an American rapper, record producer, and actor. He is a member of the East Coast hip hop collective Wu-Tang Clan, and is half of the hip hop duo Method Man & R ...

Wu-Tang Clan Wu-Tang Clan is an American hip hop collective formed in Staten Island, New York City, in 1992. Its members include RZA, GZA, Method Man, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, Inspectah Deck, U-God, Masta Killa, and, until his death in 2004, O ...

KRS-One Lawrence "Kris" Parker (born August 20, 1965), better known by his stage names KRS-One (; an abbreviation of "Knowledge Reigns Supreme Over Nearly Everyone") and Teacha, is an American rapper from the Bronx. He rose to prominence as part of the ...

Royce da 5'9" Ryan Daniel Montgomery (born July 5, 1977), known professionally as Royce da 5'9" (or simply Royce 5'9"), is an American rapper. Best known for his association with fellow Detroit rapper Eminem, they became acquainted in 1997 and formed the hi ...

Proof Proof most often refers to: * Proof (truth), argument or sufficient evidence for the truth of a proposition * Alcohol proof, a measure of an alcoholic drink's strength Proof may also refer to: Mathematics and formal logic * Formal proof, a co ...

, and

Eminem Marshall Bruce Mathers III (born October 17, 1972), known professionally as Eminem, is an American rapper, songwriter, and record producer. Regarded as one of the greatest and most influential rappers of all time, he is credited with popula ...

. In 1999, they were offered a single record deal with

Tommy Boy Records Tommy Boy Records is an American independent record label and multimedia brand founded in 1981 by Tom Silverman. The label is credited with helping and launching the music careers of Queen Latifah, Amber, Afrika Bambaataa, Stetsasonic, Digita ...

but turned it down in hope of a better contract. However, no deal was made and the brothers focused on solo careers.

Stand up career

At the age of 19, Regan moved to

Los Angeles 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 pursue a career in stand-up comedy and acting. In November 1999, while auditioning for different film roles, he first performed stand-up comedy at local Detroit comedy clubs. In 2005, Regan was on the main stage at The World Famous Comedy Store in

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood ...

and got the attention of talents scouts, soon after he appeared on E!'s reality series, ''

Fight for Fame ''Fight for Fame'' is a one-hour reality show produced by E! Entertainment Television, and producers Jay James, Tim Puntillo, Alan Blassberg, and Brian Lando, directed by Hans van Riet. A long established talent agency - Acme Talent & Literary - ...

''. He won and signed a year theatrical contract with Hollywood agency ACME Talent Agency. The new show did not get picked up for a second season and a year later and Regan was representing himself once again. He is a regular performer in "FUNATICAL: Taking Comedy to the Extreme's We Come in Peace" tour. Omar Regan He has performed stand up at events across the world including the Global Peace and Unity Event in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

, Omar Regan

MuslimFest MuslimFest is an annual three-day festival that celebrates the best in Muslim Art, Culture, and Entertainment. The event showcases Muslim artists, musicians, and comedians, and takes place every summer in Mississauga, Ontario. MuslimFest is a si ...

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

, and Mercy Mission's Twins of Faith Conference.

Acting career

Regan is most known for doubling

Chris Tucker Christopher Tucker (born August 31, 1971) is an American stand-up comedian and actor. Tucker made his debut in 1992 as a stand-up performer on the HBO comedy series '' Def Comedy Jam'', where he frequently appeared on the show during the 1990 ...

in ''

Rush Hour 2 ''Rush Hour 2'' is a 2001 American buddy cop action comedy film directed by Brett Ratner and written by Jeff Nathanson. A sequel to '' Rush Hour'' (1998), it is the second installment in the ''Rush Hour'' franchise and stars Jackie Chan and ...

''. He has since appeared in films including ''Internet Dating'' and '' Life is Hot in Cracktown''. He also co-founded a production company called BaniAdam Productions. In 2015, he starred alongside Baba Ali in the film '' American Sharia'' as part of his Halalywood project.

Other activities

Regan is a member of the Canadian Dawah Association as a Program Developer for Celebrity Relations. Regan also works as a motivational and public speaker, delivering his talk entitled "From Hollywood To Hajj". He visits schools and conducts family counseling and marriage workshops.

Comedy style

The Islamic World International Conference states that Regan uses entertainment and humor to promote tolerance and diversity, and aims to build bridges across racial, religious, and social divides.

Personal life

Regan got married at the age of 17 and got married again at the age of 19, he has three children from his first two marriages. At the age of 20, Regan divorced both his wives. In 1999, Regan left Detroit for

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

. Regan described this "as a very hard and an expensive move and slept at Grand Central bus station for some nights or sometimes there were friends in the same acting boat as me, so they would share their floor with me." He raised his three children alone for four and a half years in a one bedroom apartment in

. Since 2003, Regan has lived in

, California. In December 2007 and 2008, Regan performed

Hajj Hajj (; ; also spelled Hadj, Haj or Haji) is an annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia, the holiest city for Muslims. Hajj is a mandatory religious duty for capable Muslims that must be carried out at least once in their lifetim ...

(the largest Islamic pilgrimage to

Mecca Mecca, officially Makkah al-Mukarramah, is the capital of Mecca Province in the Hejaz region of western Saudi Arabia; it is the Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. It is inland from Jeddah on the Red Sea, in a narrow valley above ...

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in West Asia. Located in the centre of the Middle East, it covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula and has a land area of about , making it the List of Asian countries ...

). On October 28, 2009, Regan's step-father Imam Luqman Ameen Abdullah, 53, Imam and prayer leader of Masjid Al-Haqq in Detroit, was shot twenty times and killed during an

FBI The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and Federal law enforcement in the United States, its principal federal law enforcement ag ...

raid of a warehouse in Dearborn, Michigan. Along with 10 other men, he was suspected of charges that included conspiracy to sell stolen goods, illegal possession and sale of firearms, mail fraud and altering numbers on license plates. Regan publicly denounced the government's actions.

Filmography

References

External links

* *
Omar Regan
on ''

The Huffington Post ''HuffPost'' (''The Huffington Post'' until 2017, itself often abbreviated as ''HPo'') is an American progressive news website, with localized and international editions. The site offers news, satire, blogs, and original content, and covers p ...

''
Omar Regan
on Laugh Stub
An Interview with Omar Regan
''SuhaibWebb.com''. December 8, 2009 {{DEFAULTSORT:Regan, Omar 1975 births Living people African-American Muslims Converts to Islam 21st-century African-American male actors 21st-century American male actors African-American male comedians African-American comedians American male comedians American stand-up comedians American impressionists (entertainers) Muslim male comedians African-American male singers American male singers American motivational speakers African-American film directors African-American screenwriters HuffPost writers and columnists Film directors from Michigan Male actors from Detroit Screenwriters from Michigan 21st-century American comedians 21st-century American singers Muslims from Michigan Comedians from Detroit