Issa Rae is an American actress, writer, and producer. She was born on January 12, 1985 in Los Angeles, California, USA.
She first garnered attention for her work on the YouTube web series Awkward Black Girl.
Since 2011, Rae has continued to develop her YouTube channel, which features various short films, web series, and other content created by people of color.
In 2012, Rae was included on the annual Forbes ”30 Under 30′ list in the entertainment section.
In May 2015, Rae appeared on the cover of Essence magazine’s Game Changers issue, alongside Shonda Rhimes, Debbie Allen, Ava DuVernay and Mara Brock Akil.
Rae expressed her desire for more people of color working in production behind the scenes to make a lasting impact in the television industry.
Below are 10 things Nigerian women should know about this talented actress:
1. Rae’s birth name, Jo-Issa, comes from a combination of the names of her grandmothers: Joyce and Isseu. Her middle name, Rae, is after an aunt, who was an artist.
2. Her father, Abdoulaye Diop, is a pediatrician and neonatologist from Senegal and her mother, Delyna Diop (née Hayward), is a teacher from Louisiana. Her parents met in France, when they were both in school. She has four siblings. Her father has a medical practice in Inglewood, California.
3. Diop graduated from King Drew Magnet High School of Medicine and Science where she started acting.Her parents divorced when she was in high school. She is fluent in French.
4. In 2007, Diop graduated from Stanford University with a Bachelor of Arts in African and African American Studies. As a college student, she made music videos, wrote and directed plays, and created a mock reality series called Dorm Diaries for fun.
5. Rae’s first book, a memoir titled The Misadventures of Awkward Black Girl was released in 2015 and became a New York Times best-seller.
6. On October 11, 2019, Google announced that Rae would be an additional voice to the Google Assistant. Users can make Google Assistant speak in Rae’s voice by saying “Ok Google, talk like Issa.”
7. Also in 2019, Issa Rae, through her newly launched record label “Raedio,” partnered with Atlantic Records to produce “Kinda Love” by singer-rapper TeaMarrr.
8. In March 2021, Rae’s production company, Hoorae, signed a five-year film and television deal with WarnerMedia.
9. Issa Rae married her longtime partner, Louis Diame, a Senegalese businessman, in a private ceremony in France in July 2021. Rae first wore her engagement ring publicly on the cover of Essence magazine’s April 2019 issue.
10. Issa Rae is an extremely vocal advocate for civil rights and women’s rights movements. All of her work has themes of equality and social justice throughout and make up a big part of her narratives. She works closely with organizations like the ACLU, BLD PWR, and Black Lives Matter.
Rae has achieved wider recognition as the co-creator, co-writer, and star of the HBO television series Insecure (2016–present), for which she has been nominated for multiple Golden Gloves Awards and Primetime Emmy Awards.
In 2018, Issa Rae was included in the annual Time 100 list of the most influential people in the world.