Ashanti Cook was born and raised in Inglewood, CA. He was a three year starter for Westchester High school Varsity basketball team. He continued to play and furthered his education by accepting a full athletic scholarship to Georgetown University, where he was a three year starter for the Hoyas. He then continued his basketball dream by playing in Europe. He played seven seasons as a professional with the bulk of his career being in Europe. He began studying acting around 2010 by booking his first national commercial for Pepsi. He then began to study and wanted to become an actor when he was fully retired from playing the game of basketball.