Zendaya

Overview

Zendaya (which means "to give thanks" in the language of Shona) is an American actress and singer born in Oakland, California. She began her career appearing as a child model working for Macy's, Mervyns and Old Navy. She was a backup dancer before gaining prominence for her role as Rocky Blue on the Disney Channel sitcom Shake It Up (2010) which also includes Bella Thorne, Kenton Duty and Roshon Fegan. Zendaya was a contestant on the sixteenth season of the competition series Dancing with the Stars. She went on to produce and star as K.C. Cooper in the Disney Channel sitcom K.C. Undercover (2015) She made her film breakthrough in 2017, starring as Michelle "MJ" Jones in the Marvel Cinematic Universe superhero film Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017) and as Anne Wheeler in the musical drama film The Greatest Showman (2017) alongside actors such as Tom Holland, Hugh Jackman and Zac Efron. Besides acting, singing and dancing she is an ambassador for Convoy of Hope. She has written a book, launched her own clothing line (Daya by Zendaya) and proved herself to be a great role model for young girls all around the world.
- IMDb mini biography by: Mymble Ansdal

Her father is black; his family is from Arkansas. Her mother, who is white, has German, Irish, English, and Scottish ancestry.
Her father is 6'2". Her mother towers at 6'4".
Her name means "giving thanks" in the language of the African Shona tribe.
As of 2020, she is the youngest winner of an Emmy in the category Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series. Just the previous year Jodie Comer had broken Lindsay Wagner's record from 1977.
If she hadn't become an actress, she would've been a teacher like her parents, or a basketball player.

If I could have a Dancing with the Stars (2005) partner, it would be Michael Jackson, but since I can't any more - sadly - it would be Roshon Fegan.
This is so beautiful... doing and making positive programming for young people is so important to me, and I will keep doing it. To all the parents out there, thank you for allowing me to be a role model for your children. I really, really do not take that for granted.
[on why she dropped her last name] I dropped my last name because I just thought it was cool, like Cher or Prince.