Ghanaian-American actor Nicco Annan scores 2021 Film Independent Spirit Awards nomination

Ghanaian-American actor, Nicco Annan has nabbed a nomination at the 2021 Film Independent Spirit Awards.

Annan was nominated in the ‘Best Male Performance in a New Scripted Series’ category for his role as ‘Uncle Clifford’ on Starz strip club drama series ‘P-Valley.’

Adam Ali (Little America), Conphidance (Little America), Amit Rahav (Unorthodox) and Harold Torres (ZeroZeroZero) are the other contenders in the category.

Founded in 1984, the awards is dedicated to independent filmmakers and the best in television productions and performances.

Annan is also a dancer and choreographer.

He was born to a Ghanaian father and an African American mother.

Annan is best known for his role on P-Valley, an adaptation of the Katori Hall play Pussy Valley, in which Annan originated the role.

He joined a dance troupe at age 17 and received his diploma from Cass Technical High School.

Annan studied musical theater at State University of New York-Purchase, where he received his bachelor of fine art degree. After college, he was hired as the choreographer in residence at the Yale School of Drama.

Anna also performed in theater productions on and off-Broadway. He moved to Los Angeles in 2014 to pursue television acting. He has appeared in Claws, Shameless, This is Us, and Snowfall.

He is also the choreographer for the series All American.

In 2009, Annan’s friend recommended him for a role in Pussy Valley, a play by Katori Hall centered on a strip club in the Mississippi Delta. Annan auditioned for and was cast as Uncle Clifford, the club’s non-binary owner. He developed a detailed backstory for the character and portrayed the role in several smaller runs as well as the full production at Mixed Blood Theatre in 2015.

When the play was ordered for a television adaptation by Starz, Annan again auditioned for the role of Uncle Clifford and was re-cast. The series, P-Valley, premiered in 2020 and Annan received critical acclaim for his season one portrayal.

He was named to THR‘s list of Best TV Performances of 2020.

Annan played a lead role in Hall’s play The Hot Wing King, which premiered March 2020 off-Broadway.