Isaac Lee Hayes was born on August 20, 1942, in Covington, Tennessee, USA. He is an American soul and funk singer, songwriter, musician, record producer, arranger, and actor.

In 1962, Hayes cut his first record for a local label, and in 1964 he'd worked his way up to playing keyboards with the house band at Stax Records, just then establishing themselves as one of the South's premier soul music labels. At Stax, Hayes began writing songs with David Porter, and together they penned a long string of hits for Sam and Dave, including "Soul Man," "Hold On, I'm Coming," and "When Something Is Wrong With My Baby," as well as hits for Johnny Taylor and Carla Thomas. Having established himself as a songwriter, Hayes began to step into the spotlight as a recording artist in 1967 with his first solo album, “Presenting Isaac Hayes”.

In 1971, Hayes would write his second film score, which would make a much greater impact; Shaft, directed by famed photojournalist Gordon Parks, was a gritty tale of a tough private eye squaring off against both the cops and the mob in New York City, but with a primarily African-American cast, an unusual thing in 1971, and Hayes' score, which blended streetwise grooves with a brassy orchestral backing, became an instant sensation. Shaft's soundtrack album, as well as the single "Theme From Shaft," were major chart successes, and Hayes won an Academy Award for Best Musical Score. However, while Hayes was certainly proud of his achievements, at one point he'd displayed an interest in playing the lead in Shaft as well as writing the music, and after displaying an estimable amount of screen charisma in several concert films, he was cast alongside Fred Williamson and Lino Ventura in the Italian blaxploitation-style drama Uomini Duri; Hayes also wrote music for the film. Later that same year, Hayes scored a solo starring role in Truck Turner, but just as his acting career began taking hold, the bottom began to fall out of the blaxploitation market, and Hayes went back to making music, not scoring another film role until Escape From New York in 1981.

In the mid-'80s, Hayes returned to acting, and appeared in no fewer than 25 theatrical and television features between 1986 and 1996; most were low-budget genre fare, but several more notable films appeared on his resumé, including the blaxploitation parody/tribute I'm Gonna Git You Sucka!, Mel Brooks' Robin Hood: Men in Tights, Mario Van Peebles' African-American Western Posse, and Once Upon a Time...When We Were Colored, a evocative look at life in a small Southern town in the 1940s. Hayes' acting career got an unexpected boost in 1997, when he was asked to provide the voice of Chef on the animated television series South Park; originally intended to appear in one episode, Chef went over so well that he became a recurring character on the series. Since then, Hayes has landed a number of higher-profile film roles, including Blues Brothers 2000, Reindeer Games, and of course the 2000 remake of Shaft. When not busy with acting projects, Hayes continues to play concerts and record new material; he's also a literacy activist, a supporter of children's charities around the world, and operates a pair of successful restaurants in Chicago and Memphis.

Credits by Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Filmography

• Knight Fever (2008)
• Return to Sleepaway Camp (2007)
• "Stargate SG-1" (4 episodes, 2005-2006)
• "South Park (138 episodes, 1997-2006)
• Hustle & Flow (2005)
• Dream Warrior (2004)
• Anonymous Rex (2004)
• Dodge City: A Spaghetto Western (2004)
• "Girlfriends" (2 episodes, 2003)
• Book of Days (2003)
• "Fastlane" (1 episode, 2002)
• "The Education of Max Bickford" (1 episode, 2002)
• Chelsea Walls (2001)
• Dr. Dolittle 2 (2001)
• Shaft (2000)
• Reindeer Games (2000)
• Dead Dog (2000)
• "The Hughleys" (2 episodes, 1999)
• South Park: Bigger Longer & Uncut (1999)
• Ninth Street (1999)
• South Park: Chef's Luv Shack (1999)
• South Park Rally (1999)
• Comedy Central's Hi Fi Party (1998)
• Blues Brothers 2000 (1998)
• South Park (Chef: Behind the Menu) (1998)
• South Park (1998)
• Six Ways to Sunday (1997)
• Uncle Sam (1997)
• Illtown (1996)
• "Sliders" (1 episode, 1996)
• Flipper (1996)
• Oblivion 2: Backlash (1996)
• "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air" (1 episode, 1995)
• Johnny Mnemonic: The Interactive Action Movie (1995)
• Once Upon a Time... When We Were Colored (1995)
• Soul Survivors (1995)
• Magic Island (1995)
• "Tales from the Crypt" (1 episode, 1994)
• It Could Happen to You (1994)
• Oblivion (1994)
• "American Playhouse" (1 episode, 1993)
• Robin Hood: Men in Tights (1993)
• Acting on Impulse (1993)
• Posse (1993)
• CB4 (1993)
• Deadly Exposure (1993)
• Final Judgement (1992)
• Prime Target (1991)
• Guilty as Charged (1991)
• Hammer, Slammer, & Slade (1990)
• Feuer, Eis & Dynamit (1990)
• I'm Gonna Git You Sucka (1988)
• Escuadrón (1988)
• "Miami Vice" (1 episode, 1987)
• Dead Aim (1987)
• Medium Rare (1987)
• "Hunter" (1 episode, 1986)
• Betrayed by Innocence (1986)
• "The A-Team" (1 episode, 1985)
• Escape from New York (1981)
• "The Rockford Files" (3 episodes, 1976-1977)
• It Seemed Like a Good Idea at the Time (1975)
• Truck Turner (1974)
• Tough Guys (1974)

Awards

• American Music Award Disco Male Artist 1978
• Grammy Best Pop Instrumental Performance By an Arranger, Composer, Orchestra and/or Choral Leader "Black Moses" 1972
• Golden Globe Award Best Original Score "Shaft" 1971
• Grammy Best Instrumental Arrangement "Theme from 'Shaft'" 1971
• Grammy Best Original Score Written for a Motion Picture or a Television Special "Shaft" 1971
• Oscar Best Original Song "Theme from 'Shaft'" 1971