Miranda Bailey casting choice

Whoopi Goldberg was born Caryn Elaine Johnson in the Chelsea section of Manhattan on November 13, 1955. Her mother, Emma (Harris), was a teacher and a nurse, and her father, Robert James Johnson, Jr., was a clergyman. Whoopi's recent ancestors were from Georgia, Florida, and Virginia. She worked in a funeral parlor and as a bricklayer while taking small parts on Broadway. She moved to California and worked with improv groups, including Spontaneous Combustion, and developed her skills as a stand-up comedienne. Goldberg came to prominence doing an HBO special and a one-woman show as Moms Mabley. She has been known in her prosperous career as a unique and socially conscious talent with articulately liberal views. Among her boyfriends were Ted Danson and Frank Langella. Goldberg was married three times and was once addicted to drugs.

Goldberg had her first big film starring role in The Color Purple (1985). She received much critical acclaim, and an Oscar nomination for her role and became a major star as a result. Subsequent efforts in the late 1980s were, at best, marginal hits. These movies mostly were off-beat to formulaic comedies like Burglar (1987), The Telephone (1988) and Jumpin' Jack Flash (1986). She made her mark as a household name and a mainstay in Hollywood for her Oscar-winning role in the box office smash Ghost (1990). Whoopi Goldberg was at her most famous in the early 1990s, making regular appearances on Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987). She admitted to being a huge fan of the original Star Trek (1966) series and jumped at the opportunity to star in "Star Trek: The Next Generation".

Goldberg received another smash hit role in Sister Act (1992). Her fish-out-of-water with some flash seemed to resonate with audiences and it was a box office smash. Whoopi starred in some highly publicized and moderately successful comedies of this time, including Made in America (1993) and Soapdish (1991). Goldberg followed up to her success with Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit (1993), which was well-received but did not seem to match up to the first.

As the late 1990s approached, Goldberg seemed to alternate between lead roles in straight comedies such as Eddie (1996) and The Associate (1996), and took supporting parts in more independent minded movies, such as The Deep End of the Ocean (1999) and How Stella Got Her Groove Back (1998). Goldberg never forgot where she came from, hosting many tributes to other legendary entertainment figures. Her most recent movies include Rat Race (2001) and the quietly received Kingdom Come (2001). Goldberg contributes her voice to many cartoons, including The Pagemaster (1994) and Captain Planet and the Planeteers (1990), as Gaia, the voice of the earth. Alternating between big-budget movies, independent movies, tributes, documentaries, and even television movies (including Theodore Rex (1995)).

Whoopi is accredited as a truly unique and visible talent in Hollywood. Perhaps she will always be remembered as well for Comic Relief, playing an integral part in almost every benefit concert they had. Whoopi is also the center square in Hollywood Squares (1998), sometimes hosts the Academy Awards, and is an author, with the book "Book."

Oprah Gail Winfrey , often known simply as Oprah, is an American talk show host, television producer, actress, author, and philanthropist. She is best known for her talk show, The Oprah Winfrey Show, broadcast from Chicago, which was the highest-rated television program of its kind in history and ran in national syndication for 25 years, from 1986 to 2011. Dubbed the "Queen of All Media", she was the richest African-American of the 20th century, was once the world's only black billionaire, and the greatest black philanthropist in U.S. history. By 2007, she was sometimes ranked as the most influential woman in the world

Captivating, gifted, and sensational, Angela Bassett's presence has been felt in theaters and on stages and television screens throughout the world. Angela Evelyn Bassett was born on August 16, 1958 in New York City, to Betty Jane (Gilbert), a social worker, and Daniel Benjamin Bassett, a preacher's son. Bassett and her sister D'nette grew up in St. Petersburg, Florida with their mother. As a single mother, Betty stressed the importance of education for her children. With the assistance of an academic scholarship, Bassett matriculated into Yale University. In 1980, she received her B.A. in African-American studies from Yale University. In 1983, she earned a Master of Fine Arts Degree from the Yale School of Drama. It was at Yale that Bassett met her husband, Courtney B. Vance, a 1986 graduate of the Drama School.

Bassett first appeared in small roles on The Cosby Show (1984) and Spenser: For Hire (1985), but it was not until 1990 that a spate of television roles brought her notice. Her breakthrough role, though, was playing Tina Turner, whom she had never seen perform before taking the role, in What's Love Got to Do with It (1993). Bassett's performance earned her an Academy Award nomination and a Golded Globe Award for Best Actress.

