AMC is putting the “classic” back in its name, building its reputation for excellence with prestige projects like Mad Men, Breaking Bad and The Walking Dead. For its newest series, Hell on Wheels, debuting November 6, it’s taking a gamble on a Western set in 1865–and on Renaissance man Common, the first actor to be cast in the show.

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He plays Elam Ferguson, a freed slave building the Transcontinental Railroad in 1865. Elam is half black, half white—and a hundred percent hateful. The Civil War has just ended, but Elam is still seething with rebellion, doing brutal labor under white men. It doesn’t bode well that he always seems to have a weapon handy—a knife, also referred to as an “Arkansas toothpick.” In other words, Elam is not a whole lot like Common. “I want to put out love in the air,” says Common.

Born as Lonnie Rashid Lynn Jr. on Chicago’s South Side, Common, 39, is on the brink of conquering pop culture; Hell on Wheels is just one prong of the attack. His memoir, One Day It’ll All Make Sense, came out in September, with Maya Angelou’s endorsement: “Common writes beautifully, like the poet he is.” Common’s latest album, The Dreamer, the Believer, will be released November 22. And though he spends much of his time in Los Angeles and Brooklyn, New York, Common says his heart is here. Not only is Chicago his home, but it’s also headquarters for the Common Ground Foundation, which empowers kids with life skills and sky’s-the-limit encouragement.

“I just think that this is where I’m supposed to be,” says Common, “telling these stories that inspire people as a speaker and as a musician.” He’s been a force in hip-hop since he released Can I Borrow a Dollar? in 1992, but Common has gotten more mainstream attention as an actor—and heartthrob. He played tough in Smokin’ Aces, Street Kings, American Gangster, Wanted, Terminator Salvation and even Date Night.

But he broke through to the next level with last year’s Just Wright, playing the romantic lead, a professional basketball player who chose Queen Latifah’s character over the typical black Barbie trophy wife. The role is in keeping with his taste in women in real life. After high-profile romances with Erykah Badu and Serena Williams, he’s become known as the rare man not intimidated by strong women. “I’m a single man, just striving to do the right thing,” says Common, politely declining to give details about his love life. “The women I’ve loved in my life—from my mother to my grandmother—that’s a band of strong women.” Their spirit continues in 14-year-old Omoye, his daughter with ex-girlfriend Kim Jones. He credits Omoye with giving him direction.