Farrah Laron Franklin (born May 3, 1981) is an American
R&B singer and actress. She is also a former member of the girl group
Destiny's Child
Destiny's Child was an American girl group whose final line-up comprised Beyoncé Knowles, Kelly Rowland, and Michelle Williams. The group began their musical career as Girl's Tyme, formed in 1990 in Houston, Texas. After years of limited ...
. Along with
Michelle Williams, she replaced the group's original members
LaTavia Roberson
LaTavia Marie Roberson (born November 1, 1981) is an American R&B singer. She rose to fame in the late 1990s as an original member of the R&B group Destiny's Child, one of the world's best-selling girl groups of all time. During her time as ...
and
LeToya Luckett
LeToya Nicole Luckett (born March 11, 1981) is an American R&B singer and actress. She rose to fame in the late 1990s as a founding member of the R&B girl group Destiny's Child, one of the world's best-selling girl groups of all time. As a me ...
. Franklin spent several months with the group before departing as a member. While her musical contribution to the group was minimal, Franklin's vocals are featured on the group's single "
Independent Women Part I
"Independent Women Part I" is a song recorded by American group Destiny's Child for the soundtrack to the 2000 film adaptation of the television program '' Charlie's Angels''. It was written and produced by production duo Poke & Tone, consisti ...
" which peaked at number one on the
''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart, following her departure.
Early life
Franklin was born in
Des Moines, Iowa
Des Moines () is the capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Iowa. It is also the county seat of Polk County. A small part of the city extends into Warren County. It was incorporated on September 22, 1851, as Fort Des Moines, ...
, and raised in
Fresno, California
Fresno () is a major city in the San Joaquin Valley of California, United States. It is the county seat of Fresno County and the largest city in the greater Central Valley region. It covers about and had a population of 542,107 in 2020, makin ...
. She considers Lawrence Bohanon to be her dad, as she never met her biological father, Rodney Allen Heard. Franklin grew up attending church and loving music. She started singing at age two, inspired by Bohanon, who played bass guitar in local bands. She also had a passion for acting and dance. When Franklin was eight, she began performing in plays at the
Fresno Memorial Auditorium
The Fresno Memorial Auditorium, at 2425 Fresno St. in Fresno, California, was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1994. Besides the one contributing building, the listing included two contributing objects and a contributing site ...
. She was in the concert choir at
Central High School, where she was bullied. At fifteen, Franklin became motivated to leave Fresno to pursue a career in entertainment, after her aunt moved to
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
. She went by the name, Destiny Franklin, before her stint in Destiny's Child. She is of African-American and Italian descent, and the oldest of nineteen children, including a younger sister named Karrie. She is also the cousin of late singer/rapper
Natina Reed.
Career
1999–2000: Destiny's Child
In 1999, while living in Los Angeles, Franklin was hired to be an extra in the music video for
Destiny's Child
Destiny's Child was an American girl group whose final line-up comprised Beyoncé Knowles, Kelly Rowland, and Michelle Williams. The group began their musical career as Girl's Tyme, formed in 1990 in Houston, Texas. After years of limited ...
's "
Bills, Bills, Bills
"Bills, Bills, Bills" is a song by American group Destiny's Child from their second studio album, ''The Writing's on the Wall'' (1999). It was written by Beyoncé Knowles, LeToya Luckett, Kelly Rowland, Kandi Burruss of Xscape, and Kevin "She'k ...
". It was there that she met with group members
Beyoncé Knowles
Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter ( ; born September 4, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Beyoncé's boundary-pushing artistry and vocals have made her the most influential female musician of the 21st century, according to ...
,
Kelly Rowland
Kelendria Trene Rowland (born February 11, 1981) is an American singer, actress, and television personality. She rose to fame in the late 1990s as a member of Destiny's Child, one of the world's List of best-selling girl groups, best-selling girl ...
,
LeToya Luckett
LeToya Nicole Luckett (born March 11, 1981) is an American R&B singer and actress. She rose to fame in the late 1990s as a founding member of the R&B girl group Destiny's Child, one of the world's best-selling girl groups of all time. As a me ...
, and
LaTavia Roberson
LaTavia Marie Roberson (born November 1, 1981) is an American R&B singer. She rose to fame in the late 1990s as an original member of the R&B group Destiny's Child, one of the world's best-selling girl groups of all time. During her time as ...
