ASHANTI 1980–

(Ashanti Douglas, Ashanti Shequoiya Douglas)

PERSONAL

Full name, Ashanti Douglas (some sources cite Ashanti Shequoiya Douglas or Ashantiveli Douglas); born October 13, 1980, in Glen Cove, NY; daughter of Kincaid (a manager, computer specialist, and singer; other sources cite name as Thomas or Ken-Kaid) and Tina (a manager, computer specialist, and dance teacher) Douglas. Education: Studied dance at Bernice Johnson Cultural Arts Center.

Addresses: Agent—TalentWorks, 3500 West Olive Ave., Suite 1400, Burbank, CA 91505; (music) International Creative Management, 8942 Wilshire Blvd., Beverly Hills, CA 90211. Contact—c/o The Inc., 825 Eighth Ave., New York, NY 10019.

Career: Singer, songwriter, recording artist, and actress. The Inc. (record label; formerly known as Murder Inc.), New York City, recording artist, beginning 2001; backup singer for Jennifer Lopez; dancer, including appearances at Carnegie Hall, New York City, 1989, and at the Apollo Theatre. Worked as a model; appeared in advertisements and public service announcements.

Awards, Honors: Lady of Soul awards, best rhythm and blues/soul new artist and Aretha Franklin Entertainer of the Year Award, both 2002; Teen Choice Award, choice breakout artist, 2002; named best rhythm and blues artist, Rolling Stone readers' poll, 2002; named best new R & B diva, Entertainment Weekly, 2002; nomination for best new artist, Black Entertainment Television, 2002; Grammy Award, best contemporary rhythm and blues album, National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, Billboard awards, female artist of the year, top new pop artist of the year, rhythm and blues/hip-hop artist of the year, rhythm and blues/hip-hop female artist of the year, new rhythm and blues/hip-hop artist of the year, and hot 100 singles artist of the year, and Lady of Soul Award nomination, rhythm and blues/soul album of the year, all 2002, Soul Train Award, best female rhythm and blues/soul album, Soul Train Award nomination, rhythm and blues/soul or rap album of the year, and American Music Award nominations, favorite pop or rock 'n' roll music album and favorite hip-hop/ rhythm and blues music album, all 2003, all for Ashanti; MTV Video Music award nomination, best hip-hop video, and Teen Choice Award nomination, choice music collaboration, both 2002, and Grammy Award nomination, best rap/sung collaboration, 2003, all with Fat Joe, all for the song "What's Luv?"; Billboard Award, rhythm and blues/hip-hop single of the year, Lady of Soul Award nominations, best rhythm and blues/soul single, rhythm and blues/soul song of the year, and best rhythm and blues soul music video, MTV Video Music Award nominations, best female video, best rhythm and blues video, and best new artist in a video, and Teen Choice Award nomination, choice rhythm and blues/hip-hop single, all 2002, Soul Train Award, best rhythm and blues/soul single by a female, 2003, and Grammy Award nomination, best rhythm and blues vocal performance, 2003, all for the song "Foolish"; MTV Video Music Award nomination, best hip-hop video, Teen Choice Award nomination, choice music collaboration, and Viewers' Choice Award nomination, Black Entertainment Television, all 2002, and Grammy Award nomination, best rap/sung collaboration, 2003, all with Ja Rule, all for the song "Always on Time"; American Music awards, favorite new artist in pop/rock and favorite new artist in hip-hop/rhythm and blues, and American Music Award nominations, Fans' Choice Award and favorite female artist in hip-hop/rhythm and blues, all 2003; Image Award, outstanding new artist, National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, and Image Award nomination, outstanding female artist, both 2003; Blimp Award, best new artist, Nickelodeon Kids' Choice awards, 2003; Grammy Award nomination, best new artist, 2003; Grammy Award nomination, best contemporary rhythm and blues album, 2003, for Chapter II; Grammy Award nomination, best rhythm and blues vocal performance, 2003, for "Rain on Me," Chapter II; MTV Movie Award nomination, breakthrough female, and Teen Choice Award nomination, choice movie breakout performance by a female, both 2005, for Coach Carter; Teen Choice Award nomination, choice crossover artist, 2005.

CREDITS

Television Appearances; Miniseries:

Herself, I Love the '80s Strikes Back, VH1, 2003.

Television Appearances; Movies:

Dorothy Gale, "The Muppets' Wizard of Oz," The Wonderful World of Disney, ABC, 2005.

Television Appearances; Specials:

Dancer, Polly, NBC, 1989.

MTV's New Year's Eve 2002, MTV, 2001.

MTV Spring Break, MTV, 2002.

Party in the Park, Channel 5 (England), 2002.

Summer Music Mania 2002, Fox, 2002.

Herself, When I Was 17, MTV, 2003.

America's Party: New Years Live from Las Vegas, Fox, 2003.

