Taylour Dominique Paige-Angulo (born October 5, 1990) is an American actress and dancer. She is best known for her role as Ahsha Hayes in the VH1 sports drama series '' Hit the Floor'', and has gained recognition for her performances in the films ''

Jean of the Joneses ''Jean of the Joneses'' is a 2016 Canadian-American film written and directed by Stella Meghie in her directorial debut. The film, starring Taylour Paige as the eponymous Jean Jones, premiered at the 2016 SXSW Film Festival. Plot Jean Jones is a ...

'' (2016), ''

White Boy Rick ''White Boy Rick'' is a 2018 American crime drama film directed by Yann Demange and written by Andy Weiss, Logan Miller, and Noah Miller. The film stars Richie Merritt, Matthew McConaughey, Bel Powley, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Brian Tyree Henry, R ...

'' (2018), ''

Ma Rainey's Black Bottom ''Ma Rainey's Black Bottom'' is a 1982 play – one of the ten-play Pittsburgh Cycle by August Wilson, and the only one not set in Pittsburgh – that chronicles the 20th-century African-American experience. The play is set in a recording stu ...

'' (2020), ''

Boogie Boogie is a repetitive, swung note or shuffle rhythm,Burrows, Terry (1995). ''Play Country Guitar'', p.42. Dorling Kindersley Limited, London. . "groove" or pattern used in blues which was originally played on the piano in boogie-woogie mus ...

'' (2021), and ''

Zola Zola may refer to: People * Zola (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name * Zola (musician) (born 1977), South African entertainer * Zola (rapper), French rapper * Émile Zola, a major nineteenth-century French writer Plac ...

'' (2020). Her performance in the latter film won her the

Independent Spirit Award for Best Female Lead The Independent Spirit Award for Best Female Lead wass one of the annual Independent Spirit Awards to honor an actress who has delivered an outstanding Leading actor, lead performance in an independent film. It was first presented in 1985 with Gera ...

. In 2022, Paige ventured into music, collaborating with

Kendrick Lamar Kendrick Lamar Duckworth (born June 17, 1987) is an American rapper and songwriter. Known for his Progressive rap, progressive musical styles and Social consciousness, socially conscious songwriting, he is often considered one of the most infl ...

on the song "

We Cry Together "We Cry Together" is a song by American rapper Kendrick Lamar and American actress Taylour Paige, taken from the former's fifth studio album, '' Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers'', released on May 13, 2022. The eighth track on the album, Lamar wr ...

", which reached the top twenty on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and earned her a

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...

nomination.

Early life and education

Taylour Dominique Paige was born on October 5, 1990, in

Santa Monica, California Santa Monica (; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast (California), South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 United Sta ...

to Reginald Paige and Cheryl Williams. She grew up in

Inglewood, California Inglewood is a city in southwestern Los Angeles County, California, in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 107,762. It was incorporated on February 14, 1908. The city is in the South Bay ...

, a suburb of

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' ...

, with her older brother Travis. Paige began dancing at the age of 2 and trained at Katnap in

Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 ...

, Westside Ballet Academy, and later spent two consecutive summers at the

Kirov Academy of Ballet The Kirov Academy of Ballet (formerly the Universal Ballet Academy) was a ballet school in Washington, D.C. It was founded in 1989. It closed in May 2022 due to financial issues. Facilities The Kirov is located on a 1.2 acre campus in northeas ...

Washington, DC ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan ...

. In 2001, she became a student of choreographer

Debbie Allen Deborah Kaye Allen (born January 16, 1950) is an American actress, dancer, choreographer, singer-songwriter, director, producer, and a former member of the President's Committee on the Arts and Humanities. She has been nominated 20 times for an ...

