You might not recognize the name, but unless you have been living under a rock for the past five years, you have definitely heard him sing. Anthony Ramos starred in one of the most famous and successful Broadway shows of all time, and he continues to advance and grow in his career.
Who is Anthony Ramos?
Anthony Ramos Martinez is a 29-year old American actor most famous for his roles in the 2015 Broadway musical Hamilton, in which he performed the dual roles of John Laurens and Philip Hamilton. He is an actor, singer, and songwriter from Brooklyn, New York, and has appeared in various plays, musicals, and films throughout his ten-year career.
The uber-talented Ramos is even a joint Grammy Award winner of the Best Musical Theater Album award for Hamilton in 2016. If you are curious to learn more about him, here are 7 little-known facts about Anthony Ramos!
Opening ceremony Anthony Ramos performs National Anthem before MLS soccer game NYC FC against Chicago Fire at Yankee stadium.” class=”wp-image-27994″/>1. Received a full scholarship for musical theatre
He originally had no intention of becoming a performing art student when he was young. As a young child, he had always expressed interest in playing professional baseball and planned to play in the NCAA Division III during college. However, in middle school, his career trajectory started to shift.
He joined the student group, the Halsey Trio, where he performed at school assemblies and sang Motown songs. It was there that his love of music and performance flourished. He then moved on to high school and participated in school plays and musicals. With the help of his drama teacher, he attended the American Musical and Dramatic Academy on a full scholarship and graduated from the musical theatre program in 2011.
2. Released his debut album in 2019
Not many know this, but Ramos has actually made and released some of his own music. He released songs in 2017 from his first solo EP, The Freedom EP. It was inspired by the 2016 presidential election and was officially released in its entirety on January 20, 2018, one year after Donald Trump’s inauguration. He was signed to Republic Records in June 2019 and released his first debut album, The Good & The Bad, later that year in October.
3. Has a working history with Lin-Manuel Miranda
Anthony Ramos gained popularity and fame through his work on Hamilton with Lin-Manuel Miranda, but it is not the only time the two have worked together. After being cast for the Broadway show, he was cast as Justin Laboy in Miranda’s 14-minute musical, 21 Chump Street. This short musical was a one-time performance in June 2014 and was recorded for NPR’s This American Life.
Hamilton then opened on Broadway the following year in 2015. The two reunited once more in October 2017 to record Miranda’s song, “Almost Like Praying”, in order to raise money to benefit the victims of Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico.
4. Anthony Ramos met his fiance through Hamilton
Ramos has much to be thankful for to Lin-Manuel Miranda and Hamilton. Not only did it project him into the spotlight, but it even gave him the love of his life. He first met his fiance, Jasmine Cephas Jones, during the rehearsals in 2014 for the Off-Broadway production. They soon began dating in 2015 and eventually became engaged in 2018.
He has said before that he sometimes had a difficult time during the Broadway production because Jones, his girlfriend at the time, would have to kiss Lin-Manuel Miranda’s character. Ramos claims that it was quite uncomfortable for him to have to watch that.
5. Dabbled in voice acting
He recently branched out into voice acting and appeared in the 2020 film Trolls World Tour. He took on the role of King Trollex, the upbeat and kind King of the Techno trolls. It was a small role but was enough to whet Ramos’ appetite. He is excited for the future and more potential opportunities for voice acting; it’s completely different than performing on a stage and in front of a camera, so it allows him to explore acting and singing from an entirely new avenue.
6. Anthony Ramos was almost a Rockette
Yes, you read that correctly! As a young actor fresh out of school, he worked many different jobs, struggling to find his breakthrough moment. In 2014 he was cast as a member of the Rockettes for a show called Heart and Lights. This production was going to be at Radio City Music Hall and supposedly cost millions of dollars.
However, it was canceled early on in its previews. This worked out in his favor, though, because while he was rehearsing for the Rockettes, he had auditioned for what was being dubbed “The Hamilton Mixtape”.
7. Is eager to be a father
Anthony Ramos has a habit of repeatedly working together on projects with the people close to him. He left the Hamilton production in 2016 while his now-fiance stayed on.
Later in 2018, Jones and Ramos were once again reunited in production while they filmed Monsters and Men. Ramos explained that it was so exciting to be working with her again on set, but even more amazing since she played a pregnant character. He said he was overcome with nervousness and joy when he saw her with a pregnant belly and can’t wait to reach the point in their lives when they will have kids.
Anthony Ramos is a multi-talented singer and actor with many achievements under his name, just from within the past few years. He is a successful star and is constantly kept busy with a full schedule of roles and appearances. We are all very eager to see what his next performance will be!
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