Harlem-based singer, rapper, songwriter, dancer, actor, and model Teyana Taylor gained recognition in the States on an early-2007 episode of MTV’s My Super Sweet 16. By the time it aired, she had already signed to Star Trak/Interscope, helped popularize the Chicken Noodle Soup dance, and aided in the choreography for Beyoncé’s “Ring the Alarm” video. Taylor’s brash first single, the Jazze Pha-produced “Google Me,” reached number 90 on Billboard’s Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart in 2008. The following year, she released a mixtape, From a Planet Called Harlem, and she co-wrote “So Cold” for Chris Brown. In 2010, she contributed some vocals to Kanye West’s My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, but her solo career stalled. A couple years later, she was released from her Interscope contract and subsequently uploaded new material as free downloads. She signed to West’s Def Jam-affiliated GOOD label, appeared on the Cruel Summer compilation, and released a clutch of steamy R&B singles prior to her proper debut album, VII, in 2014. As an actor, she has appeared in several movies, including Stomp the Yard 2: Homecoming, Madea’s Big Happy Family, and The Love Section. ~ Andy Kellman

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