Zendaya Coleman
Encyclopedia
Zendaya Coleman better known as Zendaya, is an American actress, singer, and dancer. She currently stars on the Disney Channel
sitcom Shake It Up
as Raquel "Rocky" Blue.
, was born Zendaya Coleman to Claire Stoermer and Kazembe Ajamu (Coleman) on September 1, 1996, in Oakland, California
. She grew up as part of the California Shakespeare Theater
in Orinda, California
where her mother worked as the House Manager. In addition to training at the theater's student conservatory program, and later performing in numerous stage productions, Zendaya helped her mother seat patrons and sell raffle tickets to benefit the theater.
While attending the Oakland School for the Arts
, she starred as a young Ti Moune in Once on This Island
at the Berkeley Playhouse and in the breakout role of the male character Joe in Caroline, or Change
at Palo Alto's TheaterWorks. She also studied her craft at the California Shakespeare Theater Conservatory program and at the American Conservatory Theater
. Her other stage credits include Richard III
, Twelfth Night, and As You Like It
, among others.
, Mervyns
and Old Navy
. She was featured in an iCarly
toys ad along with Stefanie Scott
. She also appeared as a back-up dancer in a Sears commercial featuring Disney Channel
star Selena Gomez
; in 2009, she was a featured performer in the Kidz Bop
music video for its cover of the song "Hot n Cold
" released on Kidz Bop 15
. Zendaya currently stars on the Disney Channel
original series Shake It Up
as Raquel "Rocky" Blue alongside Bella Thorne
as Cecilia "CeCe" Jones, the comedic duo trying to dance their way to stardom. She additionally starred in the book trailer for "From Bad To Cursed" by Katie Alender. In early 2011, it was announced that her first movie role would be in the 2012 film, "Frenemies" along with Shake It Up co-star, Bella Thorne and Stefanie Scott from A.N.T. Farm. A Disney Channel Original Movie based on the TV series Shake It Up is in development.
named Midnight. Her interests include singing, dancing and designing clothes. Zendaya hopes that just as theater led her to television, Shake It Up will someday lead her to opportunities in the music industry. In October 2010, Zendaya told Variety
, "I love singing and would love to record an album at some point."
have a music video for the song "Watch Me" which premiered as a commercial on Disney Channel on June 17, 2011 during the A.N.T. Farm
premiere. Zedaya has been in a Kidz Bop music video for Katy Perry's "Hot n Cold".
Disney Channel
Disney Channel is an American basic cable and satellite television network, owned by the Disney-ABC Television Group division of The Walt Disney Company. It is under the direction of Disney-ABC Television Group President Anne Sweeney. The channel's headquarters is located on West Alameda Ave. in...
sitcom Shake It Up
Shake It Up (TV series)
Shake It Up is an American television sitcom airing on Disney Channel in the United States. The series premiered on November 7, 2010. Created by Chris Thompson and starring Bella Thorne and Zendaya, the show follows the adventures of Cece Jones and Rocky Blue as they star as background dancers on...
as Raquel "Rocky" Blue.
Early life
Zendaya, whose name means "to give thanks" in ShonaShona language
Shona is a Bantu language, native to the Shona people of Zimbabwe and southern Zambia; the term is also used to identify peoples who speak one of the Shona language dialects: Zezuru, Karanga, Manyika, Ndau and Korekore...
, was born Zendaya Coleman to Claire Stoermer and Kazembe Ajamu (Coleman) on September 1, 1996, in Oakland, California
Oakland, California
Oakland is a major West Coast port city on San Francisco Bay in the U.S. state of California. It is the eighth-largest city in the state with a 2010 population of 390,724...
. She grew up as part of the California Shakespeare Theater
California Shakespeare Theater
California Shakespeare Theater is a regional theater located in the San Francisco Bay Area of California. Its performance space, the Lt. G.H...
in Orinda, California
Orinda, California
-2010:The 2010 United States Census reported that Orinda had a population of 17,643. The population density was 1,389.5 people per square mile . The racial makeup of Orinda was 14,533 White, 149 African American, 22 Native American, 2,016 Asian, 24 Pacific Islander, 122 from other races, and...
where her mother worked as the House Manager. In addition to training at the theater's student conservatory program, and later performing in numerous stage productions, Zendaya helped her mother seat patrons and sell raffle tickets to benefit the theater.
While attending the Oakland School for the Arts
Oakland School for the Arts
Oakland School for the Arts is a performing arts charter school in Oakland, California.OSA is located on the Fox Oakland Theatre at 530 18th Street across from Telegraph.On April 1, 2009 OSA was selected to be a California Distinguished School....
, she starred as a young Ti Moune in Once on This Island
Once On This Island
Once on This Island is a one-act musical with a book and lyrics by Lynn Ahrens and music by Stephen Flaherty. Based on the novel My Love, My Love by Rosa Guy, set in the French Antilles in the Caribbean Sea...
at the Berkeley Playhouse and in the breakout role of the male character Joe in Caroline, or Change
Caroline, or Change
Caroline, or Change is a through-composed musical with book and lyrics by Tony Kushner and score by Jeanine Tesori that combines spirituals, blues, Motown, classical music, and Jewish klezmer and folk music....
at Palo Alto's TheaterWorks. She also studied her craft at the California Shakespeare Theater Conservatory program and at the American Conservatory Theater
American Conservatory Theater
American Conservatory Theater is a large non-profit theater company in San Francisco, California, that offers both classical and contemporary theater productions. A.C.T. was founded in 1965 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in conjunction with the Pittsburgh Playhouse and Carnegie Tech by theatre and...