SAG Award and Critics Choice Award winner for Best Supporting Actress in a Drama Series, Lorraine Toussaint shocked audiences on the smash hit Netflix original series "Orange is the New Black" as the viciously seductive inmate Vee. Toussaint's thrilling performance has won her glowing reviews from the likes of TV Guide and Vanity Fair, stirring the Emmy buzz for her outstanding performance. Toussaint also received praise for her performance in the Academy Award-nominated feature film "Selma." Up next, Toussaint will star in the new Fox series "Rosewood", alongside Morris Chestnut, which premieres this fall.

Born in Trinidad, Toussaint and her mother moved to Brooklyn, NY, where she was raised, when she was ten years old. Growing up, she watched a lot of television while she waited for her mother to return from work, and this sparked her interest in acting. Toussaint begged her mother to enroll her in acting school, and her search led to her studying theater at New York's renowned High School of Performing Arts. After graduation, she enrolled in the Juilliard School's drama division, where she graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree. On her graduation day, she landed her first paying job as Lady Macbeth with "Shakespeare & Company."

Toussaint spent the first 12 years of her career acting on stage in New York City before moving to Los Angeles. Her first television appearance was in 1983 in "The Face of Rage." Toussaint's biggest career boost has come from her co-starring role opposite Annie Potts in the TV series "Any Day Now," which earned Toussaint an NAACP Image Award nomination for best actress in a drama series, a TV Guide Award nomination for Best Actress in a Drama Series, and the Wiley A. Branton Award from the National Bar Association.

Among Toussaint's TV credits were recurring roles on several popular television shows, such as NBC's drama series "Friday Night Lights," TNT's "Saving Grace," "Law & Order," and ABC's hit "Ugly Betty." She has also had several guest appearances on the hit television shows "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation," "Grey's Anatomy," and the drama thriller "Scandal" opposite Kerry Washington.

No stranger to the silver screen, Touissant's first film role was opposite Burt Reynolds in the crime comedy "Breaking In." Touissant has also appeared in "Dangerous Minds," "The Soloist," and Ava DuVernay's "Middle of Nowhere," in which her performance was nominated for an Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Female. Up next, Toussaint stars as Salome Whitmore in the upcoming period drama "Sophie and the Rising Sun," written and directed by Maggie Greenwald. Toussaint will also play Anthony Mackie's mother in the upcoming Seth Rogen comedy "X-Mas," scheduled for theaters this November.

Toussaint and her daughter split their time between New York and Los Angeles.

Jada Koren Pinkett Smith was born in Baltimore, Maryland, to Robsol Grant Pinkett, Jr., a contractor, and 'Gammy' Adrienne Banfield Norris, a nurse. They divorced after only a few months of marriage. Her father is of African-American descent and her mother is of Afro-Caribbean ancestry (from Barbados and Jamaica). Jada majored in dance and choreography at the Baltimore School for the Arts, where one of her classmates was Tupac Shakur. She spent a year at the North Carolina School of the Arts before dropping out to pursue her career in acting. Her big break came in 1991 when she was cast in the part of a college frosh on the television sitcom A Different World (1987). She made her feature film debut two years later in Menace II Society (1993). She did not gain widespread recognition, however, until her role opposite Eddie Murphy in The Nutty Professor (1996). In addition to being in front of the camera, she has spent time behind it directing music videos. Pinkett-Smith is married to Will Smith, and they have a son, Jaden Smith; and a daughter, Willow Smith.

Halle Maria Berry was born Maria Halle Berry on August 14, 1966 in Cleveland, Ohio and raised in Oakwood, Ohio to Judith Ann Berry (née Hawkins), a psychiatric nurse & Jerome Jesse Berry, a hospital attendant. Her father was African-American and her mother is of mostly English and German descent. Halle first came into the spotlight at seventeen years when she won the Miss Teen All-American Pageant, representing the state of Ohio in 1985 and, a year later in 1986, when she was the first runner-up in the Miss U.S.A. Pageant. After participating in the pageant, Halle became a model. It eventually led to her first weekly TV series, 1989's Living Dolls (1989), where she soon gained a reputation for her on-set tenacity, preferring to "live" her roles and remaining in character even when the cameras stopped rolling. It paid off though when she reportedly refused to bathe for several days before starting work on her role as a crack addict in Spike Lee's Jungle Fever (1991) because the role provided her big screen breakthrough. The following year, she was cast as Eddie Murphy's love interest in Boomerang (1992), one of the few times that Murphy was evenly matched on screen. In 1994, Berry gained a youthful following for her performance as sexy secretary "Sharon Stone" in The Flintstones (1994). She next had a highly publicized starring role with Jessica Lange in the adoption drama Losing Isaiah (1995). Though the movie received mixed reviews, Berry didn't let that slow her down, and continued down her path to super-stardom.

