Christopher Neal Jackson (born September 30, 1975) is an American actor and singer. He began his career in 1995 starring in the

Off-Broadway An off-Broadway theatre is any professional theatre venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, inclusive. These theatres are smaller than Broadway theatres, but larger than off-off-Broadway theatres, which seat fewer tha ...

musical '' Time and the Wind'' by composer Galt MacDermot at the age of 20. He made his Broadway debut in 1997 as an ensemble member in the original Broadway cast of Disney's ''

The Lion King ''The Lion King'' is a 1994 American animated musical coming-of-age drama film directed by Roger Allers and Rob Minkoff, produced by Don Hahn, and written by Irene Mecchi, Jonathan Roberts, and Linda Woolverton. Produced by Walt Disney ...

''. He remained with the show for several years, ultimately taking over the role of Simba. He went on to perform leading roles in several more Broadway musicals and plays, including '' After Midnight'', '' Bronx Bombers'', '' Holler If Ya Hear Me'', and '' Memphis''. He drew critical acclaim in several projects with Lin-Manuel Miranda: originating the roles of Benny in '' In the Heights'' and

George Washington George Washington (, 1799) was a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the first president of the United States, serving from 1789 to 1797. As commander of the Continental Army, Washington led Patriot (American Revoluti ...

in the smash hit ''

Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: * Alexander Hamilton (1755/1757–1804), first U.S. Secretary of the Treasury and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States * ''Hamilton'' (musical), a 2015 Broadway musical by Lin-Manuel Miranda ** ''Hamilton'' (al ...

''. For the latter role he was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Musical. He also collaborated with Miranda on the Disney film '' Moana'' in which he provides the singing voice of Chief Tui. His other film work includes secondary roles in '' After.Life'' and '' Tracers''. Jackson starred as Chunk Palmer in the main cast of the CBS television drama ''

Bull A bull is an intact (i.e., not Castration, castrated) adult male of the species ''Bos taurus'' (cattle). More muscular and aggressive than the females of the same species (i.e. cows proper), bulls have long been an important symbol cattle in r ...

'' between 2016–2022. His other television work includes the recurring role of Perry Loftus in the

HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American pay television service, which is the flagship property of namesake parent-subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is based a ...

prison drama '' Oz'' and guest appearances on '' Fringe'', ''

Gossip Girl ''Gossip Girl'' is an American teen drama television series created and developed by Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage and based on the series of novels of the same name by Cecily von Ziegesar. It follows a group of students on Manhattan's ...

'', '' Nurse Jackie'', '' The Good Wife'' and '' White Collar''. Also active as a film and television composer, he won a

Daytime Emmy Award The Daytime Emmy Awards, or Daytime Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the American television industry. Bestowed by the New York-based National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NA ...

for Outstanding Original Song for "What I Am" for the children's television program ''

Sesame Street ''Sesame Street'' is an American educational television, educational children's television series that combines live-action, sketch comedy, animation, and puppetry. It is produced by Sesame Workshop (known as the Children's Television Worksh ...

''. He has also written music for

LL Cool J James Todd Smith (born January 14, 1968), known professionally as LL Cool J (short for Ladies Love Cool James), is an American rapper and actor. He is one of the earliest rappers to achieve commercial success, alongside fellow new school hip ho ...

, Sean Kingston, and will.i.am. In 2018, Jackson received an Honorary Doctor of Fine Arts from

Oglethorpe University Oglethorpe University is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Brookhaven, Georgia, United States. It was chartered in 1835 and named in honor of General James Edward Oglethorpe, founder ...

in Atlanta, Georgia.

Early life and education

Born in Metropolis, Illinois, and raised in

Cairo, Illinois Cairo ( , sometimes ) is the southernmost city in the U.S. state of Illinois and the county seat of Alexander County, Illinois, Alexander County. A river city, Cairo has the lowest elevation of any location in Illinois and is the only Illinoi ...

, by his mother, Jane Adams, a vocal music teacher, and stepfather Herbert Michael Hodges. In 1993 he graduated from Cairo High School. While a student there, he performed in plays and was encouraged to pursue a career as an actor by one of his high school teachers, Lynn Steveson, who also led the school's debate team of which Jackson was a part. She also cast him in a production of

Arthur Miller Arthur Asher Miller (October 17, 1915 – February 10, 2005) was an American playwright, essayist and screenwriter in the 20th-century American theater. Among his most popular plays are '' All My Sons'' (1947), '' Death of a Salesman'' (1 ...

's ''

The Crucible ''The Crucible'' is a 1953 play by the American playwright Arthur Miller. It is a dramatized and partially fictionalized story of the Salem witch trials that took place in the Province of Massachusetts Bay from 1692 to 1693. Miller wrote ...

''. He credits Pilots basketball coach Larry Baldwin and Pastor Larry Potts of Mighty Rivers Regional Worship Center and would often run away to his best friends John Lairds house and found comfort in the home of Esther Laird, as other important mentors during his formative years in Cairo. After graduating from high school, Jackson attended the American Musical and Dramatic Academy in New York City.

Career

Jackson began his career in 1995 starring in the

musical '' Time and the Wind'' by composer Galt MacDermot of ''

Hair Hair is a protein filament that grows from follicles found in the dermis. Hair is one of the defining characteristics of mammals. The human body, apart from areas of glabrous skin, is covered in follicles which produce thick terminal and ...

'' fame. He made his Broadway debut in 1997 as an ensemble member and the understudy for Simba in the Original Broadway Cast of ''

''. He later took over the role of Simba in 2000. He then did work in the theater scenes in Chicago and Minneapolis–Saint Paul, notably earning a BATC Award nomination for Best Actor for '' Beggar's Holiday'' in 2004 for and winning a Joseph Jefferson Award (Chicago's equivalent to the Tony Awards) in 2006 for ''Comfortable Shoes''. In 2007 he returned to New York to join the cast of the

musical '' In the Heights'' as Benny. The cast won the 2007 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Ensemble Performance. He continued with the show when it moved to Broadway in 2008. In 2009 Jackson was tapped to write music for the revived children's television program '' The Electric Company''. In 2012 he returned to Broadway as Delray in '' Memphis'', and in 2013 he replaced Everett Bradley as "Diga Diga Doo" in the Broadway musical '' After Midnight''. In 2013 he appeared as Derek Jeter and Bobby Sturges in the Eric Simonson's

play '' Bronx Bombers'' at Primary Stages. He remained with the production when it moved to Broadway in 2014. That same year he portrayed Vertus in the short lived Broadway musical '' Holler If Ya Hear Me'' which was based on the life of Tupac. In 2015, Jackson originated the role of President

in the musical ''

'' on Broadway. He was nominated for a Tony Award and concluded his run on November 13, 2016 being replaced by Nicholas Christopher. Beginning with the 2016–2017 season, he plays Chunk Palmer in the CBS courtroom drama ''

.'' Jackson's film and TV work includes '' Moana'', '' Tracers'', '' The Good Wife'', '' Person of Interest'', '' A Gifted Man'', and '' Nurse Jackie''. He is also a member of

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. Hi ...

group Freestyle Love Supreme. He has been nominated for three Emmy Awards for composing music and lyrics for television; he won the “Outstanding Original Song” Emmy Award in 2011 for his lyrics to "What I Am," which he co-wrote for ''

'' with Bill Sherman. The success led to a first look deal at

CBS Studios CBS Studios, Inc. is an American television production company which is a subsidiary of the CBS Entertainment Group unit of Paramount Global. It was formed on January 17, 2006, by CBS Corporation as CBS Paramount (Network) Television, as a re ...

. In February 2021, Jackson signed with Nickelodeon to compose the NOGGIN SVOD original series ''Rhymes Through Times'', which features Nick's preschool characters in a Broadway extravaganza recreating the stories of the greatest heroes of America, specifically focusing on Black history. The animation for the show was done by LionForge Animation LLC. who have previously worked on the Oscar-winning Netflix movie ''Hair Love''. The second season dropped on March 7, 2022. On 3 June 2025, he’s set to make his Broadway return as Davis in ''Hell's Kitchen''.Culwell-Block, Loga
Christopher Jackson Sets Broadway Return in Hell's Kitchen
Playbill, May 28, 2025

Personal life

In 2004, after meeting through a production of ''In the Heights'', Jackson married actress and singer Veronica. Before the first run-through of the Off-Broadway production of ''In the Heights'', Jackson learned that his son had been diagnosed with

autism Autism, also known as autism spectrum disorder (ASD), is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by differences or difficulties in social communication and interaction, a preference for predictability and routine, sensory processing d ...

. Jackson and his wife are advocates for KultureCity: a nonprofit promoting acceptance and inclusion of all individuals regardless of their abilities. They have one son, C. J., and one daughter, Jadelyn. They live in Scarsdale, New York.

Acting credits

Theatre

Film

Television

Discography

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Jackson, Christopher 1975 births Living people 20th-century American male actors 20th-century American singers 20th-century American male singers 21st-century American male actors 21st-century American singers 21st-century American male singers People from Cairo, Illinois Grammy Award winners American male stage actors American baritones American male musical theatre actors American male television actors American male voice actors American Musical and Dramatic Academy alumni