Maestro Harrell (born July 29, 1991) is an American singer, recording artist, dancer and actor who starred on the HBO original series The Wire as Randy Wagstaff. He currently plays Malik on the ABC comedy Suburgatory.
Harrell was born in Chicago, Illinois. In 2005, Maestro performed at the grand opening ceremony for Disneyland in Hong Kong. He signed a recording deal with So So Def/Island Def Jam with hip-hop producer Jermaine Dupri.
Maestro made his motion picture film debut in the movie Ali, which was directed by Michael Mann. He portrayed the young Cassius Clay, and the all-star cast included Will Smith, Jamie Foxx and Jon Voight. He also was in Barbershop which featured Cedric the Entertainer, Ice Cube and Eve. Maestro also had a small role in the film The Promotion.
His voice is featured on the Twilight Zone episodes CD, along with Blair Underwood. Maestro starred in ABCs production of the PGA Tour Western Open with Tiger Woods and other pro-golfers.
He started singing and dancing at age two. Since then, his many accomplishments include: performing several times on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno and The Maury Povich -Most Talented Kids Show and other television shows; serving as the spokesperson for Western Unions Study Buddy Reading Program which enabled him to travel around the United States performing at schools and delivering motivational speeches to encourage students to read, as well as singing numerous jingles. He is a member of SAG, AFTRA and EQUITY unions. In addition to his lead role in Sony TriStars Guys Like Us, Maestro has appeared in several television commercials.
He was the recipient of The Most Talented Child Under Twelve Years Old at the Chicago Music Awards in 1999, 2000, and 2001. Maestro was a presenter at the NAACPs 25 and ACT-SO Awards Ceremony in Houston, Texas, and he received standing ovations as he performed for NABSE (National Alliance of Black School Educators) in Atlanta, Georgia. For a short period of time, Maestro attended James E. McDade classical school in Chicago, Illinois. He graduated from Morgan Park Academy in Chicago before moving to Los Angeles, California to further pursue his career. For his 16th birthday, Harrell held a party August 12, 2007 featured on My Super Sweet Sixteen, airing on MTV, September 25, 2007 at 9:30pm CST.
Maestro has a recurring role as Malik on the ABC sitcom Suburgatory, which will begin its third season in 2013-14.