In 1998, she received critical success when she starred as a street smart young woman who takes up with a struggling politician in Warren Beatty's Bulworth (1998). The following year, she won even greater acclaim for her role as actress Dorothy Dandridge in made-for-cable's Introducing Dorothy Dandridge (1999), for which she won a Golden Globe for Best Actress in a TV Movie/Mini-Series. In 2000, she received box office success in X-Men (2000) in which she played "Storm", a mutant who has the ability to control the weather. In 2001, she starred in the thriller Swordfish (2001), and became the first African-American to win Best Actress at the Academy Awards, for her role as a grieving mother in the drama Monster's Ball (2001).

Yvette Nicole Brown is an Emmy-nominated actress, writer, producer and host best known for her series-regular and Special Guest Star* roles on the television shows: "Community", "The Mayor", "Drake and Josh", "The Odd Couple", Disney Plus' "Big Shot" and "Act Your Age"* on Bounce TV.

And films as varied as "Dreamgirls""Tropic Thunder", "Avengers: Endgame" and Disney's "Disenchanted"

She has guest co-hosted "The View", "The Talk", "The Real", "Access Hollywood", "The Talking Dead", and has moderated numerous panels in the famed Hall H at San Diego Comic Con.

She's produced Disney's "The Big Fib", SyFy's "Cosplay Melee" and she is also a 2020 NAACP Image Award Nominated writer for "Always A Bridesmaid" - the Romantic Comedy she penned and Executive Produced that is streaming on Netflix and BET+.

Yvette believes in philanthropy and civic engagement and she proudly sits on the National Boards of Donors Choose (where she is Vice-Chair), EMILY's List, MPTF Next Gen and SAG-AFTRA.

Monica Calhoun has been acting since the age of 13. As a child actress, she worked for Walt Disney Family in "She Stood Alone", and starred on CBS's series "Bagdad Café", "Getting Straight" and "Taking a Stand", ABC's "Where I Live", "The Ditchdigger's Daughter", and "The Ernest Green Story". She later ventured into drama with roles showing her as the "voice of reason" both on the big and small screens. Examples include "The Best Man", "The Best Man Holiday", "Love and Basketball", NBC's "Sweet Justice" and HBO's "Rebound". She is often the figurehead of the group that keep everyone mellow and going down the righteous path. She also appeared on Apple TV's "Diary of a Single Mom", produced by Robert Townsend, co-starring Billie D. Williams, Richard Roundtree and Diahann Carroll. Comedy is also Calhoun's strong suit in "Bagdad Café", AFI Friends, "Everybody Hates Chris", "The Jamie Foxx Show", "A Different World", "Amen", "Fame", "Wayans Brothers" and "Gang of Roses".

Calhoun is not new to theater, television or feature films. She starred in many BET dramatic roles such as "Imitate Betrayal", and as well as CBS's "Getting Straight", "Younger and Younger" and "What about Your Friends". Other feature films include Disney's "Where I Live" and "Sister Act II", Fox's "Jack the Bear" and "Park Day", ABC's "Heart and Soul" and "Where I Live", Fox's "Dirt", ABC's "Grey's Anatomy" and "NYPD Blue", Lionsgate's "Civil Brand", and BET's "New Edition" as Patricia Tresvant, mother of group member Ralph Tresvant. She has also appeared on "The Jacksons: An American Dream", "Pacific Station", "Children of the Night" and "Love Chronicles".

Elsewhere on the stage and screen, Calhoun has appeared in "The Player's Club", "Friends and Lovers", "You Don't Know Me But I'm Famous", "Children of the Universe", "The Salon", "Joan"; "The African American" and "Everything But A Man". Calhoun earned her first credit as co-producer with "No Regrets". Other credits are paving the way for dramatic roles in film and television and many have copied her form of acting through the years. A quiet, shy girl with hidden talents and she comes alive during filming. Monica Calhoun does not disappoint.

