Teyana Taylor

Teyana Taylor: biography

Teyana Me Shay Jacqueli Taylor is a famous American dancer, singer, actress, and model. In her career, she has collaborated with such bright representatives of music industry as Post Malone, Lil Kim, Chris Brown, Janet Jackson and many others.

Read below some facts of her biography!

Childhood and youth

Teyana Taylor was born on December 10, 1990, in Harlem, New York City. She has Afro-Trinidadian roots. Her father had three other children from a previous marriage. In her childhood, Taylor lived with her mother Nikki Taylor, a celebrity stylist.

Taylor became interested in performing as a baby. When she was 9, she picked up a microphone and started singing – it was a school event. Remarkably, even before fame, Teyana has never been afraid of performing on stage in front of people.

As a teenager, Teyana Taylor took part in talent competitions, such as the 'Apollo Theater National All-Stars' talent search.

Young Taylor had idols - Lauryn Hill, Janet Jackson, Stevie Wonder, and Michael Jackson.

Career

GOOD music and debut

Taylor started her professional career in 2006. So, she appeared as a choreographer in the music video of Beyoncé's hit single 'Ring the Alarm.' The next year, she was offered to sign a contract with 'Star Trak Entertainment' a division of 'Interscope Records.'

Due to their partnership, Taylor appeared in a reality show. In February 2007, she made a grand entry in a giant Barbie's doll box in the fourth season of 'My Super Sweet Sixteen.' The 'MTV' series featured lavish birthday parties of rich teenagers.

Also, that time Teyana appeared in Jay-Z's music video 'Blue Magic.'

February 2008 was marked by Teyana Taylor's debut song entitled 'Google Me.' It is the lead track for her debut mixtape, 'From a Planet Called Harlem,' which was released on August 16, 2009.

Besides music, Taylor is involved in acting. In 2010 fans could see her playing Rena in the sequel of Stomp the Yard - Stomp the Yard: Homecoming. Besides, she appeared in reality show House of Glam, which was aired on Oxygen.

Legendary rap singer Kanye West noted Taylor's potential and called her to the studio. Though Teyana had known Kanye and the whole 'GOOD Music' family since his 'Glow in the Dark Tour,' their friendship began that day at the studio.

So, she took part in the recording of Kanye West's singles 'Dark Fantasy' and 'Hell of a Life.'

Later, Taylor alongside the label 'GOOD Music' released the track 'Christmas in Harlem.'

In 2011 Taylor acted in Tyler Perry's movie Madea's Big Happy Family.

The next year, the musician published the mixtape titled 'The Misunderstanding of Teyana Taylor.' The project got mostly positive reviews.

The same year, Taylor signed a joint-venture contract with 'GOOD Music' and 'The Island Def Jam Music Group.' She contributed to 2012 'GOOD Music' compilation album 'Cruel Summer.' The collection was associated with Kanye's short movie Cruel Summer, which was first shown at the Cannes Film Festival. Alongside Kanye West, Teyana recorded the top song 'To the World.'

In 2013, Taylor started partnering with 'Adidas.' In 2014 she pleased fans by studio album 'VII.' The collection finished 19th on the 'Billboard 200.'

In 2015, Taylor worked as a judge in the eighth season of America's Best Dance Crew. In August, Taylor added her first EP to the list of her projects. It was named 'The Cassette Tape 1994.' That time she was offered a small role in the drama Brotherly Love.

Taylor's popularity was rising. In summer 2016, she presented 'Freak On,' the lead single from her upcoming second studio album. The following year, she elaborated a workout program and a fitness apparel line named 'Fade 2 Fit.' Teyana's dance routine in Kanye's music video 'Fade' had inspired the line.

She also directed the music video for Lil Durk's remix of 'Home Body' from 'Signed to the Streets 3'. She was also featured in the video.

Teyana played 'Joyce Sheree' in three episodes (2017–2018) of the musical drama Star. Moreover, Taylor was cast as Imani X in five episodes of the 2017 TV series The Breaks.

In February 2018, the celebrity appeared on TV – she starred in the reality series Teyana and Iman. Alongside her husband, Taylor served as the executive producers of the show. The first show's episode was shown in March 2018. It told about Taylor's personal life.

The same year, she acted as a stripper named Bl'asia in the Netflix movie The After Party. Teyana had a role of Skyler, the leading character, in the sequel of the 2003 movie Honey - Honey: Rise Up and Dance (2018). Her most recent movie appearance was the role of Sherri in the 2019 movie The Trap.

In 2019, Taylor performed at the Dreamville Festival.

K.T.S.E

Taylor's album K.T.S.E., an acronym for "keep that same energy," was the last of the five weekly releases to be distributed and was released on June 22, 2018.

Teyana Taylor’s net worth is evaluated at $3 million.

Personal life

Teyana Taylor has a husband - Iman Shumpert, an American professional basketball player performing for the team Houston Rockets. They have a daughter Iman "Junie" Tayla Shumpert Jr. who was born in December 2018. After going into early labor, her husband Iman Shumpert delivered their baby with his bare hands at the couple's home.

Besides, earlier, Taylor had a 2-year relationship with Brandon Jennings. The two got engaged in April 2011 but later separated in March 2014.

In 2018, the celebrity surprised everybody by her unusual Hollywood costume – she was dressed up like Kitana from the Mortal Kombat video game.

In 2013 Taylor was mixed up with a scandal with Rihanna. Teyana published an IG video of herself singing Anita Baker's 'Caught In The Rapture, ' before Rihanna shared a clip of her hairstylist Yusef singing the same song, while seemingly dressed up as her. It evoked their long Twitter feud.

In her career, Teyana has partnered with the brand Philipp Plein.

Discography

• VII (2014);
• K.T.S.E. (2018).

Filmography

• Stomp the Yard: Homecoming (2010);
• Madea's Big Happy Family (2011);
• Gang of Roses II: Next Generation (2012);
• Cruel Summer (2012);
• The Start Up (2013);
• The Love Section (2013);
• Brotherly Love (2015);
• Star (2017-2018);
• The Breaks (2017);
• Honey: Rise Up and Dance (2018);
• Teyana & Iman (2018);
• Hit the Floor (2018);
• The After Party (2018);
• The Trap (2019).