Singer Queen Latifah in her native country is called the "queen of female rap." The star is known not only as a performer and songwriter. The celebrity has more than 30 roles in films. It is interesting that, despite the natural completeness, she declared herself in the modeling industry.
The celebrity in one of her interviews said that those who want to know her character can watch several films with her participation. She always plays women with a bit of a strange, but punchy character, going "forward" to their goals.
Childhood and youth Queen Latifah
Latifah Queen is a creative pseudonym for a woman. The real name of the celebrity is Dana Elaine Owens. She was born on March 18, 1970 in New York City. African and Indian blood flows in her veins.
Dana's parents were not connected with creativity. Mom worked as a teacher, and the head of the family was a policeman. Latifa was not brought up in a complete family. When she was 10 years old, her parents divorced. For her, it was traumatic. Parents throughout the whole time hid that the relationship between them was on the verge of divorce.
Nickname Latifa Dana received in childhood. Latifah means "gentle" in translation. So the girl was called by her cousin. By the way, this is one of the few people in front of whom she could not put on a “mask”. With him, she was sincere and real.
Education at school was excellent. Perhaps this is due to the fact that the girl's mother worked in an educational institution. Mom devoted herself to the upbringing of Dana as much as possible. She tried to give her daughter the best.
The creative path of Queen Latifah
As a child, the girl's hobbies included sports. She was even on the school basketball team. The game was replaced by a love of creativity. The girl began to sing early. Her first performances were modest. She sang in the church choir. Latifah discovered acting in herself early. The girl played in almost every performance that was staged at school.
The first serious performance took place at the St. Anna educational institution. On the big stage, she performed the aria Home from the musical The Wizard of Oz. Her magical voice amazed the audience.
Queen Latif began writing her first rap songs about the plight of black women at the age of 12-14. Having received a school certificate, the girl joined the local team Ladies Fresh. Once upon a time, mom managed to show the work of her daughter DJ James M. As a result, the celebrity helped Dana and her team reach the right people. Mark even created a recording studio. True, it was located in the small basement of the parental home. There the guys recorded their debut LP. Then the group changed the creative pseudonym to Flavor Unit.
After recording the album, Mark handed over the work to Fred Bradwaite, an acquaintance with MTV. The team became part of the rap party. Soon they were noticed by producer Dant Ross. After listening, the man offered to sign a three-year contract only to Latifa. She agreed. In 1988, the presentation of the first professional single took place. We are talking about the composition Wrath of My Madness.
Then the girl had an amazing chance. The fact is that she had the opportunity to perform on the stage of the Apollo Theater. This hall played an important role not only in the creative biography of the singer, but also in the development of African American musical culture.
Debut of Queen Latifah
In the late 1990s, Queen Latifah's discography was replenished with her debut LP. The record was called All Hail the Queen. It was a hit in the "top ten". The album sold over 1 million copies. Dana was at the height of her popularity.
Music critics still believe that this collection is the best album in the singer's discography. In the next few years, she wrote two more records. The singer's immortal hits received six Grammy awards. The last work of a celebrity in the hip-hop genre was released in the late 1990s. After that, Latifa switched to soul and jazz.
Films featuring Queen Latifah
Dana's biography is filled with filming in films. For the first time on the big screens, Latifa appeared in 2001 in the movie Tropical Fever. But Queen received recognition as an actress after filming in the TV series "Single Number". Acting career began to develop. This led to the fact that she soon opened her own show.
In the early 2000s, she held an Oscar in her hands. The woman received a prestigious award for participating in the filming of "Chicago". A few years later, she received her star on the Walk of Fame. And also starred in the movie "Beauty Salon".
The following years were no less eventful. The actress starred in the film "Last Vacation". In the film, Quinn got the role of a saleswoman. Her heroine learned that she would soon die. She gathered her will into a fist, and the last days of her life decided to live to the fullest. Interestingly, the talented Gerard Depardieu became her shooting partner.
In 2008, she starred in the "failed" crime film Easy Money. This is one of Dana's most unsuccessful roles. Film critics expressed a negative opinion not only about the role of Latifa, but also about the film as a whole.
Personal life of Queen Latifah
There are a significant number of rumors surrounding Queen Latifah. She rarely comments on rumors about her personal life. She is regularly credited with novels with young guys.
Latifa never had a husband. In one of her interviews, the woman admitted that she does not suffer from the absence of a spouse. Her main concern is her children. She wants to adopt a child. These dreams began when Queen Latifah was 17 years old.
Some details of the singer's personal life could not be hidden. For example, she has publicly stated that she is bisexual. She supports the LGBT community and participates in rallies.
The woman dated Kendu Isaacs for a long time. Then the woman had an affair with Janet Jenkins. At this time, the star is dating Ebony Nichols. The lovers spend a lot of time together. The couple does not comment on their relationship, because they are sure that this is not a public topic.
It is also known that she was very attached to her brother. He crashed in his youth on a motorcycle. The star repeatedly recalls in her interviews how dear he was to her. In memory of her brother, she carries the keys to the motorcycle with her.
“After the death of my brother, I will dare and give advice. The loss of loved ones is not a reason to put an end to your life. I am sure that my brother would not want me to become discouraged or commit suicide. He looks down on me from heaven. Sometimes I can afford weakness, but I hold on for the sake of those who need me ... ".
Appearance of rapper Queen Latifah
Queen Latifah is far from the ideals of beauty. Her weight is 95 kilograms, and her height is 178 centimeters. She is not shy and does not complex because of the imperfections of the body. A woman boldly appears in public in very revealing outfits.
She even starred in a commercial for one of the brands of lingerie for obese women. But still, in an interview, she repeatedly mentioned that due to excess weight, her health problems worsened. She suffered from back pain due to the size of her breasts. The only correct solution was to reduce the size through surgery.
And Latifa is very enterprising. Even at the beginning of her creative career, she started investing, having received the first fee from the sale of her debut LP. She even had a small store that sold CDs. It was located near the celebrity's home. Later, she took up music production seriously.
Queen Latifah: interesting facts
- In the mid-1990s, Dana had an unpleasant incident. The girl was arrested for possession of marijuana and firearms.
- The TV project of the star, which was broadcast on television, was called "The Queen Latifah Show".
- She has been the face of Cover Girl cosmetics, Jenny Craig's weight loss program, and Hut pizza.
- The celebrity has published two books: “Ladies First: Revelations of a Strong Woman” and “Put on Your Crown.” Both books are biographical.
- Latifa has her own line of clothing and perfumes.
Singer Queen Latifah today
In 2018, Queen Latifah experienced a personal tragedy. The fact is that this year the dearest person in her life, her mother, died. Rita Owens (the mother of a celebrity) for a long time struggled with a serious illness that caused heart failure. She was always there for Quinn and supported her in all endeavors. Dana frankly spoke about her mother's illness in the documentary film Mother's Day. It was filmed by the American Heart Association.
Now Latifa is touring a lot. True, some of the concerts she had to cancel. The reason for the cancellation is the COVID-19 pandemic.
In addition, Latifa made it clear that she plans to act as a producer of the series. The film Single Men and Single Women was already in theaters in the early 1990s. Now Quinn wants to create an updated version.
In 2020, Latifah starred in the series "By Street Lights". Fans appreciated the acting of the actress. You can learn about the latest news from the life of a celebrity from her official Instagram page. This is where the star places videos and photos.