Mia Amber Davis was born on 25 July 1974 in New York City, New York, USA. She was an actress, known for Road Trip (2000), Girl Crazy (2007) and Holla If I Kill You (2003). She was married to Mike Yard. She died on 10 May 2011 in Los Angeles, California, USA.

Sanaa Lathan is an actor, director, producer, and activist, well-known for starring in such hit films as LOVE & BASKETBALL, THE BEST MAN and BEST MAN HOLIDAY, BROWN SUGAR, ALIEN VS. PREDATOR, and NAPPILY EVER AFTER.

She recently made her feature directorial debut for Paramount Pictures' ON THE COME UP, based on the New York Times best-selling novel of the same name. Premiering at the Toronto film festival to stellar reviews. Currently streaming on Paramount Plus.

Coming soon: MACRO Films' YOUNG WILD AND FREE which premiered at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival.

She is currently starring in the 3rd season of the Emmy Award-winning HBO series Succession. For which she was nominated for an Emmy award.

Lathan can be seen starring in REPLAY, an episode of the Jordan Peele's remake of The Twilight Zoneon CBS All Access. She also stars in Showtime's The Affair and Fox's Shots Fired created by Gina Prince- Bythewood, and Rashid Johnson's Native Son on HBO.

Lathan is the voice of 'Donna Tubbs' on Fox's animated series Family Guy and The Cleveland Show, as well as the voice of 'Catwoman' in the DC animated series Harley Quinn.

On stage, Lathan was nominated for a Tony Award for her performance on Broadway in A RAISIN IN THE SUN and starred as 'Maggie the Cat' opposite James Earl Jones in the Olivier award winning revival of CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF at the Novello Theatre in London's West end.

Lathan made her directorial debut with the short film LEAP for Maven Pictures, which she shot during lock down, about a Zoom therapist who suffers from OCD and panic disorder. It premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival.

She also stars in Peacock's MAN: FINAL CHAPTERS limited series with the original cast for which she was nominated for an image award.

Later this year she will be starring in the Fox Searchlight film: SUPREMES AT EARL'S ALL YOU CAN EAT based on the book of the same name.

Her lengthy list of credits also includes Steven Soderbergh's CONTAGION, NOW YOU SEE ME 2, AMERICAN ASSASSIN and Focus feature's SOMETHING NEW.

Regina King was born in Los Angeles, California, to Gloria, a special education teacher, and Thomas King, an electrician. She began her career in the television show 227 (1985), followed by a role in Boyz n the Hood (1991). She began to be recognized by a mainstream audience after her role as Cuba Gooding Jr.'s character's wife in Jerry Maguire (1996). She co-starred in Enemy of the State (1998) as Will Smith's character's wife.

Regina Hall was born December 12, 1970 in Washington, D.C., to Ruby, a teacher, and Odie Hall, a contractor. She graduated from Fordham University in 1992, and went on to earn a master's degree in journalism from New York University before shifting to an acting career. In 1997 at age 26, she began appearing in commercials, and then made the giant leap into movies. Her fame came with her role in the comedy-horror spoof Scary Movie, Regina Hall has frequented the big screen in roles that far from betrayed her age. Her recurring role in Scary Movie and the sequel Scary Movie 2 exhibited the 30-year-old's ability to maintain her youthful appearance, as she portrayed the high-school-aged Brenda Meeks. However, her first film role was in the 1999 film The Best Man. The following year, she made many other film appearances, including her starring role in Scary Movie in 2000. She first had a role in the movie Love and Basketball which also starred close friend Sanaa Lathan. In 2001, Hall's list of credits grew to include her first television role, as Corretta Lipp on the prime-time drama Ally McBeal, which was a recurring role for several episodes. Furthermore, in 2001 Scary Movie 2 was released, in addition to the Mandel Holland comedy The Other Brother, featuring Hall as Vicki. One year later, she starred in the action-drama Paid in Full, directed by Charles Stone III. She would later on start in other films such as;Malibu's Most Wanted, Scary Movie 3, The Honeymooners, and First Sunday.