(As Ashanti Shequoiya Douglas) Ashanti: Chapter II, ABC Family Channel, 2003.

Christmas in Rockefeller Center, NBC, 2003.

Christmas in Washington, TNT, 2003.

Fromage 2003, MuchMusic, 2003.

MTV Presents Teen People Magazine's 25 Hottest Stars under 29, MTV, 2003.

Real Access: Hot 24 in 2004, MTV, 2003.

Road Trippin with Ashanti, MTV, 2003.

The Sixth Annual Sears Soul Train Christmas Starfest, UPN, 2003.

The 2003 Essence Music Festival, UPN, 2003.

VH1 Divas Duet, VH1, 2003.

Herself, Maxim Hot 100, VH1, 2003, 2004.

Herself, Ladies of the VMAs, MTV, 2004.

Herself, Prince: The Art of Musicology, MTV, 2004.

Herself, VH1 and Self Magazine's Top 10 Rock Bodies, VH1, 2004.

Apollo at 70: A Hot Night in Harlem, NBC, 2004.

Ashanti: Custom Concert, Oxygen Channel, 2004.

An Evening of Stars 25th Anniversary: Tribute to Lou Rawls, NBC, 2004.

VH1 Divas 2004, VH1, 2004.

(As Ashanti Douglas) All That 10th Anniversary Reunion Special, Nickelodeon, 2005.

MTV's Iced Out New Year's Eve 2005, MTV, 2005.

Television Appearances; Awards Presentations:

MTV Video Music Awards 2002 (also known as VMAs 2002), MTV, 2002.

Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards '02, Nickelodeon, 2002.

The Second Annual BET Awards, Black Entertainment Television, 2002.

The 16th Annual Soul Train Music Awards, syndicated, 2002.

The 2002 Billboard Music Awards, Fox, 2002.

Presenter, MTV Video Music Awards 2003, MTV, 2003.

The 45th Annual Grammy Awards, CBS, 2003.

(In archive footage) MTV Europe Music Awards 2003, MTV, 2003.

The Third Annual BET Awards, Black Entertainment Television, 2003.

The 30th Annual American Music Awards, ABC, 2003.

The 31st Annual American Music Awards, ABC, 2003.

2003 Much Music Video Music Awards, MuchMusic, 2003.

Herself, VH1 Big in '04, VH1, 2004.

The Second Annual Vibe Awards, UPN, 2004.

The Third Annual TV Land Awards: A Celebration of Classic TV, TV Land, 2005.

Television Appearances; Episodic:

(Uncredited) Saturday Night Live (also known as NBC's "Saturday Night," Saturday Night, and SNL), NBC, 2001.

Herself, "Ashanti: Princess of Her Domain," Diary, MTV, 2002.

Herself, "Call Me Crazy," Sabrina, the Teenage Witch (also known as Sabrina and Sabrina Goes to College), The WB, 2002.

Dionne Warwick, "Silent Night," American Dreams (also known as Bandstand, Miss American Pie, and Our Generation), NBC, 2002.

Guest, Top of the Pops (also known as All New Top of the Pops and TOTP), BBC, 2002.

Guest, V Graham Norton, Channel 4 (England), 2002.

Guest, The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, NBC, 2002, 2005.

Herself, Intimate Portrait: Ashanti, Lifetime, 2003.

Lissa, "First Date," Buffy the Vampire Slayer (also known as Buffy and BtVS), UPN, 2003.

Guest, Entertainment Tonight (also known as ET), syndicated, 2003.

Guest, Punk'd, MTV, 2003.

Guest, Tinseltown TV, International Channel, 2003.

Pepsi Smash, The WB, 2003.

Guest, Live with Regis and Kelly, syndicated, 2004, 2005.

(As Ashanti Douglas) Herself, "Magic Carpet Fred," Las Vegas, NBC, 2005.

Guest, Ellen: The Ellen DeGeneres Show (also known as Ellen and The Ellen DeGeneres Show), syndicated, 2005.

Guest, GMTV, Independent Television, 2005.

Guest, Last Call with Carson Daly, NBC, 2005.

Guest, 106 & Park Top 10 Live (also known as 106 & Park), Black Entertainment Television, 2005.

Appeared in an episode of Ride with Funkmaster Flex, Spike TV; and as a guest, The View, ABC. Appeared in archive footage in The Fabulous Life Presents: Celebrity Rags to Riches, VH1.

Television Producer; Specials:

(As Ashanti Shequoiya Douglas) Ashanti: Chapter II, ABC Family Channel, 2003.

Film Appearances:

Rudy, Alice on Stage, 1997.

Kyra, Coach Carter, Paramount, 2005.

Performer, Bride & Prejudice (musical; also known as Bride and Prejudice: The Bollywood Musical), Miramax, 2005.

