Meet Duain Richmond

Today we’d like to introduce you to Duain Richmond.

Thanks for sharing your story with us Duain. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
I was born in Sierra Leone West Africa and moved to the states when I was nine. Growing up in a west African home being an Artist is not exactly the ideal career choice that my family would see me pursue but I knew it was all I want to do. I discovered my love for acting when I was introduced to Freddie Hendricks and the youth Ensemble of Atlanta (YEA) by a close friend in High school. I wasn’t fortunate enough to go to a magnet school so a group of us just got together and we created our own program. I decided to write my first play, MIND’S D.O.A and casted all my closest friends, on being rapper YUNG JOC. While everyone was hanging out we were in rehearsal, skipping lunch and staying late after school till the janitor kicked us out. Since we didn’t have a theater I convinced our English teacher to let us perform for the class it was a hit. Lol. He liked it so much that he scheduled us to perform for other classes. They later build an auditorium and we were the first to perform in it two years later right before we graduated.

Throughout my high school years, I was spending a lot of time with Freddie Hendricks and YEA. It was there that I learned the skills of and actor and the ability to write and create. With YEA I was able to travel the world, from Amsterdam to South Africa performing. After years with YEA I was discovered by a talent agency and started auditioning for film and television. I did my first film STOMP THE YARD By Will Parker And Rob Hardy in 07 followed by DADDY’S LITTLE GIRLS with Tyler Perry. A few years later, I decided to make the move to LOS ANGELES. LA was but a dream and upon landing reality kicked in. It seems everyone was an actor and I was just a little fish in a big ocean. It was a very intimidating start for me so I went right back to a familiar place.. the stage. I found a home at the Geffen Playhouse where I worked on such plays as Superior Donuts and Ruined. They say no one comes to Hollywood to do theater but that was my reality.

In 2011, I joined the cast of the Broadway production FELA about the life and music of Nigerian musician FELA KUTI Playing the lead role of Fela and one year later I was starring on Broadway for the 2nd summer run. The experience was unreal. From Africa to the getto streets of college park Atlanta to Broadway. Dreams do come true. After Broadway I toured with the producer for a year traveling all over the states meeting all types of interesting people. The broadway show is no longer running but we now do the FELA concert series from time to time. This summer I will be back in the New York performance at SUMMERSTAGE FEST. In 2017, I won the ABFF and NBC UNIVERSAL Star project which brought me into the NBC family. I recently just finished a Pilot for a series call COLA that I created, wrote and starred in alongside one of the Star Project finalist Amadou Ly.

Has it been a smooth road?
The journey to success is never a smooth journey. Some people come to this city with that overnight success mentality and soon discovered that it takes more than just talent to make it in this city. You have to have patience and understand that you will hear the word “NO” a hundred times before you here “MAYBE”. After my FELA journey Ended I didn’t book my next film (DRUMLINE 2) till a year or so later.

We’d love to hear more about your work and what you are currently focused on. What else should we know?
I realize that as an artist in Los Angeles if you are not creating your own material on your own platform you are basically wasting your time… I got with my long-term friend from Atlanta and he recently started a streaming platform call ROLLING MARKER which will give us and other independent filmmakers to showcase their work. It is currently in the beginning stages but we are very hopeful and looking forward to launching our first production.

Let’s touch on your thoughts about our city – what do you like the most and least?
I love the opportunities that LA offers. The weather is amazing. Of course like everyone who’s been living here for a while we all hate the traffic. Lol.

Contact Info:

• Website: Www.rollingmarker.com
• Instagram: @duainrichmond

Image Credit:
Sheldon Botler

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