Arts & Entertainment
‘21 Jump Street’ Star: DeRay Vision
C ELEBRITY
I NTERVIEW
by Kam
Williams
A
born hustler from Chicago’s South
Side, DeRay Davis began his career
on the comedy club circuit and was
first noticed by Hollywood while onstage at
Atlanta’s Laffapalooza Festival. Shortly
after moving to LA, he won the Comedy
Central Laugh Riots Competition and was
subsequently a standout on the Cedric the
Entertainer Tour and at the Montreal Just
for Laughs Festival.
DeRay’s film credits include “Jumping
the Broom,” “Get Him to the Greek,”
“Semi-Pro,” “Barbershop,” “Barbershop 2,”
“Johnson Family Vacation,” “Old Dogs,”
“Life as We Know It,” “Imagine That,”
“License to Wed,” “School for Scoundrels”
and “Scary Movie 4.” And on the small
screen, he has appeared in HBO’s
“Entourage,” “Comedy Central’s Reno
911,” “Comedy Central Presents DeRay
Davis,” “Comedy Central’s Premium
Blend” and “BET’s ComicView,” along
with doing various voices on “The Boon-
docks.”
In terms of record albums, he wrote and
performed the comedy skits on Kanye
West’s “Late Registration” and “The Col-
lege Dropout” LPs, and he also performed
at the 2006 Grammy Awards with Kanye
and Jamie Foxx. Here, he talks about his lat-
est screen role in “21 Jump Street,” where
he plays a Dominican drug dealer named
Domingo, opposite Jonah Hill and Chan-
ning Tatum.
KW: Patricia also says: In your life, you
probably met naysayers who tried to deter
you from pursuing your dreams. What mes-
sage do you have for young people who are
surrounded by individuals who do not
believe in them, and who would like to fol-
low in your footsteps by becoming a come-
dian?
DD: I think the role of comedy in your
life should supersede anything and every-
thing negative. Just by virtue of the fact that
you have to be funny, you can’t afford to
focus on the negative. As a comedian, your
challenge is to turn negative stuff into posi-
tive energy. You should be able to hear any-
thing that sounds bad, that people normally
wouldn’t laugh at, and make it feel funny to
you. No one should be able to deter you,
once you have your mind set on comedy.
Your survival as a comedian should be as
natural as breathing. I need to breathe and I
consider my career my air.
KW: Harriet Pakula Teweles asks: How
much fun was it making this movie?
KW: You definitely looked bigger, buffer
and more intimidating than usual.
DD: I was glad I was playing opposite
KW: The bookworm Troy Johnson ques-
tion: What was the last book you read?
DD: Playboy.
KW: The music maven Heather Coving-
ton question: What was the last song you
listened to?
DD: Young Jeezy.
KW: Which song of his.
DD: It doesn’t matter. They all have pret-
ty much the same message: that I should
stop doing comedy and sell drugs. [LOL]
DeRay Davis
unique way in which you deliver your lines
is what makes them your own.
KW: Film student Jamaal Green asks: Are
you currently writing any projects that you
hope to bring to the screen?
DD: Yeah, we’ve actually been working
on three or four for a few years. It takes a
while for a movie to get on its feet. That’s
when believing in yourself really matters,
when people start giving you money to fund
KW: When you look in the mirror, what do you
see?
DD: I see hope… I see my family… I see
growth… I see past the things I’ve been
through.
a project. But I definitely have a lot of ideas
and original thoughts I’d like to see up on
the big screen.
KW: Attorney Bernadette Beekman asks:
Are you going to expand your T-shirts with
hashtags beyond the “S.A.L.T.S.” one
which is already available on your website?
[http://deraydavis.com]
DD: Yeah, I definitely plan to expand well
beyond the hashtags T-shirts. I’m very cre-
ative when it comes to apparel.
KW: What interested you in 21 Jump
Street?
DD: My initial interest had to be the hype
of the show. I’m from the generation that
watched it growing up. So, I was pretty
happy and excited that they were even mak-
ing the TV show into a movie. Plus, I want-
ed to see what kind of spin they were going
to put on it. And to hear that they were
going to turn it into a comedy was pretty
intriguing to me.
KW: Editor/legist Patricia Turnier says: I
loved you in Jumping the Broom. Did you
watch episodes of the TV series to prepare
for your role in 21 Jump Street?
DD: No, because my character was creat-
ed for the film. When they told me that he
was a biker and a bad guy, I looked at some
Eighties biker videos on Youtube. And
because he’s Dominican, I also listened to
some accents. And even though it’s a
comedic film, I had to tone down the
“funny” in order to play this bad guy. I start-
ed thinking about all my bills to get in touch
with my angry side.
KW: What is your guiltiest pleasure?
DD: I can’t tell you that.
KW: I’m always surprised to learn how
short some actors are.
DD: Yeah, I heard Al Pacino’s about 4’ 7”.
[Chuckles] I’m joking.
Kam Williams: Hi DeRay, thanks for the
interview.
DeRay Davis: No problem, Kam.
KW: How did you feel about your char-
acter Domingo’s wearing shades the entire
film, given that your green eyes are almost
your trademark?
DD: They were really only covered
towards the end of the film.
DD: 20 minutes ago.
Channing [Tatum]. Two tall actors. That’s
pretty unusual in Hollywood.
KW: Is there any question no one ever
asks you, that you wish someone would?
DD: Yeah, “How are you doing?”
[Chuckles]
DeRay Davis
DD: It was a lot of fun and a lot of work.
We had to hit the notes and hit the points,
but we did plenty of ad-libbing in the midst
of it, once we had the script down. There
was also a lot of crazy, high-speed stuff that
I wasn’t used to, but that was fun, too. It
was like riding a roller coaster.
KW: Harriet also asks: What’s the differ-
ence between doing standup comedy and
acting in movies. How does each challenge
you as an entertainer and how does each
play to your strengths?
DD: I believe they parallel each other as
far as the strengths. The difference is that
when I’m onstage doing standup, no one
yells “Cut!” or tells me what to do. I’m
DeRay, and I use my own words. With act-
ing, you’re portraying a character with
someone else’s words. Still, you definitely
want to inject a little of yourself into every
role, the way that Samuel L. Jackson does.
Following the script is one thing, but the
Page 6 The Seattle Skanner March 21, 2012
KW: Is there something about you that no
interview ever addresses.
DD: I’d like the world to know that I
would do what I do for no money. If I could
trade my comedy for food, I’d walk into a
grocery store and give them 15 minutes for
$100 worth of groceries. My passion is
beyond the financial. I don’t think people
are aware of that about me. I’m not a flashy
guy, and I want people to know that what-
ever they do is just as important as my craft.
KW: The Tasha Smith question: Are you
ever afraid?
DD: Yep, I’m terrified of failure.
KW: The Columbus Short question: Are
you happy?
DD: Half the time. When I’m with my
daughter, I’m elated. That’s what makes my
work pay off, knowing that she’s here, and
she’s healthy, and that regardless of how
I’m received by anybody else, I’m funny to
her.
KW: The Teri Emerson question: When
was the last time you had a good laugh?
KW: What is your favorite dish to cook?
DD: Hmm… I love soup, and my home-
made chicken noodle soup is my favorite.
KW: The Sanaa Lathan question: What
excites you?
DD: This is going to sound weird, but I’m
excited by quiet. When it’s quiet, I get a
rush because I start wondering what’s about
to happen, like in a horror film.
KW: Have you ever made a horror film?
DD: Yes, “The Fog,” and I apologize for
it. [Laughs]
KW: That’s right. Were you the first to
die? In most horror flicks, the black guy
dies first.
DD: No I wasn’t. I’m mixed, so they let
me live a little longer.
KW: The Uduak Oduok question: Who is
your favorite clothes designer?
DD: Target! [Laughs]
KW: Dante Lee, author of “Black Busi-
ness Secrets,” asks: What was the best busi-
ness decision you ever made, and what was
the worst?
DD: The best, basically, was investing in
myself. The worst was putting my acting
money into my comedy shows. It was like
robbing Peter to pay Paul.
KW: When you look in the mirror, what
do you see?
DD: I see hope… I see my family… I see
growth… I see past the things I’ve been
through.
KW: If you could have one wish instant-
ly granted, what would that be for?
DD: Hmm… To star in an action movie
with Denzel as my sidekick and with Will
Smith as the villain. And during a fight
scene, I get to knock Will to the ground as
he begs, “Please, don’t beat me up any-
more.” And Samuel L. Jackson would be
standing next to me going, “That’s right,
dammit!”
KW: The Kerry Washington question: If
you were an animal, what animal would you
be?
DD: A shark, because when I smell blood,
meaning success, I head straight for it, and
tear right into it.
KW: The Ling-Ju Yen question: What is
your earliest childhood memory?
DD: Hearing the door slam one day after
my parents were arguing when I was about
3. I remember my father yelling, “You can
do it on your own!” I just remember that
moment.
KW: The Melissa Harris-Perry question
How did your first big heartbreak impact
who you are as a person?
DD: I think it shaped about a third of who
See KAM on page 7