Actor Database

Talented. Beautiful. Modest. These three words described R&B singer-turned-actress Aaliyah perfectly.

Aaliyah Dana Haughton was born in Brooklyn, New York, to Diane (Hankerson) and Michael Haughton. Her uncle was music manager Barry Hankerson and her brother is director Rashad Haughton. Aaliyah was raised in Detroit. She got her first major exposure appearing on the syndicated television series Star Search (1983), where she awed the audience with her amazing voice and talent, singing "My Funny Valentine", a song which her mother had sung years earlier. At age 11, she sang with Gladys Knight in a five-night stint in Las Vegas. Withdrawing from the celebrity scene for a few years, Aaliyah lived the life of a normal teenage girl, attending Detroit's Performing Arts High School, where she majored in dance. It was around this same time that Aaliyah met singer/composer R. Kelly. Kelly assisted Aaliyah with the production of her debut album "Age Ain't Nothing But A number", which scored several number hits, specifically "Back and Forth." The album's title was a brief reference to her short-lived marriage to R. Kelly (she was 15 years of age at the time, and he was in his 20s). Thir marriage was annulled due to her status as a minor.

During her senior year, Aaliyah went on to record "One In A Million", which featured the songwriting talents of major R&B producers/writers Missy Elliott and Timbaland. The album was a major success and sealed Aaliyah's fame forever.

Aaliyah recorded the single 'Journey to the past' for the Anastasia (1997) soundtrack. After seeing her at an awards show and in the video for her hit song "Are You that Somebody?" (from the Eddie Murphy film Doctor Dolittle (1998)), film producer Joel Silver (producer of The Matrix (1999) and other major actor films) asked Aaliyah to audition for a role in an romance/action film, Romeo Must Die (2000). With her determination and sex appeal, Aaliyah won Silver over and was cast in her first major film role. Romeo Must Die (2000) was a hit at the box office. This film led to her being cast as one of the stars of the film based on Anne Rice's Queen of the Damned (2002), and in the two sequels to the major box office hit, The Matrix (1999), The Matrix Reloaded (2003) and The Matrix Revolutions (2003).

During the busy schedule of her film career, Aaliyah took time to record her third album, the self-titled "Aaliyah". July 2001 was a busy time for Aaliyah. After the success of her song "Try Again", for which she was nominated for a Grammy Award and won several MTV Video Awards, Aaliyah finally released her "Aaliyah" album. Debuting at number two on the Billboard charts, "Aaliyah" was a sales success, despite some lackluster reviews.

In August 2001, Aaliyah took time off from her busy album promotional tour to fly to the Bahamas to film a video for the song "Rock the Boat". The video, filmed on Abaco Island, was directed by Hype Williams, a major music video director known for his style and wit.

On August 25, 2001, after filming the video, Aaliyah and about 9-11 of her entourage took off from Marsh Harbour airport at 6:50pm EDT in a small Cessna 404 en route to Opa-Locka, Florida. A few minutes after take-off, the plane crashed about 200 feet from the runaway, killing Aaliyah and many others instantly. Four passengers were pulled alive from the wreckage, and one later died at a hospital in Nassau. Aaliyah was only 22 years old. Her funeral was held on Friday August 31st in New York, and 22 white doves were flown to celebrate each year of her life. Soon after her death, the hit singles 'More Than a woman' and 'Rock The Boat' were released, from her third album. In 2002, the film Queen of the Damned (2002) was released, in which Aaliyah played Queen Akasha. She was nominated for best Villain at the MTV Movie Awards 2002.

Aaliyah's short-lived, but brilliant career, was a true success story for a young African-American woman who went against all odds to be herself in an industry where originality is scarce. Truly missed by her family, friends, and fans, her music and film contributions will live forever. It's no wonder that her name means 'Highest, most ex-halted one; the best' in Hebrew. She had achieved so much in her twenty-two years.

Christopher Noel Dorsey (born September 3, 1980),[2] better known by his stage name B.G. (short for "Baby Gangsta"), is an American rapper from New Orleans, Louisiana. He began his music career signing to Cash Money Records in 1992, with Lil Wayne (then known as Baby D.) as half of the duo The B.G.'z. Both, along with rappers Juvenile and Turk, collectively formed the group, the Hot Boys in 1997. In 2001, B.G. resigned from Cash Money Records and created his own label, Chopper City Records.

On the stage and on the big screen, Delroy Lindo projects a powerful presence that is almost impossible to ignore. Alhough it was not his first film role, his portrayal of the bipolar numbers boss West Indian Archie in Spike Lee's Malcolm X (1992) is what first attracted attention to Lindo's considerable talents. Since then, his star has slowly been on the rise.

The son of Jamaican parents, Lindo was born and raised in Lewisham, England, United Kingdom, until his teens when he and his mother, a nurse, moved to Toronto, Ontario, Canada. A little later, they moved to the United States, where Lindo would graduate from the American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco. After graduation, Lindo landed his first film role, that of an Army sergeant in More American Graffiti (1979). However, he did not appear in another film for ten years. In the meantime, Lindo worked on stage and, in 1982, debuted on Broadway in "Master Harold and the Boys" directed by the play's author, Athol Fugard. In 1988, Lindo earned a Tony nomination for his portrayal of Harald Loomis in Joe Turner's Come and Gone.

