Tika Sumpter Biography

Fast Facts

• Was the first African American cheerleader at her high school
• Worked as a waitress in New York City before beginning career as a model at 17 and appearing in commercials and educational films
• Co-founded and performed with R&B/hip hop duo Twise with Marcella "Precise" Brailsford; contributed the track "Paint the World (America's Theme)" to the One Life, Many Voices for Hurricane Relief CD to raise money for victims of Hurricane Katrina
• First regular TV work came in 2004 when she was named co-host of Best Friend's Date on the N Network
• Big break came in 2005 when she was cast as Layla Williamson on One Life to Live
• Made big screen debut in 2010's Stomp the Yard 2: Homecoming
• Made the leap into producing with the 2016 movie Southside With You, in which she plays a young Michelle Obama