Quick Links
If you've seen the movie Limitless starring The Hangover star Bradley Cooper, then Childish Gambino would be the real-life depiction of the concept of that movie in the flesh, minus the NZT drug! Born Donald McKinley Glover Jr. on September 25, 1983, in California, the now 38-year-old has made effective use of every talent he was given at birth, which has helped to align him with some of the most popular names in the entertainment industry. Some may call him a Jack of all trades, but he has definitely mastered some, including that of a writer, actor, rapper, singer, comedian, director, and producer. With all those hats to wear, one might imagine that his net worth would be more inflated than his ego, and you would be correct. Let's discover how Childish Gambino secured a $35 million net worth as a multitalented star.
A Passion For The Arts
From the OVO Founder Drake to Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson, every music artist, even directors, and producers in the Hollywood film industry knows how valuable a writer is. Numerous fans would be disappointed to find out that their favorite music artists don't write their own songs. But for Glover, under the stage name Childish Gambino, this would never be his concern. Raised by his father, Donald Sr., and his mother Beverly, he developed a passion for the arts at an early age and graduated from the New York University's Tisch School of the Arts in 2006 with a degree in Dramatic Writing. Around this time, he also developed an interest in DJing and mixing electronic sounds under the name MC DJ, according to Celebrity Net Worth.
Writing And Television Acting Career
Fans across the globe are probably more familiar with Gambino as a rapper because music entertainers tend to receive more recognition and clout. However, the first line of work his talents graced was script writing and acting. After writing a speculative script for The Simpsons, he gained the recognition of Brooklyn Nine-Nine television producer David Miner and Hollywood actress/comedian Tina Fey. Being impressed with his work, they hired him as a writer for the NBC sitcom, 30 Rock, from 2006 to 2009. Glover also made a few cameo appearances on the show, which featured future Hollywood stars such as comedian Tracy Morgan, Alec Baldwin, and Jane Krakowski.
As a testament to his writing brilliance, in 2008 the writing team earned the Writer's Guild of America Award for Best Comedy Series following its third season, where it also generated 8.5 million viewers - the most ever. At only 23, his greatest successes were yet to come.
In the same year, he auditioned to play President Barack Obama on the sketch comedy show, Saturday Night Live, but actor Fred Armisen was preferred over him. One year later in 2009, he landed a role on another NBC sitcom called Community which he appeared in for only five episodes. Rumors suggested that he left the show to work on his rap career, which later materialized. But before delving into his career as a rap artist, here are the films he both directed and starred in.
Film Acting And Directing
According to Showbiz CheatSheet, Gambino has also landed roles in some major movie titles in addition to directing his own masterpieces. In 2015, he starred in the supernatural horror film, The Lazarus Effect, opposite Mark Duplass, Olivia Wilde, and X-Men: Apocalypse actor Evan Peters, grossing $38.4 million. The same year, he acted as a singer in the comedy-drama Magic Mike XXL, starring Channing Tatum, Matt Bomer, comedian Gabriel Iglesias, and Amber Heard. The movie grossed $122.8 million against
a $14.8 million budget. He also appeared alongside Matt Damon and Kristen Wiig in the 2015 science fiction film, The Martian. The suspense-filled movie grossed a whopping $630.7 million at the box office.
Then finally, in 2016, after being under construction by Glover since 2013, FX premiered the first episode of the music-themed show Atlanta which he created, writes for, occasionally directs, executive produces, and stars in. The show is still aired today, and has won numerous awards, including a Golden Globes Award, Gotham Independent Film Award, People's Choice, and others.
From 2012 to 2017, he voiced a criminal named Aaron Davis, the uncle of the Miles Morales version of Spider-Man on the Ultimate Spider-Man animated series which aired on Disney XD. Following that, he also made a surprise appearance as the same character in the 2017 Spider-Man: Homecoming film, starring the new Spider-Man, Tom Holland, Zendaya, Michael Keaton, and actor/filmmaker Jon Favreau, grossing $880 million at the box office. The same year, Time magazine dubbed him as its annual "100 Most Influential People In The World." In, 2019, Glover voiced the character for Simba in the animated remake of The Lion King, which also stars James Earl Jones, Beyonce, and comedian Seth Rogen and grossed a monumental $1.663 billion globally, making it his most lucrative project to date.
An Unforgettable Music Career
As if his writing and acting career didn't offer him enough success, Glover took the music industry by storm under the moniker Childish Gambino. Before attaining rap stardom, he released a number of mixtapes, starting with Sick Boi in 2008 while writing for 30 Rock. His second mixtape was in 2009 named Poindexter, and three more in 2010 titled I am Just a Rapper, I Am Just a Rapper 2, and Culdesac. After the release of his free EP in March 2011, he commenced with his IAMDONALD tour. Later in 2011, he also performed a one-hour stand-up special on Comedy Central titled Weirdo which further boosted his appeal.
Gambino's debut studio album, Camp, was released in November 2011, peaking at No. 11 on the US Billboard 200, and saw critics comparing his style to that of Kanye West. His second studio album, Because The Internet, came out in December 2013, peaked at No. 7 on the US Billboard 200, and was nominated for Best Rap Album at the 57th Annual Grammy Awards. It sold 725,000 since its release and featured artists like Jhene Aiko, according to Best Selling Albums. In terms of album sales, his most successful of all was the 2016 release of his third studio album, Awaken, My Love, which sold close to 1.2 million records, 1 million of those being in America.
Besides Jhene Aiko, some of Gambino's greatest collaborations were with the late Nipsey Hussle, Danny Brown, Chance The Rapper, and Young Scooter, according to Hot New Hip Hop. His 2018 single This Is America also became the 31st song to debut at No. 1 on the US Billboard Hot 100, won the Grammy Award for Record of The Year, Song of The Year, Best Rap/Sung Performance, and Best Music Video. The song also featured background vocals from other rap artists such as Young Thug, 21 Savage, and Qauvo to name a few. Despite the controversial issues of racism and gun violence the song addressed, it still became the first rap song to win some of the awards it did.
Sources: Celebrity Net Worth, Showbiz CheatSheet, Best Selling Albums, HNHH