. Her other stage credits include Richard III
Richard III (play)
Richard III is a history play by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written in approximately 1591. It depicts the Machiavellian rise to power and subsequent short reign of Richard III of England. The play is grouped among the histories in the First Folio and is most often classified...
, Twelfth Night, and As You Like It
As You Like It
As You Like It is a pastoral comedy by William Shakespeare believed to have been written in 1599 or early 1600 and first published in the folio of 1623. The play's first performance is uncertain, though a performance at Wilton House in 1603 has been suggested as a possibility...
, among others.
Career
Zendaya began her professional career working as a fashion model for Macy'sMacy's
Macy's is a U.S. chain of mid-to-high range department stores. In addition to its flagship Herald Square location in New York City, the company operates over 800 stores in the United States...
, Mervyns
Mervyns
Mervyns was an American middle scale department store chain based in Hayward, California. It carried national brands of clothing, footwear, bedding, furniture, jewelry, beauty products, electronics, and housewares. Many of the company's stores were in shopping malls...
and Old Navy
Old Navy
Old Navy is an American clothing brand as well as a chain of stores owned by Gap, Inc., with corporate operations in San Francisco and San Bruno, California. It is one of the first major corporations to house headquarters in the new Mission Bay district of San Francisco.Gap, Inc. was run by...
. She was featured in an iCarly
ICarly
iCarly is an American sitcom that focuses on a girl named Carly Shay who creates her own web show called iCarly with her best friends Sam and Freddie. The series was created by Dan Schneider, who also serves as executive producer. It stars Miranda Cosgrove as Carly, Jennette McCurdy as Sam, Nathan...
toys ad along with Stefanie Scott
Stefanie Scott
Stefanie Scott is an American actress and singer. Scott is best known for her roles as Dana Tressler in the feature film Flipped in which she won a 2011 Young Artist Award and in No Strings Attached as Young Emma. In the television industry, Scott currently portrays Lexi Reed on Disney Channel's...
. She also appeared as a back-up dancer in a Sears commercial featuring Disney Channel
Disney Channel
Disney Channel is an American basic cable and satellite television network, owned by the Disney-ABC Television Group division of The Walt Disney Company. It is under the direction of Disney-ABC Television Group President Anne Sweeney. The channel's headquarters is located on West Alameda Ave. in...
star Selena Gomez
Selena Gomez
Selena Marie Gomez is an American actress and singer best known for portraying Alex Russo in the Emmy Award-winning Disney Channel television series Wizards of Waverly Place...
; in 2009, she was a featured performer in the Kidz Bop
Kidz Bop
Kidz Bop is a brand of compilation albums featuring child session musicians performing contemporary music. The series was developed by Razor & Tie co-founders Cliff Chenfeld and Craig Balsam in 2001...
music video for its cover of the song "Hot n Cold
Hot N Cold
"Hot n Cold" is a song by American singer Katy Perry. The song was written and composed by Dr. Luke, Max Martin, and Perry for her major mainstream debut album, One of the Boys. The track was released as the album's third single...
" released on Kidz Bop 15
Kidz Bop 15
Kidz Bop 15 is the 15th edition to the Kidz Bop series and was released on February 3, 2009. It debuted and peaked at number seven on the Billboard 200 albums chart. This is the third Kidz Bop album in a row to include an iTunes Bonus Track...
. Zendaya currently stars on the Disney Channel
Disney Channel
Disney Channel is an American basic cable and satellite television network, owned by the Disney-ABC Television Group division of The Walt Disney Company. It is under the direction of Disney-ABC Television Group President Anne Sweeney. The channel's headquarters is located on West Alameda Ave. in...
original series Shake It Up
Shake It Up (TV series)
Shake It Up is an American television sitcom airing on Disney Channel in the United States. The series premiered on November 7, 2010. Created by Chris Thompson and starring Bella Thorne and Zendaya, the show follows the adventures of Cece Jones and Rocky Blue as they star as background dancers on...
as Raquel "Rocky" Blue alongside Bella Thorne
Bella Thorne
Annabella Avery "Bella" Thorne is an American teen actress, dancer, singer, and model. She is a child model and actor with appearances in more than 20 films and television series and more than 60 commercials, she is best known for her role as the aspiring young dancer, CeCe Jones on the Disney...
as Cecilia "CeCe" Jones, the comedic duo trying to dance their way to stardom. She additionally starred in the book trailer for "From Bad To Cursed" by Katie Alender. In early 2011, it was announced that her first movie role would be in the 2012 film, "Frenemies" along with Shake It Up co-star, Bella Thorne and Stefanie Scott from A.N.T. Farm. A Disney Channel Original Movie based on the TV series Shake It Up is in development.