JoMarie Payton was born in in Albany, Georgia on August 3, 1950. Her father, Driscoll Payton, was a construction worker and mother, Frankie Bell Payton, was a maid. They moved to the Miami suburb of Opa-Locka, Florida in 1950. JoMarie was the second of nine children.

JoMarie's first performance on stage was at the tender age of six years old. After high school, she attended Albany State University in Albany, Georgia. Once she graduated, JoMarie left for California to join the national touring company of the musical "Purlie" which starred Robert Guillaume. As an accomplished singer, she received her first major professional acting roles through musical auditions.

JoMarie finally got her big break playing Harriet Winslow in the sitcom Perfect Strangers (1986). Audiences enjoyed her character so much that a spin-off was created a couple years later that focused on the Winslow family. Family Matters (1989) became a hit but quickly the show began to focus on character Steve Urkel rather than the Winslows. In the middle of the ninth season, JoMarie was given the chance to end her contract so she could pursue other artistic endeavors.

Payton is a human rights activist and a four time NAACP Image Award nominee. In honor of her mother, she started the Frankie Payton Scholarship Fund at Albany State College. She has been married four times and has one daughter, Chantale France.

Janet Louise Hubert was born in Chicago, IL. She is best known for playing the sassy, witty, outgoing, protective mom on the hit TV sitcom The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air (1990).

Janet Hubert spent most of her childhood growing up in Momence, IL. That changed when she won a scholarship to Julliard School in New York City. After Juilliard, Janet studied all forms of dance and studied with some of the best teachers including Alvin Ailey and David Howard. She debuted on Broadway in "The First". She went on to do shows such as "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat" and "Dancin'", and was a member of the original Broadway cast of "CATS", where she created the role of Tantomile, and was the understudy for Betty Buckley, singing the title role, in New York City. However, her most memorable role came in 1990 when she made her TV debut in "Fresh Prince". She has since guest-starred on numerous shows, including Gilmore Girls (2000), Friends (1994), The Bernie Mac Show (2001) and Tales from the Crypt (1989). She has also appeared on the Tyler Perry hit House of Payne (2006). Janet has been battling osteoporosis and has recently became an ambassador for the National Osteoporosis Foundation.

Janet will forever be known as a versatile actress, dancer and singer. She was, to many, a woman who stood her ground, much like that of her character on "Fresh Prince"--the strong-willed yet elegant, original, one and only Vivian Banks.

Alfre Woodard was born on November 8, 1952 in Tulsa, Oklahoma, the youngest of three children of Constance, a homemaker, and Marion H. Woodard, an interior designer. She was named by her godmother, who claimed she saw a vision of Alfre's name written out in gold letters. A former high school cheerleader and track star, she got the acting bug after being persuaded to audition for a school play by a nun at her school. She went on to study acting at Boston University and enjoyed a brief stint on Broadway before moving to Los Angeles, California. She got her first break in Remember My Name (1978) which also starred Jeff Goldblum. She lives in Santa Monica, California with her husband, writer Roderick M. Spencer, and their two adopted children: Mavis and Duncan. She was named one of the Most Beautiful People in America by People Magazine.

Stunning pop culture icon, Hollywood leading lady and three-time NAACP award winner Nia Long returns to the big screen this fall in the highly anticipated Universal Pictures sequel The Best Man Holiday (in theaters November 15th) where she reunites with original castmates Taye Diggs ("Private Practice"), Terrence Howard (Hustle & flow), Morris Chestnut (The brothers) and Harold Perrineau ("Lost"). Additionally in Spring 2014, Long will star in Tyler Perry's Single mom's club alongside Wendi McLendon- Covey (Bridesmaids), Tyler Perry (Madea) and Amy Smart (Crank).

Early this year, Long joined the all-star cast of Showtime's "House of Lies" alongside Golden Globe Award winner Don Cheadle & Kristen Bell as "Tamara," a business school classmate and former flame of Marty's (Don Cheadle) who has been hired by the same consulting firm Galweather Stearn after taking time off to raise a family.

Long made her film debut in the poignant film portraying the social problems in inner-city Los Angeles, Boyz n the hood , and continued on to star in Friday, alongside Ice Cube and Chris Tucker, as well as Love Jones, which won the prestigious Audience Award at Sundance. Other notable film roles include Soul Food, Alfie opposite Jude Law, The Best man, Are We There Yet?, Big Momma's House 1 & 2 opposite Martin Lawrence, Stigmata, the Broken Hearts Club and Made in America.