, and auditioned for her musical ''Pearl''. Paige attended St. Bernard Catholic High School in

Playa del Rey Playa del Rey (Spanish for "Beach of the King") is a seaside community in the Santa Monica Bay and the Westside region of Los Angeles, California. It has a ZIP code of 90293 and area codes of 310 and 424. As of 2018, the community had a populat ...

where she graduated in 2008. She became a Los Angeles Laker Girl in 2010 and spent three months with the professional

cheerleading Cheerleading is an activity in which the participants (called cheerleaders) cheer for their team as a form of encouragement. It can range from chanting slogans to intense physical activity. It can be performed to motivate sports teams, to ente ...

squad before leaving to finish college and pursue her acting career. As a Laker Girl, she was featured in a special by

Fox Sports Fox Sports is the brand name for a number of sports channels, broadcast divisions, programming, and other media around the world. The ''Fox Sports'' name has since been used for other sports media assets. These assets are held mainly by the Fo ...

on the making of the 2011 Laker Girls Calendar. She is a graduate of

Loyola Marymount University Loyola Marymount University (LMU) is a private Jesuit and Marymount research university in Los Angeles, California. It is located on the west side of the city near Playa Vista. LMU is the parent school to Loyola Law School, which is located ...

Career

Paige has been featured in commercials and advertising campaigns for Transamerica,

Best Buy Best Buy Co. Inc. is an American multinational consumer electronics retailer headquartered in Richfield, Minnesota. Originally founded by Richard M. Schulze and James Wheeler in 1966 as an audio specialty store called Sound of Music, it was rebra ...

McDonald's McDonald's Corporation is an American Multinational corporation, multinational fast food chain store, chain, founded in 1940 as a restaurant operated by Richard and Maurice McDonald, in San Bernardino, California, United States. They rechri ...

Adidas Adidas AG (; stylized as adidas since 1949) is a German multinational corporation, founded and headquartered in Herzogenaurach, Bavaria, that designs and manufactures shoes, clothing and accessories. It is the largest sportswear manufactur ...

and ''

Just Dance 3 ''Just Dance 3'' is a 2011 dance rhythm game released on the Wii, Xbox 360, and PlayStation 3 with Kinect and Move support respectively for the latter two. It is part of the '' Just Dance'' video game series published by Ubisoft originally on the ...

'' following her stint as a Laker Girl. Her first film role was in '' High School Musical 3: Senior Year'' (2008), where she was a featured dancer. After appearing in small roles in several short films, Paige starred as Ahsha Hayes in the sports drama television series '' Hit the Floor'' (2013–2018). She left the show in 2016 after three seasons. In 2016, Paige starred as the eponymous character in Canadian filmmaker

Stella Meghie Stella Meghie is a Canadian film director and screenwriter. She is known for her feature films ''Jean of the Joneses'' (2016), '' Everything, Everything'' (2017)'', The Weekend'' (2018), and '' The Photograph'' (2020). Meghie has also directed e ...

's directorial debut ''

''. The film was met with positive reviews. She had a supporting role as Cathy Volsan-Curry in the crime drama film ''

'' (2018), which was met with mixed reviews. Paige has made guest appearances in the thirteenth season of ''

Grey's Anatomy ''Grey's Anatomy'' is an American medical drama television series that premiered on March 27, 2005, on ABC as a mid-season replacement. The series focuses on the lives of surgical interns, residents, and attendings as they develop into se ...

'' and ''

Ballers ''Ballers'' is an American sports comedy drama television series created by Stephen Levinson and starring Dwayne Johnson as Spencer Strasmore, a retired NFL player who must navigate his new career of choice as the financial manager of other NFL ...

''. Paige had her

breakthrough role A breakthrough role, also known as a breakout role, is a term in the film industry to describe the performance of an actor or actress which contributed significantly to the development of their career and beginning of critical recognition. The si ...

as the titular character in the black comedy crime film ''

'' (2020). The film and her performance earned rave reviews, and earned Paige the

. That same year, Paige had a supporting role as Dussie Mae in the drama film ''

'', which was met with critical acclaim and earned her an

NAACP Image Award The NAACP Image Awards is an annual awards ceremony presented by the U.S.-based National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) to honor outstanding performances in film, television, theatre, music, and literature. Similar to ...

nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture. In May 2022, Paige made her music debut by contributing to rapper

's fifth studio album '' Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers'' on the critically-acclaimed track "

", earning a

nomination. She then co-starred alongside Lamar on its short film adaptation in September. In November, Paige was featured in Barbadian singer

Rihanna Robyn Rihanna Fenty ( ; born February 20, 1988) is a Barbadian singer, actress, and businesswoman. Born in Saint Michael and raised in Bridgetown, Barbados, Rihanna auditioned for American record producer Evan Rogers who invited her to the ...

