Tyrese Darnell Gibson (born December 30, 1978), often known simply as Tyrese or Black-Ty, is an American hip hop singer, songwriter, rapper, actor, an former fashion model and MTV VJ. After releasing several successful albums, he made the transition into films, with lead roles in several Hollywood films, including Waist Deep, 2 Fast 2 Furious, Flight of the Phoenix, Four Brothers, Baby Boy and his latest, Transformers.