https://www.biography.com/actor/zendaya
Born in Oakland, California on. September 1, 1996, actress and singer Zendaya came from a very theatrical background. As the daughter of a stage manager, she spent much of her childhood around the California Shakespeare Theater. She also trained in its youth program and appeared in some of its productions.
As a student at the Oakland School for the Arts, Zendaya landed a number of roles in local theatrical productions. She also advanced her experience at the American Conservatory Theater and the Cal Shakes Conservatory. Zendaya also showed interest in dance. She was a member of the Future Shock Oakland dance group for several years and studied hula dancing at the Academy of Hawaiian Arts.
Zendaya also had some early success as a model, working for companies such as Macy’s and Old Navy. Zendaya also performed as a backup dancer for Selena Gomez in a Sears commercial. She the eventually decided to use only her first name professionally. “Zendaya” means “to give thanks” in the language of the Shona people of Zimbabwe.
In 2010 Zendaya really saw her career take off with the debut of Shake It Up on the Disney Channel. Zendaya and her co-star, Bella Thorne, became idols to their young fan base. The songs they performed on the show, including “Something to Dance For,” were hit downloads with their target audience, and their two characters even inspired their own fashion line.
In 2013 Zendaya made the switch from the Disney show to Dancing with the Stars. She was paired with professional dancer Val Chmerkovskiy and competed against such celebrities as Andy Dick, Kellie Pickler and Aly Raisman. After Dancing With the Stars, Zendaya starred in the Disney comedy K.C. Undercover for three seasons before making a splash on the big screen in 2017 with Spider-Man: Homecoming and The Greatest Showman, playing the role of Anne Wheeler alongside Hugh Jackman in the latter. In 2018 Zendaya lent her voice to two animation films: Duck Duck Goose and Smallfoot. She then reprised her role as Michelle “M.J.” Jones in Spider-Man: Far From Home in 2019.
Distancing herself from her Disney image, Zendaya signed on for the starring role of Rue in the series Euphoria. Then in November 2019 the actress was declared the Best Drama TV Star, for Euphoria, and Best Female Movie Star, for Spider-Man: Far From Home, at the People’s Choice Awards. She won the Emmy for Best Lead Actress at the 72nd Emmy Awards in September 2020, making her the youngest person ever to win that category.