Laz Alonso is an Cuban-American actor born and raised on the streets of Washington D.C. Laz Alonso grew up in a single parent household; his father died when he was very young. Although, both of his parents are Cuban, Alonso identified most with his Black-American heritage because there weren't many Latinos in Washington D.C., although, in high school, he hung out with a lot of Dominicans.

His neighborhood was predominately Black-American. He attended the renound historically black university in D.C., Howard University, and eventually came to host for BET. But, Alonso's goal from the beginning was to be an actor. Thinking to himself he couldn't just waste his business degree and wanting to fulfill his mother's wishes, he accepted a job on Wall Street working for Merill Lynch. But that was not where he wanted to be. Later, he quit to pursue acting.

In 2000, Alonso appeared in the HBO film Disappearing Acts (2000), based on the Terry MacMillan novel, with Wesley Snipes and Sanaa Lathan, affording him the opportunity to work under director Gina Prince-Bythewood. He has also starred in 30 Years to Life (2001) and Leprechaun: Back 2 tha Hood. The sculpted brother can also be seen in Land of Opportunity, a Puerto Rican love story set in Washington Heights.

Credit: en.wikipedia.org