On the small screen, Long's portrayal of "Officer Sasha Monroe" on NBC's hit crime drama "Third Watch" awarded her two NAACP Image Awards for Outstanding Actress in a Drama series. Long's other TV accomplishments include "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air," "Boston Legal," "Judging Amy," and "Big Shots." Long also voiced "Roberta" in the first season of the Fox hit "the Cleveland Show."

Making her directorial debut on Ashanti's music video "Baby" and Yolanda Adam's "This Too Shall Pass," Nia continues her work behind the camera and is developing a feature film that centers on renowned world champion boxer and trainer Ann Wolfe.

In addition to her film and TV work, Long's passion lies in serving her community. With her family roots planted in Trinidad, Grenada, and Barbados, Long's long term goals are to connect women in the US to those of the islands and to mentor young girls to regain their self-esteem. Additionally, Long lends her support to Black Girls Rock, an organization that promotes the arts for young women of color and encourages dialogue on the ways women of color are portrayed in the media. In 2012 she was named an official surrogate to the Barack Obama reelection campaign.

Nia was born in Brooklyn, to Talita (Gillman), a teacher and printmaker, and Doughtry Long, a high school teacher and poet. She now calls Los Angeles home where she lives with her 12 year old son, Massai, 14 month old son, Kez and partner Ime Udoka, an Assistant Coach for the San Antonio Spurs. Long loves to cook organic farmers market fresh meals adding a twist of her Trinidadian heritage. When she's not juggling between her career and motherhood, she enjoys staying active by doing pilates, boxing, hiking, and horseback riding. Long also finds pleasure in traveling and experiencing different cultures throughout the world. One of her favorite locations to visit is Jamaica, a place she calls her second home where she can reflect and refuel.

Taraji Penda Henson is an American actress and singer. She studied acting at Howard University and began her Hollywood career in guest roles on several television shows before making her breakthrough in Baby Boy (2001). She played a prostitute in Hustle & Flow (2005), for which she received a Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture nomination; and a single mother of a disabled child in David Fincher's The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008), for which she received Academy Award, SAG Award and Critics Choice Award nominations for Best Supporting Actress. In 2010, she appeared in the action comedy Date Night, and co-starred in the remake of The Karate Kid.

Born and raised in New York City by Panamanian parents, Melissa De Sousa attended the renowned High School of Performing Arts as a ballet major, and began her career as a principle dancer with The Alvin Ailey American Dance Company before transitioning into acting.

Melissa is best known for her performance as the infamous "Shelby" in the Universal Studio franchise The Best Man and The Best Man Holiday starring opposite Terrence Howard, for which she earned an NAACP Image Award nomination. Currently recurring as "Alex Rivera" in Our Kind Of People on FOX , and recently as "Chief Ana Lopez" on the CW's Black Lightning. Melissa also had a standout role as the pill popping journalist "Mirta Herrera" on Showtime's On Becoming A God In Central Florida opposite Kirsten Dunst. She led the cult hit series Single Ladies for BET Networks where she played Austin Aguilera, described as the Latin Kim Kardashian. A sexy, single socialite turned club owner, who liked to party.

De Sousa also starred opposite Matthew Perry in the TNT original presentation of The Ron Clark Story, which garnered an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Made For Television Movie. Other film work includes Lisa Cholodenko's Laurel Canyon with Frances McDormand, Donald Petrie's Miss Congeniality opposite Sandra Bullock, and the indie hit Constellation alongside Zoe Saldana. Her television credits include series regular roles on Reed Between The Lines, Second Time Around, One on One, Darren Star's drama The $treet for FOX, Valley Of The Dolls, and Damon, with Damon Wayans produced by Carsey- Werner, also for FOX. Guest Star credits include Criminal Minds, Elementary, Shameless, and countless others. De Sousa currently resides in New York.

