Mike Epps

He has extended full support by way of money and time, to the Tupac Amaru Shakur Foundation for the Arts in Georgia, which seeks to provide opportunities for young people through the arts.

Epps was born on November 18, 1980 at Wishard Hospital in Indianapolis, Indiana, to Mary Reed and Tommy Epps. His natural comedic ability was recognized at an early age, and he began performing stand-up as a teenager.

Unfortunately, the talented comedian got into trouble as he got involved with gangs, dropped out of high school, and served 18 months on drug charges which made him focus on a career as an entertainer.

Epps moved to Atlanta and worked at the Comedy Act Theater. He moved to Brooklyn to star in Def Comedy Jam in 1995 in two of HBO's Def Comedy Jam broadcasts.

He made his film debut in Vin Diesel’s 1997 directorial debut ‘Strays’, which is about a drug dealer and hustler who, fed up with the monotony of his life, searches for a meaning in his life.

In 2000, he appeared in cameos in the screwball comedy ‘3 strikes’, and his supporting role in the Jamie Fox starrer, ‘Bait’.

He lent his voice to Sonny in the 2001 movie ‘Dr. Dolittle 2’, and later that year had a featured role as comical pimp Baby Powder in How High, starring Method Man and Redman.

In ‘All About the Benjamins’, (2002), he played a repeat offender who works with the bounty hunter played by Ice Cube, to find a group of diamond thieves with a winning lottery ticket.

Epps was cast as Ice Cube's co-star in the sequel, Next Friday, a 2000 stoner comedy film and its sequel Friday After Next. His role as Day-Day Jones was a breakthrough for the actor.

In 2010, he released a stand-up comedy special, Under Rated & Never Faded, showcasing his knack for the absurd and his hilarious commentary on culture and young life in front of a live audience.