Jay Pharoah, is an American actor, stand-up comedian, impressionist, rapper, and voice actor. Currently entering his sixth season of SNL, Pharoah is well known for his stellar impressions of President Barack Obama, Jay Z, Denzel Washington, Kanye West, and many others. Pharoah also made a splash with his memorable SNL character, Principal Daniel Frye, based on Pharoah's actual high school principal.

Pharoah developed his comedy skills at a young age, training in local comedy clubs. He went on to tour in the UK, the US.

Jay’s first Showtime special, CAN I BE ME premiered in August, and in July he hosted BET’s first NBA Players Awards. He shot flashy roles in Universal’s RIDE ALONG opposite Kevin Hart and Ice Cube, CBS Films’ GET A JOB directed by Dylan Kidd, Chris Rock's film TOP FIVE and the Independent Film INTRAMURAL. His past feature film credits include LOLA VERSUS. Pharoah’s Kanye West parody, “I Am A Dog,” was featured on Above Average and became an instant viral video reaching over a million views within the first week. Pharoah and Kerry Washington teamed up to parody “What Does The Fox Say.” Their version, “What Does My Girl Say” reached four million views in one week.