The U.S. comedy sector features some of the world’s best comedians such as Chris Rock and Kevin Hart. The sweet rewards of comedy have prompted many Americans to venture into the industry to attempt and pursue their comedy passion. One such person is Roland Powell, popularly known as Lil Duval, an American stand-up comedian, and recording artist. The talented comedian has had a successful acting career and has been cast in more than eight shows since the debut of his acting career in 2005. Get to know more about Lil Duval through these facts.
1. His personal life
Lil Duval was born on June 12th, 1977, in Jacksonville, Florida. He is of African-American ethnicity. Duval has a transgender sister, Rolanda Powell, who is gay and married. Despite being a popular figure, Duval has managed to keep his relationship life private, and it was not until 2011 when he revealed via Instagram that he had a wife. In the post, Duval exposed a divorce letter announcing that he had been married for seven years but divorced due to a lack of commitment between him and his ex-wife.
2. He starred in “Meet the Blacks.”
“Meet the Blacks” is an American horror-comedy that was written by Deon Taylor and Nicole DeMasi. The show is about Carl Black’s family trying to get out of Chicago after stealing a substantial amount of money from a drug king. In the film, Duval plays the role of an ex-convict called Cronut; his character is Carl Black’s cousin. Duval disclosed to Rolling Out that acting in the movie was like being with a group of friends because they knew each other before meeting in the film.
3. His career as a musician
He is a recording artist signed by the Rich Broke Entertainment label of the Empire Distribution. Lil Duval has released several hip hop songs such as “Black Men Don’t Cheat” and “I ain’t Stressing.” To date, his biggest single is his 2018 song called “Smile,” which debuted at number 3 in the Billboard hot 100. The comedian/musician has made collaborations with established and great rap music musicians such as Snoop Dogg. He has also had several music video appearances in songs like “24’s” by T.I., and “Mr President” by Young Jeezy.
4. How he got a break in comedy
Similar to comedians like Steve Harvey, who had humble beginnings, Duval came from a modest family in Duval County. He attended First Coast High School and moved to Atlanta afterwards, to pursue his comedy dream. It is in Atlanta where Duval made his name on the local stand up circuit and caught the eye of veteran comedian, Cedric the Entertainer. Shortly after that, Duval was among the five young comedians on Cedric’s Budweiser tour. Later on, he appeared on the television show, “Cedric the Entertainer Presents.” Duval also appeared on BET’s comedy challenge, “Coming to Stage,” as a competitor in 2005 and made it to the final
5. His social media
Unlike the old days where fans could only see their favorite public figures on T.V.’s, social media has enabled fans and stars to interact more easily. Duval is an active internet user who posts to his fans frequently and shares a lot to his 3.3 million Instagram followers. He is also active on Twitter, where he has more than 200,000 followers. The comedian goes by the name ‘lilduval’ both on Instagram and Twitter.
6. His views on charity
Several celebrities participate in charities to cultivate their brand and also give something back to the community. Hollywood celebrities like Oprah Winfrey and Mel Gibson have each donated more than $35 million to charitable causes. However, Lil Duval does not believe in giving money as a solution. Instead, he believes in inspiring people to be a better version of themselves and make something of their own. He has openly stated that celebrities giving money to charity is not the best way to champion for progress; it is just the easy way.
7. His other notable works
Lil Duval’s career is spanning a decade, and he has featured in some of the best movies in the past five years. The actor has been in notable films such as “School Dance,” “Grow House” and “More Money, More Family.” The three movies have had quite a good reception from fans and film critics. Duval has also featured in several T.V. shows such as “Ain’t That America” from 2013 to 2014. The show aired for two seasons ran on MTV 2 network and showed Lil Duval, and his buddies explore various American traditions such as camping.
8. His career as a comedian
Lil Duval often describes himself and a natural comedian whom people always find funny. He participated in PEP rallies during his high school years and entertained people; something that motivated him to perfect his comic craft after seeing the people’s positive reaction. According to different sources, Lil Duval felt that the limelight belonged to him, and he could not get enough of it. Duval always pictured himself on the big screen and he names Chris Tucker as his big inspiration, especially his 1995 show called “Friday.”
9. His views on Trans-women
In 2017, Duval visited the Breakfast Club radio show and made some controversial comments about transgender women. According to Revolt, the comedian said that he would probably kill a woman if he discovered she was transgender after sleeping with her. He went on to add that such women should be jailed or charged for not disclosing their transgender status to partners. Trans-activists did not take the comments lightly, and some listeners even threatened to boycott the Breakfast Club. The fans claimed that the show entertained Duval yet he was attacking trans-women. Duval, however, said he is not planning to apologize.
10. His net worth
The hard-working comedian has worked effortlessly and amassed a considerable amount of wealth in his career. He has an estimated net worth of $2 million, mainly earned through his professional comic career, a variety of investment projects, and his music.
