Karolyn Ali (August 29, 1944 – August 18, 2015) was an American film and music video producer, best known for her documentary '' Tupac: Resurrection''. She started her career in the music industry, producing music and commercials. Ali worked for over 30 years on films, documentaries, music videos and commercials.

Career

Ali was assistant to Benny Ashburn (manager of the Commodores) early in her career. She served as an executive at

SOLAR Records SOLAR (acronym for Sound of Los Angeles Records) was an American record label founded in 1977 by Dick Griffey, reconstituted out of Soul Train Records only two years after it was founded with ''Soul Train'' television show host and creator Don C ...

where she worked in music video and commercial production. In 1984, she founded ''Renge Films'' (along with Bill Parker and Peter Allen) to produce commercials. The company produced commercials for companies such as Coca-Cola and McDonald's. Ali was a prolific producer of music videos (over 200) including Stevie Wonder's " Part Time Lover." In 1994, Ali produced her first feature film ''Kla$h,'' which starred Giacarlo Esposito and Jasmine Guy. In 2000, she joined

Amaru Entertainment Amaru Entertainment (formerly Amaru Records) is a record label founded in 1997 by Afeni Shakur after the death of her son Tupac Shakur, Tupac Amaru Shakur. The label was created to handle the release of Tupac's previously unreleased material, an ...

(

Tupac Shakur Tupac Amaru Shakur ( ; born Lesane Parish Crooks, June 16, 1971 – September 13, 1996), also known as 2Pac and Makaveli, was an American rapper. He is widely considered one of the most influential rappers of all time. Shakur is among the b ...

's company) as a senior production executive. In 2004, Ali was nominated for the

Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

for Best Documentary Feature for her film '' Tupac: Resurrection'', which she co-produced with

Lauren Lazin Lauren Lazin is an American filmmaker whose documentaries have been nominated for the Emmys multiple times. She directed and produced the 2005 Oscar-nominated documentary film '' Tupac: Resurrection''. Career Film work Lazin's first feature film ...

and Preston Holmes. She helped coordinate Shakur's memorial after his death. Over her career, she worked with performers such as

Ziggy Marley David Nesta "Ziggy" Marley (born 17 October 1968) is a Jamaican singer, songwriter, musician, actor and philanthropist. He is the son of reggae icon Bob Marley and Rita Marley. He led the family band Ziggy Marley and the Melody Makers until 20 ...

, Dionne Warwick and Burt Bacharach. Jasmine Guy described Ali in her book: "Karolyn is confident, articulate, worldly. She knows how to negotiate; she knows how to pitch. She knows how to talk on the phone. She knows how to conduct business without carrying the weight of her personal problems in the office. She knows how to talk to all kinds of people - white men, Black women, young brothers or sassy sisters, family members, business associates, money folk or moody artists."

Accolades

Ali was a recipient of the Lillian Gish Award from the organization Women in Film and the NAACP/Legal Defense Fund's award for Entrepreneur of the Year. She was a founding member of Theatre of Hearts/Youth First Artists-In-Residence and also a board chair. That organization helps empower under-served youth in Los Angeles.

Death

Ali died on August 18, 2015 at her home in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

at the age of 70.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ali, Karolyn 1944 births 2015 deaths Businesspeople from Los Angeles Film producers from California American women film producers American film producers Music video producers 20th-century American businesspeople 20th-century American businesswomen 21st-century American women