| About Asante Blackk | |
|---|---|
| Known As | Asante Ma’at |
| Age | 22 Years |
| Birth | October 20, 2001 |
| Gender | Male |
| Parents | Aiyana Ma’at, Ayize Ma’at |
| Alumni | Judith P. Hoyer Montessori School, North Point High School |
| Hometown | Maryland |
| Shows | When They See Us |
Asante Blackk is earning acclaim for portraying Kevin Richardson in Netflix’s When They See Us. Kevin Richardson was only 14 when he and the other Central Park Five teens were wrongfully convicted of rape. Since their exoneration, Richardson has rebuilt his life as an activist. Much like him, Asante Blackk has overcome incredible odds, and he’s on track to becoming one of the most talented actors of the new generation. Our Asante Blackk wiki will detail the young actor’s journey to stardom.
Asante Blackk’s Parents Are Relationship Counselors
Born Asante Ma’at on October 20, 2001, he is a native of Maryland. Asante is the eldest of five children born to Ayize and Aiyana Ma’at.
Ayize and Aiyana Ma’at are high school sweethearts who have been together for more than two decades. Of which, they have been married for more than 13 years.
Both Aiyana and Ayize are therapists and certified marriage and relationship educators. Together, they run BLAM (Black Love And Marriage), a relationship counseling business.
Asante grew up in Maryland alongside his siblings. A day before When They See Us premiered on Netflix on May 31, Asante graduated from North Point High School in Maryland with a 3.5 GPA.
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Blackk Overcame Sickle Cell Anemia
According to Asante’s parents, he was diagnosed with sickle cell anemia soon after his birth. But the doctors assured him that he would be cured.
More than a decade later, the couple found out that a bone marrow transplant could potentially cure Asante’s condition. The Ma’at family, especially Asante’s parents, utilized the power of social media to raise funds and look for a donor.
In 2015, his parents shared that they had found a potential donor for Asante. There hasn’t been an update on his condition since then. However, it appears that Asante is on the path towards a healthy life while pursuing his dreams.
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Blackk Makes His Debut with When They See Us
Prior to his Netflix debut, Blackk had no experience acting on-camera. However, he’d been showcasing his acting chops in school.
In the second grade at Judith P. Hoyer Montessori School in Landover, Blackk played Mowgli in the school’s production of The Jungle Book. He would go on to attend an acting workshop in Washington, D.C. during eighth grade, and it was there that he realized he wanted to be an actor.
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He got an agent and soon began looking for professional gigs. In the meantime, he was starring in his high school productions of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Father Knows Best, Saturday Night Fever, and Fame. And his theater teacher at North Point had nothing but praise for him.
He would also make funny videos and post them on YouTube and Instagram. He created his own tutorials, reaction videos, and challenges for entertainment.
Soon, Blackk landed his first on-camera role in Ava DuVernay’s retelling of the Central Park Five story. Blackk portrays the teen version of Kevin Richardson, a role he shares with Justin Cunningham as the adult Kevin.
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The cast met each of the Central Park Five figures they were to portray. About meeting Richardson, whom Blackk calls the “sweetest,” he said, “There is so much pain and sorrow. But I wanted to bring that sweetness and kindness, too. His pain and sorrow are not the only thing he is.”
Blackk couldn’t have landed a better debut than his role in When They See Us. His portrayal has not only moved viewers, but also earned him critical acclaim—and it’s certainly opened up more opportunities for him.
He recently graduated from high school, but has opted to take a gap year before college. Instead, he will remain in New York and audition for more acting jobs.
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His Aunt Is Samira Wiley
When They See Us has earned 16 nominations at the 2019 Emmy Awards, including Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited Series nomination for Blackk. The Maryland native is the ninth youngest nominee in Emmy history.
And congratulating him on this occasion is his aunt, Emmy-winner, Samira Wiley. You might know her as Moira from The Handmaid’s Tale.
Fans have been suspecting they look alike for a while now. And Wiley’s congratulatory post on Instagram, where she calls him her nephew, proves it.