. At the time, she was in a fledgling singing group called Jane Doe, which was in the process of disbanding. In January 2000,
Mathew Knowles
Mathew Knowles (born January 9, 1952)Knowles in is an American record executive, businessman and university lecturer. He is best known for being the manager of Destiny's Child. He also once managed the solo careers of his daughters Beyoncé an ...
invited Franklin and
Michelle Williams to join Destiny's Child, replacing previous group members LeToya and LaTavia without notice. The two were introduced to fans in February 2000, by appearing in the music video for "
Say My Name
"Say My Name" is a song by American group Destiny's Child from their second studio album, ''The Writing's on the Wall'' (1999). It was written by Beyoncé Knowles, LeToya Luckett, LaTavia Roberson, Kelly Rowland, LaShawn Daniels, Fred Jerkins I ...
". Franklin toured and performed with the group, and also appeared in the music video for "
Jumpin', Jumpin'
"Jumpin', Jumpin'" is a song by American group Destiny's Child for their second studio album, ''The Writing's on the Wall'' (1999). The song was co-written and co-produced by group member Beyoncé Knowles and Chad Elliott, with additional writin ...
". She contributed vocals to various Destiny's Child songs, including "Jumpin', Jumpin'" (Remixes), "Upside Down" (Live at
VH1 Divas), and "Dot", as well as a few tracks on ''
Survivor'', released after her departure, like "
Independent Women
"Independent Women Part I" is a song recorded by American group Destiny's Child for the soundtrack to the 2000 film adaptation of the television program '' Charlie's Angels''. It was written and produced by production duo Poke & Tone, consisti ...
" and "Dance with Me".
On July 20, 2000, after six months with Destiny's Child, Franklin exited the group. A day later, group member Beyoncé claimed in an interview that Franklin had missed three major promotional dates and expressed a lack of interest in continuing with the group, leaving them with no other choice but to dismiss her. In a later interview, Franklin denied Beyoncé's allegation, stating that she had suffered from dehydration and a stomach virus but was recovering as she traveled with the group to do shows in Seattle and Europe. Farrah contended that after being verbally attacked by management, due to her not showing up because she was ill, she stormed out of the room and quit the group.
2001–present: Solo projects
After leaving Destiny's Child, Franklin embarked on a solo career. From 2002 to 2003, she was signed to and dropped from
Fo' Reel, where she recorded a song titled "Get at Me" with
Method Man
Clifford Smith, Jr. (born March 2, 1971), better known by his stage name Method Man, is an American rapper, songwriter, record producer, and actor. He is known as a member of the East Coast hip hop collective Wu-Tang Clan. He is also half of t ...
. She then spent two years signed to
Fabolous
John David Jackson (born November 18, 1977), better known by his stage name Fabolous, is an American rapper. Raised in Brooklyn, he first gained recognition while still a senior in high school, when he performed live on American music executive ...
street label, Street Family Entertainment, before getting dropped in 2005. Prior to joining Destiny's Child, Franklin appeared in the 1999 feature film ''
Trippin'
''Trippin'' is a 2005 MTV environmental documentary television series hosted by Cameron Diaz. It also features many other celebrities, including Drew Barrymore, Redman, Jessica Alba, Eva Mendes
Eva de la Caridad Méndez (, ; born March 5 ...
'' and began an acting career, starring in 2004's ''The Brewster Project''. In 2006, she was cast in an episode on the sitcom,
All of Us
''All of Us'' is an American sitcom television series that premiered on the UPN network in the United States on September 16, 2003, where it aired for its first three seasons. On October 1, 2006, the show moved to The CW, a new network formed by ...
. She shot an independent thriller film called ''Eyes of Darkness'', which also featured rapper
Jayo Felony
James Savage (born December 18, 1969), better known by his stage name Jayo Felony, is an American rapper from southeast San Diego, California.
Career
In 1994 Jayo Felony was signed to the label owned by Jam Master Jay from RUN DMC called Jam M ...
, and starred in other films like ''Single Black Female''. She's modeled for
Russell Simmons
Russell Wendell Simmons (born October 4, 1957) is an American entrepreneur, writer and record executive. He co-founded the hip-hop label Def Jam Recordings, and created the clothing fashion lines Phat Farm, Argyleculture, and Tantris. Simmons' ...
' fashion line Def Jam University and has been featured on the covers of ''
Teen People
''People'' is an American weekly magazine that specializes in celebrity news and human-interest stories. It is published by Dotdash Meredith, a subsidiary of IAC (company), IAC. With a readership of 46.6 million adults in 2009, ''People ...
'', ''
Ebony
Ebony is a dense black/brown hardwood, coming from several species in the genus ''Diospyros'', which also contains the persimmons. Unlike most woods, ebony is dense enough to sink in water. It is finely textured and has a mirror finish when pol ...
