Raven-Symoné

Raven-Symoné Christina Pearman-Maday ( or , née Pearman; born December 10, 1985), also known mononymously as Raven, is an American actress and singer. She has received several accolades, including five NAACP Image Awards, two Kids' Choice Awards, three Young Artist Awards, and four Emmy Award nominations. In 2012, she was included on VH1's list of "100 Greatest Child Stars of All Time".

Raven-Symoné began her career as a child actress, appearing as Olivia Kendall on The Cosby Show (1989–1992) and Nicole Lee on Hangin' with Mr. Cooper (1993–1997), both of which earned her a number of awards and nominations. When she was 15 years old, she landed the role of Raven Baxter on the Disney Channel television series That's So Raven (2003–2007), for which she earned numerous awards; she reprised the character on the spin-off series Raven's Home (2017–2023), which she also executive produced. Her film credits include Dr. Dolittle (1998), its sequel Dr. Dolittle 2 (2001), The Princess Diaries 2 (2004), College Road Trip (2008), and Mighty Oak (2020). Her television film credits include Zenon: Girl of the 21st Century (1999), its second sequel Zenon: Z3 (2004), The Cheetah Girls (2003), its sequel The Cheetah Girls 2 (2006), For One Night (2006), and Revenge of the Bridesmaids (2010). She also voiced Monique in the animated series Kim Possible (2002–2007), Danielle in the comedy film Fat Albert (2004), and Iridessa in the fantasy film Tinker Bell (2008). Raven-Symoné has also directed episodes for several series, including Raven's Home, Sydney to the Max, Pretty Freekin Scary, and The Ms. Pat Show.

Raven-Symoné released her debut studio album at the age of seven, Here's to New Dreams (1993), which saw the moderate commercial success of the single "That's What Little Girls Are Made Of". Her subsequent studio albums, Undeniable (1999), This Is My Time (2004), and Raven-Symoné (2008) saw some commercial success on the Billboard 200 chart in the United States. She also contributed vocals to several soundtracks from her Disney projects, including The Cheetah Girls (2003), That's So Raven (2004), That's So Raven Too! (2006), and The Cheetah Girls 2 (2006), several of which were certified platinum and gold. She was a co-host of the ABC daytime talk show The View from 2015 to 2016. She hosted and executive produced the pilot of the 2021 reality show What Not to Design.

Early life
Raven-Symoné was born in Atlanta, Georgia, to Lydia (née Gaulden) and Christopher Pearman. She had a younger brother, Blaize who died in November 2023. As an infant, she worked for Atlanta's Young Faces Inc. modelling agency and was featured in local print advertisements. At the age of two, she worked with Ford Models in New York City and appeared in ads for Ritz crackers, Jell-O, Fisher-Price, and Cool Whip. At age three, she moved with her family to Ossining, New York, where she attended Park School.

1989–2002: Child acting and early music releases
In 1989, Raven-Symoné auditioned for a role in the Bill Cosby movie, Ghost Dad. At the age of three, she was considered too young for the role, but Cosby liked her so much that he found a role for her on his show, The Cosby Show, as his step-granddaughter Olivia. She made her debut in the premiere episode of the show's sixth season and remained until the series finale in 1992. She then appeared as the younger version of Halle Berry's starring character, a headstrong biracial enslaved woman, in the TV movie Alex Haley's Queen.

In 1992, Raven-Symoné began her singing career at the age of seven, when she signed with MCA Records. She spent that year and the next taking vocal lessons from Missy Elliott. Her debut album, Here's to New Dreams, was released on June 22, 1993, which spawned two singles: "That's What Little Girls Are Made Of" and "Raven Is the Flavor". "That's What Little Girls Are Made Of" reached No. 68 on the Billboard Hot 100. The album, however, was not successful, and, due to low sales, she was dropped from MCA Records in 1995. The album sold over 73,000 copies in the US.