Though he was obviously a talented actor with a bright future, Lindo's career stalled. Wanting someone more aggressive and appreciative of his talents, Lindo changed agents (he'd had the same one through most of his early career). It was a smart move, but it was director Spike Lee who provided the boost Lindo's career needed. The director was impressed enough with Lindo to cast him as patriarch Woody Carmichael in Lee's semi-autobiographical comedy Crooklyn (1994).

For Lindo, 1996 was a big year. He landed major supporting roles in six features, including a heavy in Barry Sonnenfeld's Get Shorty (1995), another villainous supporting role in Lee's Clockers (1995), and still another bad guy in Feeling Minnesota (1996). Lest one believe that Lindo is typecast into forever playing drug lords and gangsters, that year he also played baseball player Leroy "Satchel" Paige in the upbeat Soul of the Game (1996) (a.k.a. Baseball in Black and White), for which he won a NAACP Image Award nomination. Since then, the versatile Lindo has shown himself equally adept at playing characters on both sides of the law. In 1997, he played an angel opposite Holly Hunter in Danny Boyle's offbeat romantic fantasy A Life Less Ordinary (1997) and, in 2009, a vengeful cop in an episode of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (1999).

Lindo graduated from San Francisco State University in 2004 with a degree in Cinema.

The CEO of Branching Out Media, Jeanette grew up in Queens, N.Y. She has worked in the Film Industry for over 20 years. As an actress, she held recurring roles on Starz: Power Book 2 Ghost and on TNT Claws. She has studied with Ivannah Chubbuck in L.A., UCB in New York, and The City Academy in the UK. As a writer, she has a natural ability to tell compelling and relatable stories and shines when writing projects about strong leading women. That's due to the fact she is one herself. Jeanette has been a Professional Stunt Woman for over 15 years and is a 2 x SAG Award Nominee for her stunt work. She has worked on notable franchise films including Marvel's Captain America, The Fast and Furious, and The Hunger Games Franchises. She has covered stunts for Niecy Nash, Mindy Kaling, Angela Bassett, and many more. Continuing her evolution she executive produced a female lead boxing film (Lola) and its sequel (Lola 2). Also (Intercept) is a film that focuses on mental health and suicide prevention.

Jerry Katz is known for Black Russian (2009) and theACTrics (2015).

Jet Li born Li Lian Jie in Beijing, China. He started training at the Beijing wushu academy (wushu is China's national sport, largely a performance version of various martial art styles) at age eight. He won five gold medals in the Chinese championships, his first when he was only 11. In his teens, he was already a national coach, and before he was 20 he had starred in his first movie: The Shaolin Temple (1982), which started the 1980s Kung-Fu boom in mainland China. He relocated to Hong Kong, where he was the biggest star of the early 1990s Kung-Fu boom. His first directorial effort was Born to Defense (1988).

Teruis "Juvenile" Gray was born in New Orleans, Louisiana and grew up between his family's houses in the 10th ward and in the 3rd Ward Magnolia Housing Project. A child prodigy, Juvenile started writing professionally in his early teens and earned his moniker after being sought after to create the records that would become the foundation of Bounce Music. Starting with "Being Myself" in 1995, Juvenile has released 12 albums including the top selling album by a black solo rapper of all time "400 Degreez" and multiple other recordings including as the leader of the group The Hot Boys selling over 10 million albums worldwide. Juvenile is credited with being the first Southern rapper to get national airplay with his seminal recording "Ha". Juvenile's classic song "Back That Azz Up" has spread the music and culture of New Orleans globally and is enjoyed at peak celebrations by millions for the last 25 years. Mr Gray has also enjoyed a string of successful business ventures including his custom furniture business Made By Juvie and his popular beverage Juvie Juice brewed on the same street as his great-grandmother's & grandfather's house.

In 2023, "WTF is a Tiny Desk and no!" are the words that led to one of the most publicized journeys any musician has ever taken to get to NPR headquarters. That was Juvenile's response to Twitter user @theylovemyke's request for him to play a Tiny Desk concert. The result was one of the most raucous experiences in the history of NPR's Tiny Desk, featuring Jon Batiste, Trombone Shorty, and the 400 Degreez Band along with melodic beat architect, DJ Mannie Fresh.

"Juvenile's Tiny Desk Concert is the celebration of America we needed today" -L.A. Times

In 2024, His special guest appearance at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival was ranked among "Best Surprise Performances at Coachella 2024" by Rolling Stone.

In 2025, Juvenile partnered with Crown Royal and Starter in a philanthropic venture launching a limited edition Super Bowl LIX starter jacket, along with Mannie Fresh and Drew Brees, all proceeds from jacket sales were donated to The Foundation for Louisiana. Juvenile was also highlighted by Apple Music in a special series for his contributions to Hip-Hop and the city of New Orleans. He also recently released several new singles including "Party" featuring Mannie Fresh.

Isiah Washington is known for Little Black Hearts (2009).