Jeff Sapp

Jeffrey Kendall Sapp II was born on August 24th, 1981 in San Diego, CA. He is the only child of USN Captain retired, Kathy C. Aldrich from Live Oak, FL. and father, USN Captain retired, Jeffrey K. Sapp, Sr., from Colorado Springs, CO. Never having the opportunity to fully settle down in one community due to their naval occupation, his education spanned over some fifteen different schools while consistently trying to adapt to new environments. Sapp's love for hip-hop started to truly grow at the age of fifteen when he moved to Centreville, VA., and attended Centreville High School in 1996. Like many other kids his age who were also into rap/hip-hop, he spent a lot of his time between classes freestyle rapping, using garbage lids or the tops of lockers to create beats. It was at this time that he began to realize that he had a talent for rapidly combining words through rhythm and rhyme. It was four years later however, while attending Broadneck Senior High School in Annapolis, MD., that he was dubbed the name "Illest" by a fellow classmate due to his remarkable story telling ability. The name was original so he ran with it. Over the years that followed, he would continue to base his lyrical foundation off of true past experiences rather than just write rhymes with no purpose, hence his love for true hip-hop.

Sapp's acting career officially began in 2018 when writer/producer/director Elrico Tunstall first took notice of his amazing work ethic and hustle. Sapp put on two legendary musical performances in one day at two separate venues in Pensacola, FL., on March 24th, 2018. Sapp (JSapp MadStak) first performed during Spring Break Fest 2K18 held in Pensacola's Maritime Park in front of 4,000+ in attendance. The bill was also loaded with talent including main headliner Bryshere Gray (Yazz The Greatest), best known for his portrayal of Hakeem Lyon in the Fox television series Empire. Sapp then later performed and hosted a benefit concert at Pensacola's famed Vinyl Music Hall. These were the only two performances that Tunstall needed to see before he knew that Jeff Sapp was going to be a star both on stage and on screen. This lead to Tunstall's immediate decision to sign Sapp as a formal client to his M.O.T.Y. (Manager Of The Year) imprint. Sapp's relentless work ethic and hustle was again showcased and on full display for Tunstall to witness as he graduated top of his class, Valedictorian of M.O.T.Y. Actor's Corp 3. Before even graduating in 2018, he began his professional acting career with a slew of background and featured TV/film roles such as "College Gameday", "Greenleaf", Hulu's "The Act", Hulu's "Mike", "Jumanji 2: The Next Level", "Tales", "How High 2", "Reminiscence", "Joe Baby", "Cash Out 2", "Daisy Jones & The Six", and Peacock's "Killing It" just to name a few.

His first speaking role came in 2023 in the form of Detective Hish Jackson in the movie "Sacred". He followed that up as the main character, Stephen Mahomes, in Elrico Tunstall's "What The Heart Wants".