In 1993, one year after The Cosby Show ended, Raven-Symoné landed the role of Nicole Lee on the show Hangin' with Mr. Cooper. She made her debut in the first episode of the show's second season and remained until the series finale in 1997. In 1994, during her time on the show Hangin' with Mr. Cooper, she had her first film role in The Little Rascals, playing Stymie's girlfriend.

In 1996, Raven-Symoné and her father founded RayBlaze Records, in which she signed a distribution deal with Crash Records for her second album Undeniable, which was released in May 1999. The album sold over 2,000 in US. The album yielded one single: a cover of Stevie Wonder's "With a Child's Heart". To support the album Undeniable, she went on tour as the opening act for fellow Jive artist 'N Sync's "The 'N Sync Tour" in 1998/1999.

In 1998, she was cast in the Eddie Murphy comedy Dr. Dolittle, as Charisse Dolittle, the oldest daughter of Murphy's character. In 1999, she appeared in Zenon: Girl of the 21st Century as Nebula, her first production under Disney. In 2001, she reprised the role of Charisse Dolittle in Dr. Dolittle 2. In the same year, she participated in two episodes of the comedy series, My Wife and Kids as Charmaine, Claire's pregnant friend, her first production under ABC.

2003–2007: That's So Raven, The Cheetah Girls, and This Is My Time
In 2001, Raven-Symoné auditioned for a role on an upcoming series for the Disney Channel titled Absolutely Psychic, about a teenager with psychic abilities. She auditioned for the recurring role of Chelsea Daniels, but her role was changed to the lead character Raven Baxter and the series name changed to That's So Raven. The series debuted on January 17, 2003 and ended on November 10, 2007, becoming the channel's highest-rated and longest-running series at 100 episodes (until it was surpassed by Wizards of Waverly Place in October 2011). It spawned a franchise including soundtracks, dolls, episode DVDs, and video games. That's So Raven was nominated for Outstanding Children's Program during the 2005 and 2007 Emmy Awards. Merchandise for the show earned over $400 million. The show also launched the channel's first live action spin-off series, Cory in the House.

In 2002, Raven-Symoné was given the recurring voice role of Monique on Kim Possible. She also participated in the two films for the series, Kim Possible: A Sitch in Time (2003) and Kim Possible: So the Drama (2005). In 2003, she starred as lead singer Galleria Garibaldi in The Cheetah Girls, a Disney Channel Original Movie. The film also starred Adrienne Bailon, Sabrina Bryan, and Kiely Williams as Aquanette Walker. The film was directed by Oz Scott and produced by Whitney Houston. It attracted more than 6.5 million viewers opening night, making it (at the time) Disney Channel's most-watched movie and highest-rated Disney Channel broadcast of 2003. The film soundtrack, The Cheetah Girls, debuted at No. 33 on the Billboard Top 200 and was certified Double Platinum by the RIAA for sales of 2 million copies. It was the second-best-selling soundtrack of 2004, behind Shrek.

In 2003, she recorded the Stevie Wonder song "Superstition" as the main theme for the film The Haunted Mansion. She signed a deal with Hollywood Records, a Disney-owned label. In 2004, during her time on the show That's So Raven, she provided the voice of Danielle in the movie Fat Albert. She made an appearance in The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement as Princess Asana, during which she sang a duet with Julie Andrews. In the Disney Channel Original Movie, Zenon: Z3, Raven-Symoné reprised her role as Nebula Wade. It had over 1.3 million viewers the night it premiered. The same year, after the unexpected success of the film and its soundtrack, a TV show based on The Cheetah Girls was pitched to the ABC network. It was never picked up as a series due to Raven-Symoné having prior commitments with That's So Raven.

