Tamika Sonja Lawrence is a two time Grammy winning American actress, singer, and writer.

Early life and education

Lawrence was born on January 11 in

Columbus, Ohio Columbus () is the state capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the 14th-most populous city in the U.S., the second-most populous city in the Midwest, after Chicago, and t ...

. She received her BFA in musical theatre from the

University of Arizona The University of Arizona (Arizona, U of A, UArizona, or UA) is a public land-grant research university in Tucson, Arizona. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, it was the first university in the Arizona Territory. T ...

Career

Lawrence made her off-Broadway debut in the 2011 revival of ''

Rent Rent may refer to: Economics *Renting, an agreement where a payment is made for the temporary use of a good, service or property *Economic rent, any payment in excess of the cost of production *Rent-seeking, attempting to increase one's share of e ...

'' as the "

Seasons of Love "Seasons of Love" is a song from the 1996 Broadway musical ''Rent'', written and composed by Jonathan Larson. The song starts with an ostinato piano motif, which provides the harmonic framework for the cast to sing "Five hundred twenty-five thou ...

" Soloist. Since then she has appeared in seven Broadway shows and made several television and film appearances. In 2017 Lawrence and her band, "The Slay", released their album ''UGLY''. Lawrence won a

Grammy 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 pre ...

for the ''

Dear Evan Hansen ''Dear Evan Hansen'' is a musical with music and lyrics by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul, and a book by Steven Levenson. The musical follows Evan Hansen, a high school senior with social anxiety, "who invents an important role for himself in a t ...

'' album in 2018. Lawrence announced that her debut record, ''Two Faced'', would be released in 2019. For her performance as Buni in the original off-Broadway production of '' Black No More'', Lawrence was nominated for the 2022

Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical The Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical is an annual award presented by Drama Desk in recognition of achievements in the theatre among Broadway, Off Broadway and Off-Off Broadway productions. The awards were established i ...

and

Lucille Lortel Award The Lucille Lortel Awards recognize excellence in New York Off-Broadway theatre. The Awards are named for Lucille Lortel, an actress and theater producer, and have been awarded since 1986. They are produced by the League of Off-Broadway Theatre ...

for Outstanding Lead Performer in a Musical.

Acting credits

Theatre

Film

Television

Discography

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Lawrence, Tamika 21st-century American actresses 21st-century American singers American film actresses American musical theatre actresses American television actresses American sopranos Living people American feminists Feminist musicians Year of birth missing (living people) 21st-century American women singers