'', ''
CosmoGirl
''CosmoGirl'', also stylized as ''CosmoGIRL!'', was an American magazine based in New York City, published from 1999 until 2008. The teenage spin-off of ''Cosmopolitan'' magazine, it targeted teenage girls and featured fashion and celebrities. It ...
'', ''
Vibe
''Vibe'' is an American music and entertainment magazine founded by producers David Salzman and Quincy Jones. The publication predominantly features R&B and hip hop music artists, actors and other entertainers. After shutting down productio ...
'', and ''Today's Black Woman''. Aside from her work as a replacement member in Destiny's Child, she has cameoed in several music videos for artists like
Kurupt
Ricardo Emmanuel Brown (born November 23, 1972), better known by his stage name Kurupt, is an American rapper and record producer who aided gangsta rap's rise via 1990s verses helping set lasting trends. He is one half of the rap duo Tha Dogg Po ...
,
Nelly
Cornell Iral Haynes Jr. (born November 2, 1974), better known by his stage name Nelly, is an American rapper, singer, actor and entrepreneur. He embarked on his music career with the hip hop group St. Lunatics in 1993 and signed to Universal ...
,
Mr. Cheeks
Terrance Kelly (born March 28, 1971), known professionally as Mr. Cheeks, is an American rapper best known for his work with the musical group Lost Boyz, and as a solo artist with the single "Lights, Camera, Action!".
Biography 1991–2019: L ...
, and
R. L. Huggar
Robert Lavelle Huggar (born April 2, 1977), better known by his initials RL, is an American singer, songwriter and record producer. He is best known for being the lead singer of the R&B group Next.
Early life
Robert Lavelle Huggar was born in 1 ...
.
In January 2007, Franklin made an appearance with other former members of Destiny's Child in the E! special ''
Boulevard of Broken Dreams'', which documented their experiences in Destiny's Child and the issues that Franklin faced during the months she was present in the group. Franklin insisted that she was mistreated and ignored by management during meetings when she asked questions about the massive deductions in the group's paychecks. She released a single called "Lollipop" in 2008.
In 2014, Franklin moved from
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
to
Atlanta
Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...
, hoping to restart her career in music. She released a promotional single called "Magic N Makeup" to all streaming markets on September 15, 2015. The music video for the single was released via her official Vevo channel on September 24, 2015. In 2016, Franklin released a song titled "Over" and uploaded another called "Billion Dollar Fantasy" to SoundCloud in 2017. In 2018, she collaborated with singer Lucky Harmon on the song "Build Me Up", which she cowrote. Franklin also owns a company called One Love Pictures and Entertainment. In June 2020, she released the single "Push Up On Me" featuring rapper
Maino.
Personal life
In June 2016, Franklin was detained by police in DeKalb County, Georgia on charges of public intoxication and marijuana possession. This incident mirrored her 2011 arrest in Culver, City, California and her 2014 arrest in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. Franklin's biological father, Rodney Allen Heard, died in July 2017.
She currently lives in Atlanta, Georgia.
Filmography
* ''The Brewster Project'' (2004) as Maya
* ''
All of Us
''All of Us'' is an American sitcom television series that premiered on the UPN network in the United States on September 16, 2003, where it aired for its first three seasons. On October 1, 2006, the show moved to The CW, a new network formed by ...
'' (TV series, episode: "Robert and Neesee Get Real") (2006)
* ''Unemployed'' (2008) as Unemployment Clerk
* ''Single Black Female'' (2009) as Karma
* ''The Preacher's Family'' (2011) as LaJune Carter
* ''Eyes of Darkness'' (2014)
* ''Tamales and Gumbo'' (2015)
* ''Rated ATL'' (2016)
Discography
;Singles
* 2008: "Lolli Pop"
* 2015: "Magic N Makeup"
* 2016: "Over"
* 2017: "Billion Dolla Fantasy"
* 2018: "Build Me Up" (with Lucky Harmon)
* 2020: "Push Up On Me"
References
External links
*
Farrah FranklinLast.fm
{{DEFAULTSORT:Franklin, Farrah
1981 births
1980s births
Living people
20th-century American women singers
21st-century American women singers
African-American women singers
African-American actresses
American film actresses
American women pop singers
Actresses from Des Moines, Iowa
Actresses from Fresno, California
Actresses from Los Angeles
Musicians from Des Moines, Iowa
Musicians from Fresno, California
Singers from Los Angeles
Destiny's Child members
20th-century American singers
21st-century American singers
American people of Italian descent