On September 21, 2004, she released her third studio album, This Is My Time, which included the single "Backflip". It received heavy rotation on Disney Channel and premiered on BET via an Access Granted special. This Is My Time debuted at number 50 on the U.S. Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart and at number fifty-one on the official Billboard 200. It had first week sales of 19,000 copies and was Raven-Symoné's first album to enter the charts in the United States. It has sold 235,000 copies up to February 2, 2007, according to Nielsen SoundScan. Four songs from the album were incorporated into soundtracks from Disney films: The Lion King 1½ ("Grazing in the Grass"); The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement ("This Is My Time"); Ice Princess ("Bump"); and Go Figure ("Life Is Beautiful"). In the same year, she also recorded music for That's So Raven's first original television soundtrack. The soundtrack debuted and peaked at No. 44 on the Billboard 200 and is now certified Gold by the RIAA for sales of 500,000 copies. After the success of her third album, This Is My Time (2004), Crash Records sold their rights to the material on Undeniable to TMG Records, who in cooperation with RayBlaize and her then-current label Hollywood Records, re-released it on October 31, 2006, as From Then Until. The re-release included the music video for "With A Child's Heart" as well as some behind-the-scenes footage and live performances. The album sold over 8,000 in US. In support of her third studio album and the That's So Raven Too! soundtrack, which was the second soundtrack album from the series, Raven-Symoné embarked on her first headlining tour. The "This Is My Time Tour" kicked off on May 19, 2006, in Richmond, VA and concluded on October 21, 2006, in Columbia, SC.

In 2006, she starred in the drama For One Night. In the same year, she continued her previous role as Galleria in The Cheetah Girls 2. She served as executive producer of the film. The film brought in more than 8 million viewers opening night, making it (at the time) Disney Channel's most-watched movie and highest-rated Disney Channel program of the year 2006. She starred in the Disney Channel Crossover Episode That's So Suite Life of Hannah Montana alongside Miley Cyrus, Dylan Sprouse and Cole Sprouse. Later that year, she provided her voice for Marti Brewster in Everyone's Hero, which was released theatrically on September 15, 2006.

Symoné recorded music for That's So Raven Too!'s second original television soundtrack. The soundtrack debuted and peaked at No. 44 on the Billboard 200, selling about 200,000 copies up to April 2007, according to Nielsen SoundScan. The Cheetah Girls 2 soundtrack debuted at No. 5 on the Billboard Top 200 and is certified for Platinum sales by the RIAA for sales of 1.3 million copies.

2008–2011: Raven-Symoné and State of Georgia
In 2008, The Cheetah Girls: One World began production. Raven-Symoné did not return for the final film in The Cheetah Girls series; Symoné revealed that she did not appear in the film due to feeling "excluded" and "ostracized" on the set of the second film. Her fourth studio album, Raven-Symoné, was released on April 29, 2008. The only single released from this album was "Double Dutch Bus", a cover of Frankie Smith's 1981 funk track. The single was released to radio on February 9, while the video was released on February 18, 2008. The album debuted at No. 159 on Billboard's Top 200. To promote the album, she planned to headline her first all-arena tour, "The Pajama Party Tour," in Spring 2008, but, due "unforeseen difficulties," the tour was postponed to the summer under a new name. During her 2008 Summer tour, it was officially announced that after completing her two-CD deal with Hollywood Records, she would not renew her contract with the label.

In 2008, she starred as Melanie Porter in the comedy College Road Trip. In its opening weekend, the film grossed approximately $14 million in 2,706 theaters in the United States and Canada, ranking as the No. 2 film at box office. It went on to gross more than $60 million worldwide. From 2008 to 2014, she provided the voice of the character Iridessa, the light-fairy, as a part of the Disney Fairies franchise and direct-to-DVD Tinker Bell film series. She appeared in Chris Rock's 2009 documentary Good Hair. In late 2008, Raven-Symoné announced that she would return to the studio to record her next album.

