Queen Latifah
AKA Dana Elaine Owens
Born: 18-Mar-1970
Birthplace: East Orange, NJ
Gender: Female
Religion: Baptist
Race or Ethnicity: Black
Sexual orientation: Matter of Dispute
Occupation: Rapper, Actor, Business
Nationality: United States
Executive summary: All Hail the Queen
One of the first female hip-hop artists to rise to international fame, Queen Latifah got her start in the music industry as a rapper/human beat-box with the all-female ensemble Ladies Fresh. At the age of 18 she went solo and released the single Wrath of My Madness (1988), followed the next year by the album All Hail the Queen. The blending of soul, jazz, dub and (of course) hip-hop with her no-nonsense rap stylings garnered Latifah enthusiastic critical reviews and an audience that extended beyond the confines of hip-hop listeners. The 1991 follow-up release, Nature of a Sista, maintained the rising arc of her success.
In 1991 Queen Latifah made her first major venture into acting with a role in the Spike Lee film Jungle Fever. Roles in House Party 2 (also 1991) and Juice (1992) soon followed. By 1993 the Queen's popularity as an actress would surpass her standing as a performer, due to her prominent role in the sitcom Living Single bringing her into living rooms across the country every week. The second career proved to be a considerable boost to her music, and the next album to surface -- Black Reign (1993) -- would be her most popular yet, featuring several hit singles and earning her a Grammy for the song U.N.I.T.Y. The year was rounded out by the establishment of her own label and management company, Flavor Unit Entertainment.
In subsequent years Queen Latifah concentrated primarily on her work as an actress and a personality. Further movie appearances materialized at the end of the decade, including roles in Sphere, Living Out Loud (both 1998) and The Bone Collector (1999), as well as the launching of her own daytime talk show The Queen Latifah Show. Order in the Court (1998), her fourth album, was somehow squeezed in among this multitude of projects. Another record has yet to surface, but televison and film work (the latter reaching a new level with her role in the 2002 musical Chicago, which earned an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actress) continues to be plentiful.
Father: Lance Owens, Sr. (police officer)
Mother: Rita Owens
Brother: Lance Owens, Jr. (police officer, d. 1992 motorcycle accident)
High School: Frank H. Morrell High, Irvington, NJ
University: Borough of Manhattan Community College
Grammy Best Rap Solo Performance (1993)
Burger King high school job
Endorsement of Jenny Craig (2007-)
Endorsement of Marriott (2003)
Endorsement of MasterCard (2000)
Endorsement of Wal-Mart (2005)
Breast Reduction Surgery 2003
Driving While Intoxicated
Drug Possession: Marijuana 3-Feb-1996 (arrested)
Unlawful Possession of a Firearm 3-Feb-1996 (arrested, carrying a loaded pistol)
Assault 6-Feb-1996 (arrested, assault of a photographer)
Wedding: Eddie Murphy and Nicole Mitchell (1993)
Risk Factors: Smoking, Obesity, Marijuana, Yoga
TELEVISION
Living Single Khadijah James (1993-98)
FILMOGRAPHY AS ACTOR
Girls Trip (21-Jul-2017)
Ice Age: Collision Course (19-Jun-2016) [VOICE]
Miracles from Heaven (16-Mar-2016)
Bessie (16-May-2015)
House of Bodies (19-Apr-2013)
Steel Magnolias (7-Oct-2012)
Ice Age: Continental Drift (27-Jun-2012) · Ellie [VOICE]
Joyful Noise (13-Jan-2012) · Vi Rose Hill
The Dilemma (13-Jan-2011) · Susan Warner
Just Wright (14-May-2010) · Leslie Wright
Valentine's Day (10-Feb-2010) · Paula Thomas
Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs (1-Jul-2009) [VOICE]
The Secret Life of Bees (5-Sep-2008)
What Happens in Vegas... (22-Apr-2008)
Mad Money (18-Jan-2008)
The Perfect Holiday (12-Dec-2007)
Hairspray (20-Jul-2007)
Arctic Tale (17-Jun-2007) · Narrator
Life Support (26-Jan-2007)
Stranger Than Fiction (9-Sep-2006)
Ice Age: The Meltdown (1-Mar-2006) · Ellie [VOICE]
Last Holiday (13-Jan-2006)
The Muppets' Wizard of Oz (27-Apr-2005)
Beauty Shop (30-Mar-2005)
Taxi (8-Oct-2004) · Belle
The Cookout (3-Sep-2004)
Barbershop 2: Back in Business (20-Jan-2004)
Scary Movie 3 (20-Oct-2003) · Aunt ShaNeequa
Bringing Down the House (7-Mar-2003) · Charlene Morton
Chicago (10-Dec-2002) · Matron Mama Morton
Brown Sugar (5-Oct-2002) · Francine
The Country Bears (21-Jul-2002) · Cha-Cha
Living with the Dead (28-Apr-2002)
Bringing Out the Dead (22-Oct-1999) [VOICE]
The Bone Collector (29-Aug-1999) · Thelma
Living Out Loud (15-Sep-1998)
Sphere (13-Feb-1998) · Fletcher
Hoodlum (27-Aug-1997) · Sulie
Set It Off (6-Nov-1996) · Cleo
My Life (12-Nov-1993)
Who's the Man? (23-Apr-1993) · Herself
Juice (17-Jan-1992) · Ruffhouse M.C.
House Party 2 (23-Oct-1991) · Zora
Jungle Fever (5-Jun-1991) · Lashawn
Official Website:
http://www.queenlatifah.com/
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