Heather, John Tucker Must Die, Twentieth Century-Fox, 2006.

Performer of songs that have appeared in films, television productions, and videos.

RECORDINGS

Albums:

Ashanti, Murder Inc., 2002.

Ashanti's Christmas, The Inc., 2003.

Chapter II, Def Jam, 2003.

Maximum Ashanti, Chrome Dreams, 2003.

7 Series Sampler: Ashanti, The Inc., 2003.

Can't Stop, Black Claw, 2004.

Concrete Rose, Def Jam, 2004.

Albums with Others:

The Fast and the Furious (soundtrack recording), 2001.

Disneymania, Walt Disney, 2002.

Irv Gotti Presents the Inc., Murder Inc./Universal, 2002.

Irv Gotti Presents the Remixes, Murder Inc./Universal, 2002.

Singles:

(With Big Pun [also known as Big Punisher]) "How We Roll," c. 1998.

(With Ja Rule) "Always on Time," 2002.

"Baby," 2002.

(With Ja Rule) "Down 4 U," Murder Inc., 2002.

"Foolish," Murder Inc., 2002.

"Happy," Murder Inc., 2002.

(With Fat Joe) "What's Luv?," 2002.

(With Notorious B.I.G.) "Unfoolish," c. 2002.

(With P. Diddy) "We Invented the Remix," c. 2002.

(With Ja Rule) "Mesmerize," The Inc., 2003.

"Rain on Me," 2003.

"Rock wit U (Awww Baby)," 2003.

(With Shyne) "Jimmy Choo," 2004.

"Only U," Def Jam, 2004.

(With Lloyd Banks) "Southside," 2004.

(With Ja Rule) "Wonderful," 2004.

"Don't Let Them," 2005.

Released other singles.

Videos:

Hip Hop Uncensored Vol. 5: The Greatest Shows on Earth, Music Video Distributors, 2003.

Wrestlemania XIX, 2003.

Princes of Hip Hop (also known as Ashanti: Princes of Hip Hop Soul), Music Video Distributors, 2004.

Princess of Hip Hop, Azure, 2004.

Music Videos:

(With Big Pun [also known as Big Punisher]) "How We Roll," c. 1998.

(With Ja Rule) "Always on Time," 2002.

"Baby," 2002.

(With Ja Rule) "Down 4 U," Murder Inc., 2002.

"Foolish," Murder Inc., 2002.

"Happy," Murder Inc., 2002.

(With Fat Joe) "What's Luv?," 2002.

(With Notorious B.I.G.) "Unfoolish," c. 2002.

(With P. Diddy) "We Invented the Remix," c. 2002.

Fabolous, "Into You," 2003.

(With Ja Rule) "Mesmerize," The Inc., 2003.

"Rain on Me," 2003.

"Rock wit U (Awww Baby)," 2003.

(With Shyne) "Jimmy Choo," 2004.

"Only U," Def Jam, 2004.

(With Lloyd Banks) "Southside," 2004.

(With Ja Rule) "Wonderful," 2004.

"Don't Let Them," 2005.

WRITINGS

Lyricist; Albums:

Ashanti, Murder Inc., 2002.

Ashanti's Christmas, The Inc., 2003.

Chapter II, Def Jam, 2003.

Maximum Ashanti, Chrome Dreams, 2003.

7 Series Sampler: Ashanti, The Inc., 2003.

Can't Stop, Black Claw, 2004.

Concrete Rose, Def Jam, 2004.

Writer of singles. Songs featured in films, television productions, and videos.

Poetry and Essays:

Foolish/Unfoolish: Reflections on Love, Hyperion, 2002, audiobook released by Time Warner Audiobooks, 2003.

OTHER SOURCES

Books:

Contemporary Black Biography, Volume 37, Gale, 2003.

Contemporary Musicians, Volume 45, Gale, 2004.

Newsmakers, issue 1, Gale, 2004.

Periodicals:

Blender, June, 2003, pp. 66-69.

Ebony, August, 2002, pp. 82-87; March, 2003, pp. 170-73; March, 2005, p. 154.

Entertainment Weekly, July 12, 2002, pp. 40-41; December 20, 2002, p. 48.

Interview, August, 2002, pp. 98-100.

Jet, April 22, 2002, pp. 56-61; July 1, 2002, pp. 58-61; August 11, 2003, pp. 62-65; February 21, 2005, p. 16.

Newsweek, April 22, 2002, p. 64.

People Weekly, May 27, 2002, p. 174; January 10, 2005, p. 87.

Rolling Stone, May 23, 2002.

Sports Illustrated, January 17, 2005, p. 22.

Washington Post, August 17, 2002, pp. C1, C4.

Electronic:

Ashanti Official Site, http://www.ashantithisisme.com, August 23, 2005.

VH1.com, http://www.vh1.com, June 16, 2003; December 9, 2004.