Jamie Foxx is an Academy and Grammy award-winning actor, musician, comedian and Global Down Syndrome Foundation supporter. He was born to Eric Bishop and raised by his grandparents in Terrell, Texas. He got his start in showbiz in 1989 when he tried his hand at an open mic night, under the stage name “Foxx.” After spending time on the comedy circuit, he joined Keenan Ivory Wayans, Jim Carrey, and Damon Wayans in the landmark Fox sketch comedy series “In Living Color.”
In 1996, he launched his own series, “The Jamie Foxx Show,” which was one of the top-rated programs on the WB Network during its five-year run. Foxx received critical acclaim for his roles in “Any Given Sunday” (1999) and “Ali” (2001). These breakout roles led to 2004, the “Year of the Foxx,” when he delivered a trio of powerful performances in “Ray,” “Collateral,” and “Redemption.” Foxx’s portrayal of the legendary Ray Charles earned him an Oscar for Best Actor, in addition to awards from BAFTA, Screen Actors Guild, Golden Globe Award, and NAACP. Foxx simultaneously garnered Oscar, Golden Globe, SAG Award, BAFTA Award, and Image Award nominations for his work in “Collateral.” And he landed Golden Globe and SAG Award nominations and won an Image Award for the television movie “Redemption.” That marked the first time a single actor has received three Golden Globe nominations and four SAG Award nominations in the same year. Some of his other prominent film roles include: “Dreamgirls” (2006), “Law Abiding Citizen” (2009), “Horrible Bosses” (2011), Quentin Tarantino’s “Django Unchained” (2012), “Annie” (2014), and “Just Mercy,” which earned him the NAACP Image Award. Most recently he starred in the wildy successful “Project Power” sci-fi thriller, which became #1 on Netflix’s Top 10 list and #1 in over 100 countries, and “Dad Stop Embarrassing Me” alongside his daughter, Corinne. Foxx is the leading voice role the computer-animated comedy film “Soul” produced by Walt Disney Pictures which won the 2021 Oscar Awards for Best Animated Feature Film and Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures (Original Score) and was nominated for Best Sound.
Foxx also has a thriving career in music. In 2006, he launched his own satellite radio channel, called “The Foxxhole.” His J Records debut, “Unpredictable,” released in December 2005, was nominated for three Grammy Awards, eight Billboard Music Awards, one Soul Train Music Award and two American Music Awards, for which he won Favorite Male Artist. Foxx received three Grammy nominations, including Best R&B Album, for his Platinum-selling “Intuition,” which debuted at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 chart in December 2008. In 2010, Foxx won a Grammy for his record-breaking smash hit “Blame It.”
Foxx most recently published a book “Act Like You Got Some Sense,” available on Amazon starting October 16, 2021.
Foxx was very close with his sister, DeOndra Dixon, who happened to have Down syndrome. The dynamic duo have been longtime GLOBAL supporters, both being Quincy Jones Exceptional Advocacy Award recipients. To learn more about DeOndra’s incredible legacy, please see our loving tribute in the program.
See Jamie at GLOBAL’s Be Beautiful Be Yourself Fashion Show:
