Born Lonnie Geno Segers, Jr., he is the oldest son of Lonnie G. Segers Sr. and Sandra Eldridge. His ancestry is African American,and Native American. Segers was a footballer, wrestler, and track athlete in high school and college. He played football at Western Carolina University, after which he played in the American National Rugby League. From there, he moved to New Zealand to play for the Richmond Rovers rugby league team. At the suggestion of a friend, Segers auditioned for voice ads at a New Zealand radio station. His voice (Segers is a bass) earned him a lot of attention, and caught the attention of an agent that led Segers to be cast as Mufasa in the Australian production of The Lion King. He went on to star in the American and Chinese productions as well.