Desiree Marie Velez is an American actress, producer, and co-host born and raised in Brooklyn, New York. She relocated to Virginia to complete her high school and college education, where she majored in drama. Her background in a blue-collar family in New York exposed her to various accents, cultures, toughness, and humor, which she believes has contributed to her ability to absorb real people and their experiences into her acting.
Velez's approach to acting is centered around her own life experiences, which she believes are essential in creating believable characters. She has had a diverse range of roles, from Shakespearean plays to dinner theater, and has even studied at the Folger in Washington, D.C. and in a Midsummer program in England.
In addition to her stage work, Velez has also appeared in various film and television projects. Her breakout roles include Joan in St. Joan, Pam & Popo in Fat Men in Skirts, and Lucinda in Sotto Voce, for which she was nominated for a Helen Hayes Award for Best Supporting Actress.
Velez's resume is filled with a wide range of projects, including film, voice-over, and episodic work. She has recently appeared in the critically acclaimed Coffin film franchise as the character Wendy, and has also signed on to the role of Dr. Stanton in the thriller EMPATH. She was cast in the film The Riddle House as Roz and will be an associate producer on the project.
In television, Velez has played supporting characters in several series, including October Road, Veep, The Haunting, Oz, Hack, Matlock, and more. She has also been fortunate enough to work alongside notable actors such as Blair Underwood, Michael Beech, Debbie Morgan, John Leguizamo, John Seda, Fiona Shaw, Samantha Mathis, Fisher Stevens, the late Bob Hoskins, Andy Griffith, and Dennis Hopper.
Velez is active on social media, where she can be found on Instagram and Twitter. She prefers to be called Desi by her friends and is a lover of Zumba, dance, Native American culture, history, and art. She is proud of her Puerto Rican/Taino heritage and is a face and body artist/owner of Mystical Smiles Face painting and events. Velez is also owned by an African Grey named Rosie, two Pitbull/lab mixes named Calisto and Thor, and two newly adopted kittens named Potter and Weasley.