Tasha Smith is a multifaceted actress and director whose work brings style and intensity to the projects she works on, whether in front of or behind the camera. From her roles as "Carol" on Fox's hit drama Empire, "Brenda" in Netflix's Running Out Of Time, to her critically-acclaimed portrayal of the drug-addicted "Ronnie Boyce" in HBO's Emmy Award winning mini-series The Corner, Tasha embodies her characters and gives them life. Tasha's memorable portrayal of "Angela" in Why Did I Get Married? and its sequel Why Did I Get Married, Too? sparked the creation of the spin-off series For Better Or Worse on OWN, for which she earned an NAACP Image Award nomination for "Outstanding Actress in a Comedy Series." Other feature credits include Lionsgate films Addicted and Daddy's Little Girls (opposite Idris Elba), Sony's Jumping The Broom, and Universal's romantic comedy Couples Retreat, among others.

Most recently, Tasha has directed episodes of 9-1-1 for Fox, Black Lightning for The CW, the Untitled Tracy Oliver project for Amazon, Star on Fox, P-Valley on Starz, Tales on BET, as well as her directorial debut feature film for TV1 titled When Love Kills, which was nominated for a NAACP Award.

Tasha Smith's infectious optimism and enthusiasm command attention in her professional and private lives. She takes time to share her inspirational life story through motivational speaking and mentoring emerging actors through the Tasha Smith Actors Workshop (TSAW).

Vivica A. Fox was born in South Bend, Indiana, on July 30, 1964, and is the daughter of Everlyena, a pharmaceutical technician, and William Fox, a private school administrator. She is of Native American and African-American descent and is proud of her heritage. She is a graduate of Arlington High School in Indianapolis, Indiana, and, after graduating, moved to California to attend college. Vivica went to Golden West College and graduated with an Associate Art degree in Social Sciences. While in California, she started acting professionally, first on soap operas, such as Generations (1989), Days of Our Lives (1965) and The Young and the Restless (1973). In another early role, she played Patti LaBelle's fashion designer daughter, "Charisse Chamberlain", on the NBC-TV series, Out All Night (1992). Her first big break was in the film, Independence Day (1996), along with Will Smith, and also Set It Off (1996). She has earned critical acclaim for her portrayal of "Maxine" in the 1997 motion picture, Soul Food (1997), which netted her MTV Movie Award and NAACP Image Award nominations. In 2000, she was casted in the medical drama, City of Angels (2000), as "Dr. Lillian Price". She has had roles in many other movies ever since, such as: Teaching Mrs. Tingle (1999), Two Can Play That Game (2001) and Kill Bill: Vol. 1 (2003). In 2004, Fox was in an episode of Punk'd (2003), where her pregnant friend pretended to go into labor, but they became angry when a paramedic appeared to care more about taking pictures than delivering the baby. Vivica also took another television role, from 2004 to 2006, as she starred in the drama series, 1-800-Missing (2003), on the Lifetime Television Network. In 2007, she was a contender on Dancing with the Stars (2005) and stayed until she was voted off in the fourth week. In 1998, Vivica A. Fox married singer Christopher Harvest (aka Sixx-Nine), whom she later divorced in June 2002. She also dated rapper 50 Cent, however this was a brief relationship.

Retta was born in Newark, New Jersey, USA. She is an actress and producer, known for Parks and Recreation (2009), Dragon Wars: D-War (2007) and Fracture (2007).

Sharon Leal is a military brat. She was born in Tucson, Arizona. Sharon then moved with her parents to the Philippines, till she was 6 years old. She went to prayer-school there. Then, her parents packed up to move back to the US and settled in Fresno, California. Her mother, Angelita, who is Filipino, is a homemaker, and her father is African-American. She has a step-father, Elmer Manankil. Elmer and Angelita have a daughter, together. So, Sharon has a younger sister, Kristina Manankil.

How she got started with the desire for performing. At the age of two, Sharon sang into a microphone, and her parents taped her. This later led to acting, which she began doing in community theater productions as a teen. Sharon graduated from "Roosevelt High School of the Arts" in Fresno. In 1993, she won a vocal scholarship at the "Santa Cruz Jazz Festival", which enabled her to study with Seth Riggs (Michael Jackson's voice coach). Sharon has also performed in various rap and R&B music videos. She has sung in cabaret productions at B. Smith's, The Violet, and Steve McGraw's, all in New York City, and played teenager "Dahlia Creed" on the daytime soap opera, Guiding Light (1952), in the mid-90s. At New York Theatre Workshop: "Bright Lights, Big City". Regional credits include "Little Shop of Horrors"-Arizona Theatre Co., "Into the Woods"-Theatre Works CA and other shows like "Ain't Misbehavin", "West Side Story", "Me and My Girl" and "Nunsense", to name a few. Last performed on Broadway as "Mimi" in "Rent".