Personal life
Zendaya currently lives in Los Angeles with her family and dog, a Giant SchnauzerGiant Schnauzer
The Giant Schnauzer is a large, powerful, and compact breed of dog. It is one of the three Schnauzer breeds. Like most large breeds, the Giant Schnauzer needs a fair amount of exercise.-Appearance:...
named Midnight. Her interests include singing, dancing and designing clothes. Zendaya hopes that just as theater led her to television, Shake It Up will someday lead her to opportunities in the music industry. In October 2010, Zendaya told Variety
Variety (magazine)
Variety is an American weekly entertainment-trade magazine founded in New York City, New York, in 1905 by Sime Silverman. With the rise of the importance of the motion-picture industry, Daily Variety, a daily edition based in Los Angeles, California, was founded by Silverman in 1933. In 1998, the...
, "I love singing and would love to record an album at some point."
Singing career
Zendaya's first single was a song called "Swag It Out", released online through iTunes and Amazon. The official music video for the song had a preview release on YouTube. Zendaya and Bella ThorneBella Thorne
Annabella Avery "Bella" Thorne is an American teen actress, dancer, singer, and model. She is a child model and actor with appearances in more than 20 films and television series and more than 60 commercials, she is best known for her role as the aspiring young dancer, CeCe Jones on the Disney...
have a music video for the song "Watch Me" which premiered as a commercial on Disney Channel on June 17, 2011 during the A.N.T. Farm
A.N.T. Farm
A.N.T. Farm is a Disney Channel television sitcom that premiered on May 6, 2011 as a special preview and continued as a regular series on June 17, 2011. The pilot episode, "TransplANTed" aired after the series finale of The Suite Life on Deck...
premiere. Zedaya has been in a Kidz Bop music video for Katy Perry's "Hot n Cold".
Filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Kidz Bop: 'Hot n Cold' Kidz Bop 15 Kidz Bop 15 is the 15th edition to the Kidz Bop series and was released on February 3, 2009. It debuted and peaked at number seven on the Billboard 200 albums chart. This is the third Kidz Bop album in a row to include an iTunes Bonus Track... |
"Kidz Bop" dancer & singer | Music video |
| 2010–present | Shake It Up Shake It Up (TV series) Shake It Up is an American television sitcom airing on Disney Channel in the United States. The series premiered on November 7, 2010. Created by Chris Thompson and starring Bella Thorne and Zendaya, the show follows the adventures of Cece Jones and Rocky Blue as they star as background dancers on... |
Rocky Blue | Co-lead |
| 2011 | Good Luck Charlie Good Luck Charlie Good Luck Charlie is an original Disney Channel television sitcom, which premiered April 4, 2010. The series was created by Phil Baker and Drew Vaupen, who wanted to create a program that would appeal to entire families, as opposed to children only... |
Rocky Blue | Crossover episode, "Charlie Shakes It Up" |
| 2011 | PrankStars PrankStars PrankStars is a hidden camera/reality series that premiered on Disney Channel on July 15, 2011. It is hosted by Pair of Kings and Hannah Montana star Mitchel Musso. The series involves children and teenagers set up by their friends and family to meet their favorite stars in "unpredictable and... |
Herself | Episode, Walk The Prank, alongside host Mitchel Musso Mitchel Musso Mitchel Tate Musso is an American actor, singer-songwriter and musician. Musso is best known for his three Disney Channel roles as Oliver Oken in the Disney Channel sitcom, Hannah Montana, Jeremy Johnson in the Disney Channel animated series Phineas and Ferb and his role as King Brady in the... |
| 2012 | Frenemies Frenemies (film) Frenemies is a 2012 television film and anthology based on the novel of the same name by Alexa Young set to premiere on Disney Channel. It features an ensemble cast of Bella Thorne, Zendaya, Stefanie Scott, Nick Robinson, and Mary Mouser. The film follows three pairs of friends that go from friends... |
Halley Brandon | Lead role, Disney Channel Original Movie |
| 2011 | Tinker Bell and the Pixie Hollow Games Tinker Bell and the Pixie Hollow Games Pixie Hollow Games is a half-hour TV special broadcast in 2011, based on the Disney Fairies franchise, produced by DisneyToon Studios. It features the voices of Mae Whitman, Brenda Song, Megan Hilty, and others, as Tinker Bell and the other fairies of Pixie Hollow in Never Land, taking part in an... |
Fern (voice) |
Discography
| Year | Title | Comments |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | "Dig Down Deeper" | Single and song for Tinker Bell and the Pixie Hollow Games Tinker Bell and the Pixie Hollow Games Pixie Hollow Games is a half-hour TV special broadcast in 2011, based on the Disney Fairies franchise, produced by DisneyToon Studios. It features the voices of Mae Whitman, Brenda Song, Megan Hilty, and others, as Tinker Bell and the other fairies of Pixie Hollow in Never Land, taking part in an... |
| "Swag It Out" | Single | |
| "Watch Me" | Single & Music Video with Bella Thorne | |
| 2009-2010 | Hot & Cold | Music Video From Kids Bop |
| I'm Gonna Arrive | Music Video With Selena Gomez & Kids |