Teyana Taylor Biography

Teyana Taylor was born on December 10, 1990. She is the only child of her mother, while her biological father has two sons and a daughter from another relationship. Teyana was raised by her mother, Nikki Taylor, in Harlem, New York City. According to sources, Nikki is a celebrity stylist. Teyana is of Afro-Trinidadian descent.

Teyana Taylor's singing talent was noticed when she was nine. She once picked up a microphone and began performing impromptu in front of the crowd. Teyana never had any fear of performing on stage. Instead, at a tender age, she began participating in several talent competitions, including the Apollo Theater National All-Stars talent search. Though she never won any of them, Teyana never stopped participating in such contests.

Growing up as an aspiring singer, Teyana was highly influenced by celebrities such as Lauryn Hill, Janet Jackson, Stevie Wonder, and Michael Jackson.

Teyana's professional journey began in September 2006. She made her debut as a choreographer in the music video of Beyoncé's hit single Ring the Alarm. The following year, Teyana was signed by recording artist and record producer Pharrell Williams for Star Trak Entertainment, a division of Interscope Records. 

The contract earned Teyana her first reality-show appearance. In February 2007, she made a grand entry in a giant Barbie doll box in the fourth season of My Super Sweet Sixteen. The MTV series featured lavish birthday parties of rich teenagers. Following this, Taylor was featured in Jay-Z's music video Blue Magic.

In February 2008, Teyana released her debut single, Google Me. The song is the lead single for her debut mixtape, From a Planet Called Harlem, which released on August 16, 2009.

Teyana stepped into acting in August 2010. She was cast as Rena in the sequel of Stomp the Yard and Stomp the Yard: Homecoming. Around the same time, Teyana Taylor made her second reality-show appearance in House of Glam which was aired on Oxygen.

Teyana's music career leaped when she was called to the studio by Kanye West, just hours before the release of his fifth album, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. Taylor was summoned to look at some of Kanye's fashion pieces. Though she had known Kanye and the whole GOOD Music family since his Glow in the Dark Tour, their friendship began that day at the studio.

Knowing that collaborating with Kanye could help her, Teyana made a smart move to impress Kanye. She hummed a few tracks to get his attention. Impressed by her skills, Kanye asked her to contribute to his notable tracks, Dark Fantasy and Hell of a Life. Teyana composed the "intro and chorus" of the songs and did a few changes.

Teyana Taylor's next collaboration with the label GOOD Music was the single Christmas in Harlem from the album GOOD Friday. Her composition was released as the shortened version of the single on the iTunes Store on December 17, 2010.

Teyana's next film appearance was in Tyler Perry's play-turned-film Madea's Big Happy Family in 2011. She was then featured on the hook of the single Party Tonight. Toward the beginning of 2012, Interscope and Star Trak announced the termination of their contract with Teyana.

While Teyana was on her way to start her journey as an independent artist, she was working on the launch of her second release, a mixtape titled The Misunderstanding of Teyana Taylor. The 1990s R&B-influenced mixtape was released in the first half of 2012 and received positive reviews.       

On June 14, 2012, Teyana moved back to working under a label after she signed a joint-venture contract with GOOD Music and The Island Def Jam Music Group. She made an appearance on the GOOD Music compilation album Cruel Summer, which released on September 18, 2012. The album was associated with Kanye's short film Cruel Summer, which premiered at the Cannes Film Festival. Her next collaboration with Kanye was for the track To the World.

In 2013, Adidas offered Teyana a contract to design and release two pairs of sneakers. On November 4, 2014, she released her debut studio album under GOOD Music and The Island Def Jam Music Group. Titled VII, the album reached the 19th position on the Billboard 200.

In 2015, Teyana joined the eighth season of America's Best Dance Crew as a judge/ panel member. On August 25 that year, she released her first EP, The Cassette Tape 1994. Teyana had a brief role in the drama film Brotherly Love.

On June 17, 2016, Teyana Taylor released Freak On, the lead single from her upcoming second studio album. The following year, she launched 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.

The music video for Lil Durk's remix of Home Body from Signed to the Streets 3 was directed by Teyana. She appeared in the video, too. She had appeared as a celebrity singer named Joyce Sheree in three episodes (2017–2018) of the musical drama Star. Teyana was cast as Imani X in five episodes of the 2017 TV series The Breaks.

In February 2018, Teyana ventured into TV production, with the reality series Teyana and Iman. She and her husband served as the executive producers of the show. Its first episode was aired in March that year. The eight-episode series documented Teyana and her husband's personal and public lives.

On June 22, 2018, Teyana released her second studio album, Keep That Same Energy (K.T.S.E.) The same year, she played a stripper named Bl'asia in the Netflix movie The After Party. Teyana played Skyler, the lead, in the sequel of the 2003 film Honey, Honey: Rise Up and Dance (2018). She then played Sherri in the 2019 film The Trap. Teyana announced her retirement from music on December 4, 2020 via her Instagram post. She said she felt "overlooked" and "under-appreciated" in the music industry.

Teyana is the brand ambassador for CÎROC Peach vodka. She owns a nail salon in Harlem called Junie Bee Nails, named after her daughter.

Teyana Taylor is married to Iman Shumpert, an American professional basketball player who plays in the NBA. They welcomed their daughter, Iman "Junie" Tayla Shumpert Jr., in December 2015. Iman assisted in the delivery of their baby at their home.

On September 20, 2016, Teyana revealed on The Wendy Williams Show that she had secretly married Iman. However, the statement was later proved to be false, as they both got married approximately two weeks after Teyana's appearance on the show, on October 1, 2016.

In September 2020, Teyana and Iman welcomed their second daughter Rue.

Nikki is currently Teyana's manager.

Teyana's biological father, Tito Smith, is from Harlem. He has spent years in jail and has children with multiple women.

Teyana Taylor is the record holder for the fastest-selling sneakers in Adidas Originals history.