's fourth installment of her ''

Savage X Fenty Show ''Savage X Fenty Show'' is an American television special about the annual fashion show for Rihanna's lingerie brand Savage X Fenty, also featuring music performances. The first, non-televised event took place in Brooklyn during New York Fashion ...

''.

Upcoming projects

In May 2021, Paige landed the female lead opposite

Peter Dinklage Peter Hayden Dinklage (; born June 11, 1969) is an American film, television and stage actor. He received international recognition for portraying Tyrion Lannister on the HBO television series ''Game of Thrones'' (2011–2019), for which he wo ...

and

Jacob Tremblay Jacob Tremblay ( ; born October 5, 2006) is a Canadian actor. He is the recipient of various accolades, including a Canadian Screen Award, a Critics' Choice Movie Award, a Young Artist Award, and nominations for a Screen Actors Guild Award, tw ...

in the upcoming superhero film '' The Toxic Avenger'' for

Legendary Entertainment Legendary Pictures Productions, LLC (doing business as Legendary Entertainment or simply Legendary) is an American film production and mass media company based in Burbank, California, founded by Thomas Tull in 2000. The company has collaborated ...

. On August 23, ''

Deadline Hollywood ''Deadline Hollywood'', commonly known as ''Deadline'' and also referred to as ''Deadline.com'', is an online news site founded as the news blog ''Deadline Hollywood Daily'' by Nikki Finke in 2006. The site is updated several times a day, with ...

'' reported that she closed another deal with Legendary to star in the upcoming comedy film ''

Brothers A brother is a man or boy who shares one or more parents with another; a male sibling. The female counterpart is a sister. Although the term typically refers to a familial relationship, it is sometimes used endearingly to refer to non-familia ...

''. In March 2022, Paige signed on to star alongside

Vito Schnabel Vito Schnabel (born July 27, 1986) is an American art dealer and owner of Vito Schnabel Gallery, with locations in New York, Santa Monica, and St. Moritz, Switzerland. Biography Schnabel (born 1986) was born and raised in New York City. He is t ...

in the upcoming dark comedy film ''The Trainer''. In September, she joined the cast of the upcoming action comedy film '' Beverly Hills Cop: Axel Foley'', where she will star alongside

Eddie Murphy Edward Regan Murphy (born April 3, 1961) is an American actor, comedian, writer, producer, and singer. He rose to fame on the sketch comedy show ''Saturday Night Live'', for which he was a regular cast member from 1980 to 1984. Murphy has als ...

and

Joseph Gordon-Levitt Joseph Leonard Gordon-Levitt (; born February 17, 1981) is an American actor. He has received various accolades, including nominations for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy for his leading performances ...

Personal life

From May 2019 to August 2021, Paige was in a relationship with actor Jesse Williams. On October 5, 2022, she married fashion designer Gary "Rivington Starchild" Angulo after sharing their engagement two weeks prior.

Filmography

Film

Television

Music videos

Discography

Charted songs

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Paige, Taylour 1990 births 21st-century African-American people 21st-century African-American women 21st-century American actresses Actresses from Inglewood, California Actresses from Los Angeles Actresses from Santa Monica, California African-American actresses African-American female dancers African-American dancers American cheerleaders American female dancers 21st-century American dancers African-American female models American female models African-American models American television actresses Independent Spirit Award for Best Female Lead winners Living people Loyola Marymount University alumni National Basketball Association cheerleaders