HOLLYWOOD—The star of “Detroit 1-8-7” admits to paying his dues in the entertainment industry, but amazingly, actor Sidi Henderson remains a positive force in the business we call Hollywood and in the lives of family and friends. Sidi is becoming a well-known character actor in Hollywood and he’s certainly the voice you have heard over the years in many national commercials and radio shows.

Q-For those of us who listen to radio, what celebrities do you often impersonate? And is it true that you do voice over work for some well-known companies?

A-“I’ve impersonated O.J. Simpson and Jesse Jackson for morning radio shows in Detroit, and Chris Rock and Barack Obama for radio commercials. Although most of the voice characterizations I’ve used come from people that I know in my life. They’re the most fun anyway. I’ve performed as voice talent in national radio and TV commercials for companies, such as Dominos Pizza, KFC, various Dodge brands, OnStar, Western Union and others.”

Q-What was your involvement with the “Mitch Albom Show” on MSNBC?

A-“When I came over from the ‘Danny Bonaduce Show,’ I was hired by Mitch as an associate producer for his show. Although I did a little bit of everything, my main function was to book and handle all the live musical acts that appeared on the show daily and to head up the voicing and audio production of all the natural sound, comedy bits and music parodies. We cranked out a ton of pretty impressive stuff, if I can say so myself.”

Q-A mutual friend of ours tells me that you are quite the musician. What instruments do you play? Do you sing too?

A-“My skills as a musician may be a bit overrated, but I have been playing the bass guitar for over 30 years. I also sing. I’m currently fronting a 10-piece band called Mainstreet Soul. We cover Motown, classic soul and pop hits. I play bass and sing with an original rock band called the Callbacks and my previous band, the Civilians, is working on a greatest hits package from the six records we’ve released over the years.”

Q-I have really enjoyed your work on the ABC series “Detroit 1-8-7” and Lifetime’s “Secret in the Walls.” Is acting now taking a positive turn in your career?

A-“Thanks. I’ve been a voice and film actor for over 20 years now. And since the implementation of the Michigan Film Tax Credit, there’s been a lot more opportunities there. I’ve been fortunate enough to land some fun roles. As an extra bonus, all of my scenes have been with the stars. I’m thinking, ”˜this is going to be great for my reel!’ I co-starred with Judd Nelson in the independent film, ‘Nevermore’; played a doctor with Jeri Ryan in a scene for the Lifetime movie, ‘Secrets in the Wall’; a drug dealer that gets beat down and terrorized by Gerard Butler in ‘Machine Gun Preacher’ (due for release in 2011); a chief lab tech with Ray Liotta in ‘Street Kings: Motor City’ (2011) and the vinyl record store owner with Shaun Majumder and James McDaniel in a recent episode ‘Detroit 1-8-7.’ Even my band, Mainstreet Soul, recorded music and appeared as the mega-church band with Pierce Brosnan in ‘Salvation Boulevard’ (2011). So I’d say, yeah acting has certainly taken a positive turn in my career.”

Q-You hail from the nation’s capital. Do you have family still there and what do they do?

A-“Yeah, most of my immediate family lives there. My big brother is a retired computer programmer, my big sister works in real estate and my little sister is a sergeant with the Capitol Hill Police Department. My mother passed about a year ago and my dad moved to Detroit recently. Plus there’s a bunch of step-brothers/sisters and nephews, nieces, in-laws and cousins back home whom I miss a great deal. Growing up in the D.C. area was heaven for a political and history geek like me. And it’s a lot warmer, too. I also have quite a bit of family in Cincinnati, where I was born. And I have a grandmother and a few cousins that live in Detroit. They’re all very proud of me and were very excited to see me on network television.”

Q-Where would you like to see your career go in the future?

A-“I am a blessed individual for being able to do the two things I love the most: acting and music. I’ve got great agency representation now and I am certainly going to take advantage of all the music licensing opportunities and movie production in Michigan while working here on ”˜Detroit 1-8-7.’ Hopefully I’ll keep landing the roles. Perhaps my bank account will truly reflect my success soon, but I’ll be happy for now being the guy from that thing.”