Meet Daniel Kyri

Growing up on Chicago’s South Side, Daniel Kyri envisioned a world where his identity was not just represented but celebrated in mainstream media. Today, he’s making that dream a reality through storytelling.

The actor has been heating up the small screen on NBC’s Chicago Fire since 2018. Kyri joined the cast as Darren Ritter, the first openly gay firefighter to join the show in its decade-long history, and quickly became a fan favorite. What was supposed to be a two- to three-episode arc became a game-changing role that redefined what representation can look like on primetime television.

“I do believe in the power of representation and the power of being able to say, ‘Hey, young men, this is a possibility for you,’” Kyri told Bleu Magazine. “Whether it’s a young Black boy on the South Side who’s like, ‘I could become a firefighter,’ or a young Black boy who’s thinking, ‘I think I am gay.’”

But for Kyri, simply being seen isn’t enough. While he celebrates Hollywood’s strides toward inclusion, he pushes for more profound, authentic change.

“I can’t speak enough about the inherent value of visibility,” the actor shared sincerely. “But representation, for me, it’s something that is more holistic. And it doesn’t necessarily seek to normalize so much as it seeks to centralize.”

As his career expands beyond acting and into screenwriting and music, Kyri is keeping that same energy, committed to using his platform to tell richer, more diverse stories that resonate with those who have long been underrepresented in mainstream media.

In an exclusive interview with Bleu, Kyri got candid about growing up in Chicago, his journey of self-discovery, and his commitment to creating space for more authentic queer, Black stories.

Kyri told us that his love for theater began at an early age. Growing up, he felt misunderstood by his peers, which inspired him to “look inward” for answers. “I was sort of actively seeking a way to describe myself to me, who, like, who I was, why I, why I felt, you know, not unique, but different in some capacities and some instances,” the Chicago Fire star recalled.

His broad imagination, coupled with his love for literature, shaped his identity as a storyteller. It was his uncle, a Chicago theatermaker, who first encouraged him to pursue a career in acting.

Along with the Chicago Children’s Choir, Kyri also joined Chicago’s renowned After School Matters musical theatre program. As Kyri grew older, his creativity reached new heights, and so did his ambitions. Inspired by the work of changemakers like James Baldwin and Ta-Nehisi Coates, Kyri discovered a deeper understanding of himself—and the world around him.

“[James Baldwin] was the first author that took me outside of myself, right? So, I had that interior exploration. Now, this was something that was much bigger than me, and it took me outside of myself and helped me kind of look around.”

“It led to an awakening for me,” the actor said. “I remember the first time I read The Fire Next Time and feeling so…so seen.”

Kyri added: “Through my exploration of these, these thought leaders, I began to say, ‘What is my contribution to the messaging that gets put out in the world through our art form, through the reach of a platform like the one that I’m on now?’”

For Daniel, the answer was clear: helping Black men to see their experiences and potential mirrored in his work, inspiring them with the same tenacity as revolutionaries like Baldwin and Coates.

Kyri envisions an entertainment industry where queer characters aren’t confined to stereotypes but celebrated for their humanity without apology. Showing the complexity and depth of those characters is an essential part of shifting the needle and creating space for the marginalized, says Kyri.

“My vision of the industry shifting forward is more sorts of representation like that. Because that tells me that you are not apologizing for having a queer character, you know, and that you are fully embracing them in their full humanity, and that is important to me.”

But Kyri is not waiting for the industry to catch up. Instead, he’s telling these stories through his personal platforms—including his music.

His October 2024 single, “Maybe,” offers a fresh perspective on intimacy, heartache, and loneliness. “We don’t necessarily get to see gay couples in love more than we see them in passion,” Kyri told us.

The songwriter said that the themes in the song and music video, which portrays a Black queer couple trying to find common ground, were reflective of his own experiences. “It can be difficult as a black man to love a black man without any models of how to do that,” he said.

Kyri also has some other projects up his sleeve. Along with his music, the entertainer is also writing his own script, which is just “as gay and Black as you think it is,” he said with a laugh.

Kyri is proof that honoring your true identity can inspire change. By embracing the depths of his own complexities and extending that same freedom to others, he is redefining representation and providing future generations with a new blueprint for success.