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Today we’d like to introduce you to Angelo Diaz.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Angelo. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
On paper, I’ve only been Acting for the past two years. But technically, I’ve been Acting my whole life. You see, Acting is just living.. and connecting. Connecting with your scene partners, connecting with what you’re saying, connecting with your environment, connecting with the energy. I’m from Miami and Jacksonville, FL and I moved around a lot at an early age. My mother and I were poor and her sickness pushed us further into poverty. At an early age, I was bouncing around from Carol City to South Beach to Little Havana to Little Haiti and repeat. I learned how to adjust in a constant state of change. I formulated a game that helped me get through. I would measure how much time it would take me to adjust to my new setting. This took work because it wasn’t a matter of pretending to be something I’m not, these enviroments would sniff that out in a hard beat and expose you and in these environments that type of exposure is fatal. No, it was a matter of finding what part of me I needed to tap into to make these people respect me and want more of me. It was a matter of connecting with them. It was sometimes difficult to measure when this would happen: there had to be a glimmer in someone’s eye, a bonding energy, some type of unmistakable gesture of inclusion from an Alpha. However it would come I would feel a rush of success and adrenaline over my body and I wanted to do it all over again. This game kept me sane everytime my mother and I had to uproot. It wasn’t until years later I learned that it was The Craft that was keeping me sane.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Smooth is boring. And my path has been anything but boring. Although, it’s not lost on me at all that the success I’ve seen in just two years of professional Acting takes most of my colleagues much much longer. But I understand that’s only because this is much bigger than me. I’m looking to spark the mind that will change the world, word to Pac. I want to reach little boys and girls who feel stuck and hopeless like I did, I’m going to show them they are Infinite. They are not what the system portrays them to be. They are everything. With that being my lifework, how could my road possibly be smooth? But at this point, I see the rainbow. My team and I are on fire right now and up for some very very exciting opportunities. But it gets surreal to be recognized in public throughout Atlanta for your work when you still feel you have so much left undone. Even more surreal to have six-figure conversations when having $35.67 in your bank account. But I wouldn’t change it for the world.
Please tell us about Angelo Diaz.
I play real life Homicide Detective David Quinn in TVOne’s new #1 show ATL HOMICIDE. Detective Quinn is pure Black Excellence Badassery. His work has brought closure to hundreds of devastated families, making him one of the most recognized Homicide Detectives in the nation. His work has landed him on The First 48 over a dozen times, not to mention America’s Most Wanted, CNN and others. And now his work has landed him and his partner Detective Vince Velasquez a primetime True Crime series about their accomplishments. I’m so proud of the work Quinn has done and the opportunity I’ve had to portray him. But I’m MOST excited about the impact this will have on the next generation. We grew up without strong Black and Brown figures on that side of Law Enforcement on a mainstream level. That has all changed thanks to Detective Quinn, Detective Velasquez, and TVOne. If you haven’t seen ATL HOMICIDE yet, check it out, you will be thoroughly hooked.
Do you look back particularly fondly on any memories from childhood?
Constantly moving around helped shape the rhythm at which I live my life. Always learning, always growing, always challenged. Still but still moving. But I would have to say that amidst all that chaos, my Mother and her push to feed me knowledge is by far my favorite. My mother was short and chubby, an Afro-Cuban with a tan complexion. But God, that woman was a beast. A Black Panther, Writer, Journalist, Professor of Creative Writing, and Professor of Journalism, she was all over my ass. Trip to the Museum: “I need a 2 page essay on Impressionism and how it shifted the culture”, Trip to the Opera: “Angelito, write a professional critique on this Opera and don’t be nice”, Gave me The Philosophies and Opinions of Marcus Garvey for my 10th Birthday: “By the end of the week, I want a 3 page book report”. All this nurtured an intense affinity for learning that I still carry with me to this day. Except now, through Acting, I’m learning what it means to be a Doctor, Homicide Detective, Lawyer, Pilot, Sociopathic Serial Killer and a whole lot more.
Contact Info:
- Website: imdb.me/angelodiaz
- Email: angelo.diaz1@outlook.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/cubagawd
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=716847110
- Twitter: @CubaGawd
Getting in touch: VoyageATL is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
Beverly Mcclain
June 22, 2019 at 3:04 pm
Mr. Diez we are mothers that loss love ones thru homicide we areFamilies of Slain Children inc In Jacksonville Florida 904-4248755