Gregory James Qaiyum (born February 7, 1976), better known by his initials GQ, is an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

actor, writer and rapper. The son of an American mother of

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

and

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Culture, language and peoples * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England * ''English'', an Amish ter ...

descent and a

Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...

i father, GQ was raised in

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

, where he attended Loyola Academy (high school), and later studied at

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private university, private research university in New York City, New York, United States. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded in 1832 by Albert Gallatin as a Nondenominational ...

's (NYU) Tisch School of the Arts. Before graduating from the Experimental Theatre Wing of NYU, he put some friends together to create his senior project, merging

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. Hip- ...

and theater, combining two of his passions,

rapping Rapping (also rhyming, flowing, spitting, emceeing, or MCing) is an artistic form of vocal delivery and emotive expression that incorporates " rhyme, rhythmic speech, and ommonlystreet vernacular". It is usually performed over a backin ...

and acting. The result is

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 ...

production ''

The Bomb-itty of Errors ''The Bomb-itty of Errors'' is a hip hop theater retelling of Shakespeare's ''The Comedy of Errors''. Written and performed by Jordan Allen-Dutton, Jason Catalano, GQ, and Erik Weiner, the show has been performed in New York City, London ( We ...

'', in which GQ is actor, rapper, co-writer and original producer. The show won the jury prize for Best Show at the 2001

Aspen Comedy Festival The Comedy Festival, formerly known as the US Comedy Arts Festival, was a comedy festival that ran from 1995 to 2008. The festival included stand-up comedy performances, appearances by the casts of television shows, and has a film component calle ...

. GQ's first professional acting job was at the Manhattan Theatre Club in the hit London play, '' East is East''. His film credits include ''

What's the Worst That Could Happen? ''What's the Worst That Could Happen?'' is a 2001 American crime comedy film directed by Sam Weisman and starring Martin Lawrence and Danny DeVito. Loosely based on a book by Donald E. Westlake, the film follows the misadventures of a skilled ...

'', '' On the Line'', ''

Drumline Marching percussion instruments are percussion instruments (usually drums, such as snare, bass, and tenor drums) specially designed to be played while moving. This is achieved by attaching the drum(s) to a special harness (also called a carrier ...

'', and ''

Taxi A taxi, also known as a taxicab or simply a cab, is a type of vehicle for hire with a Driving, driver, used by a single passenger or small group of passengers, often for a non-shared ride. A taxicab conveys passengers between locations of thei ...

''. After his experience in theater, GQ turned his attention to television: a musical sketch/comedy series for MTV called '' Scratch & Burn''. He and the other members of the ''Bomb-itty'' crew, including his younger brother, JAQ (who also wrote and produced all of the music for the show), created, wrote and starred in the series. GQ's next project was his directorial debut for a film for

Showtime Showtime or Show Time may refer to: Film * ''Showtime'' (film), a 2002 American action/comedy film * ''Showtime'' (video), a 1995 live concert video by Blur Television Networks and channels * Showtime Networks, a division of Paramount Global w ...

called ''Just Another Story'', which he wrote and starred in as well. GQ also guest-starred on Fox's ''

Boston Public ''Boston Public'' is an American drama (film and television), drama television series created by David E. Kelley and broadcast on Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox. Set in Boston, the series centers on Winslow High School, a fictional public high sc ...

'', writing his own rhymes for a role as a delinquent student in a Shakespeare class who brought the material to life for the other bored students by rapping it. In 2012, the Q Brothers debuted their newest Shakespeare adaptation, ''Othello: The Remix'', a 90-minute hip-hop version of ''Othello'' that was part of the Globe to Globe Festival and World Shakespeare Festival. GQ lives in Los Angeles. Alongside his brother JAQ, the two have created Q Brothers Productions and are working together on an album, ''The Feel Good Album Of The Year'', a mix of jazz, rock, R&B and electronica.

Selected filmography

References

External links

Official website
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Gq 1976 births Male actors from Chicago American male film actors American male television actors American people of German descent American people of English descent American people of Pakistani descent American male rappers Rappers from Chicago Living people Tisch School of the Arts alumni 21st-century American rappers