Did You Know...

Born Eric Morlon Bishop, Jr., in Terrell, Texas, Jamie was raised by his adoptive grandparents, Mark and Estelle Talley. His upbringing was strict but well-rounded and included piano from the age of three, church choir, Boy Scouts and athletic success in the role of quarterback for the Terrell High School Titans. He studied music at Julliard and at the U.S. International University. He chose the stage name “Jamie Foxx” in 1989, when accepting a dare to try improve at a comedy club in San Antonio, the “Foxx” being a salute to legendary comedian Redd Foxx.

A regular role on In Living Color and comedy DVDs were followed by his own television series, The Jamie Foxx Show, which ran from 1996-2001. Around this time, his daughter Corrine was born, and Foxx began getting parts in movies. In the case of 1999’s Any Given Sunday, he sang the title song as well. The leap from actor to genuine star occurred in 2004, when Jamie Foxx became the embodiment of Ray Charles and won the Academy Award for his work in Ray.

That stellar performance might have locked him into a career singing in imitation of Ray Charles, but Jamie Foxx is not that predictable, and he released the platinum-selling album Unpredictable to prove it. Though most of the tracks are designed, in Foxx’s own words, for people “to bump and grind and enjoy themselves,” the song at the end, entitled “I Wish You Were Here,” is a serious and subtle one, in tribute to his beloved grandmother.