Nicole Ari Parker Kodjoe is an American actress and model. She made her screen debut with a leading role in the critically acclaimed independent film The Incredibly True Adventure of Two Girls in Love (1995) and went on to appear in Boogie Nights (1997), directed by Paul Thomas Anderson. Parker has starred in a number of movies, including Blue Streak (1999), Remember the Titans (2000), Brown Sugar (2002), Welcome Home Roscoe Jenkins (2008), Black Dynamite (2009), and Almost Christmas (2016). On television, Parker starred in the short-lived UPN romantic comedy Second Time Around (2004-05) and the ABC drama Time After Time (2017). In 2017, she joined the cast of Fox's prime-time soap opera Empire playing Giselle Barker. She appears as a recurring character in Chicago P.D. as Deputy Superintendent Samantha Miller and in And Just Like That... as Lisa Todd Wexley.

Debbi Morgan moved to New York City when she was three months old. Her most memorable role was on the television series All My Children (1970). She played Angie Baxter. Her performance in the series earned her four Daytime Emmy Award nominations, and one win. With over 50 film and television credits we should acknowledge her portrayal of of Alex Haley's great-aunt Elizabeth Harvey on the mini-series Roots: The Next Generations (1979), and the clairvoyant Mozelle Batiste Delacroix in Eve's Bayou (1997). Her performance earned her a Chicago Film Critics Association Award and an Independent Spirit Award.

Whitney Elizabeth Houston was born into a musical family on 9 August 1963, in Newark, New Jersey, the daughter of gospel star Cissy Houston (née Emily Lee Drinkard) and John Russell Houston, Jr., and cousin of singing star Dionne Warwick.

She began singing in the choir at her church, The New Hope Baptist Church in Newark, as a young child and by the age of 15 was singing backing vocals professionally with her mother on Chaka Khan's 1978 hit, 'I'm Every Woman'. She went on to provide backing vocals for Lou Rawls, Jermaine Jackson and her own mother and worked briefly as a model, appearing on the cover of 'Seventeen' magazine in 1981.

She began working as a featured vocalist for the New York-based funk band Material and it was the quality of her vocal work with them that attracted the attention of the major record labels, including Arista with whom she signed in 1983 and where she stayed for the rest of her career.

Her debut album, 'Whitney Houston', was released in 1985 and became the biggest-selling album by a debut artist. Several hit singles, including 'Saving All My Love For You', 'How Will I Know', 'You Give Good Love', and 'The Greatest Love of All', were released from the album, setting her up for a Beatles-beating seven consecutive US number ones. The album itself sold 3 million copies in its first year in the US and went on to sell 25 million worldwide, winning her the first of her six Grammies.

The 1987 follow-up album, 'Whitney', which included the hits 'Where Do Broken Hearts Go' and 'I Wanna Dance With Somebody', built on her success but it was the 1992 film The Bodyguard (1992) that sealed her place as one of the best-selling artists of all time. While the movie itself and her performance in it were not highly praised, the soundtrack album and her cover of the Dolly Parton song 'I Will Always Love You' topped the singles and albums charts for months and sold 44 million copies around the world.

That same year she married ex-New Edition singer Bobby Brown with whom she had her only child, their daughter Bobbi Kristina Brown in March 1993. It was about this time that her much documented drug use began and by 1996 she was a daily user.

Her 1998 album, 'My Love Is Your Love' was well reviewed but the drug abuse began to affect her reputation and press reports at the time said that she was becoming difficult to work with, if she turned up at all. She was dropped from a performance at The 72nd Annual Academy Awards (2000) because she was "out of it" at rehearsals. Her weight fluctuated wildly - she was so thin at a 'Michael Jackson' tribute in 2001 that rumors circulated the next day that she had died - and her voice began to fail her. She was twice admitted to rehab and declared herself drug-free in 2010 but returned to rehab in May 2011.

Her 2009 comeback album 'I Look To You' was positively received and sold well, but promotional performances were still marred by her weakened voice. Her final acting performance was in Sparkle (2012) (a remake of the 1976 movie, Sparkle (1976)), released after her death.

She was found dead in a Beverly Hills hotel room on 11 February 2012.