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Dexter Tillis was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, and was raised solely by a mother of three, who was supported primarily by government assistance. Tillis grew up in Greensburg, LA. There he determined that he would be an artist in some form at an early age. He was noted as a focused and goal-driven child; even at age 7, he could be found intently drawing for hours free-handedly capturing images on paper precisely as they appeared before him. At age 10, he decided that this was a means to generate income. To perfect his art, he created designs in the back of his relatives' heads. This outstanding work gave him a positive reputation throughout Greensburg. He was known as "the artist-barber drawing everything on ya' head."
Like many teenagers, Tillis became distracted by guns, drugs, and automobiles; thereby, neglecting his long-term goals. This led him to the emergency room suffering from a gunshot wound. Tillis learned from his errors and quickly turned his life around. He retired the guns and drugs and fell in love with automobile mechanics. It did not take him long to reach expertise in both building engines and drag racing. Tillis built his first engine, of 550 raw horsepower, before he was age 18. This accomplishment inspired him to open his own hotrod shop, DT Customs.
Fueled with both excitement and apprehension in leaving his close family and small community for the first time, Tillis moved to Atlanta, GA to pursue his dreams. It was then Tillis realized that opportunities for him were limitless. He returned to school and graduated from Stone Mountain High. He continued his education at Georgia Community College endeavoring to become an architectural engineer. One of Tillis' instructors saw a gift in him and suggested he enroll in a drama course. This shifted his focus to performing arts.
Tillis left Georgia Community College and enrolled in the Alliance Theater. After two years, Tillis sought out and received intensive, private coaching. He gained inspiration from actors such as: Don Cheadle, Blair Underwood, Forest Whitaker, Denzel Washington, and director Antoine Fuqua. His passion for acting rendered him roles on Lifetime's "Army Wives" (2009) and the National Broadcasting Company's (NBC) science fiction series "Surface" (2005). He also appeared in films such as "Bolden," (2011) "Remember the Titans," (2000) and was featured in the video game "Midnight Club 3" (2005). In addition, he held various roles in independent films.
He went on to star, direct, and produce two independent films: "Domestic Silence," (2009) and "For the Love of You" (2010).
Tillis attributes his growing talent and success to several people. Above all Tillis thanks God, through whom he has accomplished all things.