In 2010, Raven-Symoné starred alongside Joanna Garcia in an ABC Family film titled Revenge of the Bridesmaids. She also made a guest appearance on the Disney Channel Original Series Sonny with a Chance alongside Demi Lovato. She portrayed the character Amber Algoode, the president of Chad Dylan Cooper's fan club. She was a guest performer for the December 9th performance of Debbie Allen's dance-theater piece, The Hot Chocolate Nutcracker, at UCLA's Royce Hall.

In 2011, Raven-Symoné starred as the main character of ABC Family's comedy State of Georgia. The series premiered in June 2011. The 12-episode season concluded on August 17, 2011 and ABC Family cancelled the show on September 16, 2011. Throughout 2011, Raven-Symoné had been working on her fifth studio album, but in March 2012, she confirmed that the album was canceled, saying that she "couldn't quite get it together" and that the music she had been working on "wasn't going to be something sellable."

2012–present: Raven's Home and television focus
On January 31, 2012, it was confirmed that she would appear in the Broadway musical Sister Act as Deloris van Cartier, marking her Broadway debut in a lead role. Her run started on March 27, 2012. Her contracted final performance coincided with the closure of the show on Broadway on August 26, 2012. In 2013, she filmed a cameo in See Dad Run alongside former Hanging With Mr. Cooper co-star Mark Curry. In early 2014, she began filming Loose, an independent film co-starring Meagan Good, in Mississippi.

In February 2015, she made a guest appearance on the Fox series Empire. In May 2015, she began a recurring role as Rhonda Johnson on the ABC comedy series Black-ish; she would continue to appear in the role through December 2019. In June 2015, she starred in the independent film A Girl Like Grace. In June 2015, Raven-Symoné joined the ABC daytime talk show The View on a permanent basis after she guest hosted the show multiple times earlier in the year. In September 2015, she guest starred in an episode of the Disney Channel Original Series K.C. Undercover, portraying the character Simone Devereaux.

On October 27, 2016, she announced she would leave The View before the end of 2016 to focus on executive producing and starring in a That's So Raven spin-off, Raven's Home. The series premiered on July 21, 2017. For her performance, she earned a nomination for a Daytime Emmy Award. The series ran for six seasons, ending in September 2023.

In May 2016, she released two new tracks via online streaming, "Sarafina" and "Cruise Control". It was the first time in eight years she released new music since her self-titled project in 2008. On November 6, 2019, Raven-Symoné competed in season two of The Masked Singer as "Black Widow". Raven-Symoné released the single "Spacetruck" and the extended play InfraSounds under her mononym, Raven (stylized in all caps), in April 2020. In May 2024, she signed an overall deal with Disney Branded Television.

Personal life
In August 2013, Raven-Symoné commented on the legalization of same-sex marriage, stating that she was "excited to hear today that more states legalized gay marriage" and that it was "great to know [she] can now, should [she] wish to." In an October 2014 interview with Oprah Winfrey, she explained her rejection of labeling herself and of identifying as either African-American or gay, specifying that she was an "American" and a "human who loves humans." She was named Grand Marshal of the 2016 Montreal Pride Parade.

Raven-Symoné was in a relationship with model and actress AzMarie Livingston from 2012 to 2015. In June 2020, she married social media manager Miranda Maday.

In 2013, she briefly retired from acting and enrolled at Academy of Art University to pursue an associate degree in fine arts, which she completed in 2016. She came out of retirement in 2015 as a co-host of The View. In the 2016 presidential election, she endorsed Libertarian nominee Gary Johnson.

In July 2023, Raven-Symoné claimed to be psychic.

Discography

 * Here's to New Dreams (1993)
 * Undeniable (1999)
 * This Is My Time (2004)
 * Raven-Symoné (2008)

Tours

 * This Is My Time Tour (2006)
 * Live in Concert Tour (2008–2009)

Awards and nominations
Symoné's accolades include five NAACP Image Awards, two Kids' Choice Awards, and three Young Artist Awards, as well as one Children's and Family Emmy Award nomination and three Daytime Emmy Award nominations.