Diggs was born in Oakland, California, the son of Barbara, a social worker, and Dountes Diggs, a bus driver.[6][7][8] His mother is Jewish, and his father is African-American.[9] His parents named him "Daveed", the Hebrew pronunciation of David. Diggs has said, "'David' means beloved in Hebrew... They spelled it with two Es because my dad liked the look of it."[9] His parents' ethnic and racial identities have contributed to his own self-identification: "The cultures never seemed separate—I had a lot of mixed friends. When I was young, I identified with being Jewish, but I embraced my dad's side too."[10]
Diggs performed in experimental theater early in his career, most notably when he was on the national tour for Marc Bamuthi Joseph's choreopoem, Word Becomes Flesh, about a nine-month pregnancy through the eyes of a young, single father.[16][17] He also frequently performed in regional Shakespeare productions.
Diggs (right) performs with Hamilton castmates at the White House (2016)
Diggs met playwright, composer, actor, and rapper Lin-Manuel Miranda through Thomas Kail while performing with the freestyle rap group Freestyle Love Supreme, or FLS.[18] In 2012, Miranda invited Diggs to read and hear early versions of Hamilton. Diggs was impressed by Miranda's demos and passion for the project, and saw that the concept was a prospective use of the rap-musical medium. He played the roles of Thomas Jefferson and Marquis de Lafayette off Broadway in 2015, continuing with the roles when the show was moved to Broadway later in the year.[19] For his performance, Diggs won the 2016 Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Musical, as well as a 2016 Grammy Award for the cast album.[20] Diggs played his final performance in the show on July 15, 2016.[21]
Music
Diggs is the vocalist of and writer for the experimental hip-hop and rap group clipping. The group was founded by William Hutson and Jonathan Snipes in 2009, with Diggs joining in 2010. The trio self-released their first mixtape album midcity in 2013 to fairly positive reviews. Signing with Sub Pop, they released their album CLPPNG in 2014, which they promoted with their CLPPNG Tour. In 2016, they released an EP titled Wriggle, then the album Splendor & Misery. In 2017, they released The Deep, a five-and-a-half minute track that tells the story of a society of slave descendants living underwater. In 2018, the song was nominated for a Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation (Short Form).[22] In 2019, they released an album titled There Existed an Addiction to Blood; additionally, in 2020, the group released the album Visions of Bodies Being Burned.
Diggs is a member of True Neutral Crew, with Brian Kinsman, Margot Padilla, and Signor Benedick the Moor.[23] The group has released two EPs, #MONSANTO (2013)[24][better source needed][25] and 2014's #POPPUNK,[26] as well as Live, a 20-minute short film of a live performance.[27] They released their debut album soft rules in 2016.
In 2010, he made an album with Rafael Casal titled The BAY BOY Mixtape. Diggs also founded a hip hop triumvirate with Chinaka Hodge and Casal known as The Getback.[28] The Getback later became a collaborative ensemble composed of Diggs, Hodge, Casal and other artists along with a band formed by drummer Chukwudi Hodge, turntablist Dion Decibels and Max Miller-Logan on trumpet and Keys. Though the band have diversified themselves from their work with the ensemble, they are still known as The GetBack (Get:Band) on Facebook.[29] Two years later, in 2012, he released his first solo rap album, Small Things to a Giant, composed of original music he had written. Both The BAY BOY Mixtape and Small Things to a Giant included other artists in The Getback collective.
His rapping has also been featured on tracks by Busdriver, George Watsky, Rafael Casal, and Leslie Odom, Jr., and he wrote and performed a rap number for the 2016 animated film Zootopia.
In December 2020, Diggs, along with lifelong friends William Hutson and Johnathan Snipes, partnered with Disney Channel to produce a festive song for Hanukkah. The released track, titled "Puppy for Hanukkah", is described by Disney Music and Soundtracks V.P. Steven Vincent as "inventive, humorous, and relevant".[30]
Diggs served as an executive producer of the 2017 ABC series The Mayor. In addition, he wrote original music for it, as well as guest starring on it.[34][35][36] Starting in early 2017, Diggs played one of Mr. Noodle's brothers, Mr. Noodle, in the "Elmo's World" segment of Sesame Street.[37]
In early 2018, Diggs was featured in several television commercials for the Zelle digital payment service.[38]
In September 2020, it was confirmed that the critically acclaimed Casal and Diggs written film Blindspotting would be spun-off as a comedy-drama series Blindspotting, with Diggs set to write and executive produce. Blindspotting the TV series, follows Ashley Rose, portrayed by Jasmine Cephas Jones both in the film and show, as she navigates life after longtime partner Miles is unexpectedly incarcerated. The series was picked up by Lionsgate Television, produced by Dreams with friends Inc. and Snoot Entertainment, and was distributed by Starz. The series had its world premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival on June 11, 2021. The series became available for streaming June 13, 2021, on Starz and StarzPlay.[40] On October 14, 2021, it was announced that the series would be renewed for a second season.[41]
In September 2024, it was announced that Diggs would join the fifth season of the show The Boys, in an undisclosed role.[42]
Film
Diggs had his Hollywood film debut in the Disney animated film Zootopia, for which he wrote and performed the "Parlez Vous Rap".
Diggs appeared in the 2017 film Wonder, starring Julia Roberts and Owen Wilson. Diggs played the schoolteacher of the protagonist, a boy with a facial deformity. Diggs had a voice role in the 2017 animated film Ferdinand, in which he played the character Dos.
Alongside his lifelong friend Rafael Casal, Diggs co-wrote, co-produced, and co-starred in the 2018 film Blindspotting, which premiered at Sundance in January 2018. He received the Atlanta Film Festival's inaugural Innovator Award in April, prior to the film's theatrical release on July 27, 2018.[43] Diggs plays Collin, a felon living in Oakland, as he tries to get through the last three days of his year-long probation without incident. Diggs and Casal wrote the film over nine years to tell a story about their quickly gentrifying hometown as they knew it.[44] Diggs received critical praise for his performance in the film.[45][46]
^Danzig, Christopher (November 10, 2020). "The Def Poetry of Rafael Casal". East Bay Express. Archived from the original on March 5, 2019. Retrieved December 20, 2020.
^Hemmerling, Joe. "Midcity". Tiny Mix Tapes. Archived from the original on January 25, 2021. Retrieved December 20, 2020.
^Ham, Robert (June 11, 2014). "Clipping: CLPPNG Review". Paste. Paste Media Group. Archived from the original on August 21, 2023. Retrieved December 20, 2020.
^Falisi, Frank. "Wriggle". Tiny Mix Tapes. Archived from the original on September 19, 2021. Retrieved December 20, 2020.
