| Kenya Barris Quick Info | |
|---|---|
| Height | 6 ft 3 in |
| Weight | 85 kg |
| Date of Birth | August 9, 1974 |
| Zodiac Sign | Leo |
| Eye Color | Dark Brown |
Kenya Barris is an American writer, actor, director, and producer. He is best known as the creator, writer, and producer, of the comedy TV series Black-ish, starting in 2014, as well as 2 comedy spin-off TV series –Â Grown-ish, starting in 2018, and Mixed-ish, starting in 2019. Kenya is also known as the co-creator and co-producer of the TV show America’s Next Top Model alongside Tyra Banks.
Born Name
Kenya Barris
Nick Name
Yee
Sun Sign
Leo
Born Place
Inglewood, California, United States
Residence
Los Angeles, California, United States
Nationality
Education
Kenya attended Clark Atlanta University in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. After he donated $1 million in 2018, the university awarded him an honorary doctorate in humane letters.
Occupation
Producer, Director, Writer, Actor
Family
- Father – Patrick (Factory Worker at General Motors)
- Mother – Tina Barris (Real Estate Agent)
- Siblings – He has 2 older siblings and 1 younger sibling.
Manager
Kenya Barris is represented by –
- Khalabo Ink Society (Company) in Los Angeles, California, United States
- Creative Artists Agency (CAA) (Talent Agent) in Los Angeles, California, United States
- Artists First (Manager) in Beverly Hills, California, United States
- Joy Fehily Management & Consulting (Publicist) in Beverly Hills, California, United States
- Rogers & Cowan/PMK (Publicist) in Los Angeles, California, United States
- Morris Yorn Barnes Levine Krintzman Rubenstein Kohner & Gellman (Legal Representative) in Los Angeles, California, United States
Build
Slim
Height
6 ft 3 in or 190.5 cm
Weight
85 kg or 187.5 lbs
Girlfriend / Spouse
Kenya Barris has dated –
- Dr. Rania Rainbow Edwards-Barris (1999-2019) – Kenya married the doctor of anesthesiology and author, Rania Rainbow Edwards-Barris, on December 3, 1999. The couple has 6 kids – 3 sons, one of whom is named Bronx, and 3 daughters, named lola, Kaleigh, and Leyah. Rania was also the inspiration for the character of Dr. Rainbow Johnson in Black-ish, played by actress Tracee Ellis Ross. In 2014, she filed for divorce, but the couple reconciled and withdrew the filing in 2015. Unfortunately, Kenya filed for divorce 5 years later, on August 9, 2019, on his birthday, citing “irreconcilable differences.” He asked for joint custody of the 4 younger children and told the court he was prepared to provide financial support to Raina if need be.
- Padma Lakshmi (2023-Present) – In November 2023, Kenya and TV host Padma Lakshmi were rumored to be dating after they were seen holding hands while walking through New York City.
Race / Ethnicity
Black
Hair Color
Salt and Pepper
Eye Color
Dark Brown
Sexual Orientation
Straight
Distinctive Features
- Towering height
- Droopy ears
Kenya Barris Favorite Things
- TV Shows In 2015 – Mr. Robot (2015-2019), American Crime (2015-2017)
- TV Show – Veep (2012-2019)
- Actress – Julia Louis-Dreyfus
Source – NY Times
Kenya Barris Facts
- He always wanted to become a doctor.
- Kenya briefly tried to become a stand-up comic.
- Before he created Black-ish, Kenya created 18 pilots. Some were filmed, others skipped, but none were ordered into a series.
- For his TV series, Black-ish, Kenya was nominated for the Primetime Emmy award in the category of “Outstanding Comedy Series” in 2016, 2017, and 2018.
- His TV series brought prominence to actors Anthony Anderson, Tracee Ellis Ross, Marcus Scribner, Miles Brown, Marsai Martin, and Yara Shahidi, and cast Laurence Fishburne as a series regular. Tracee even won a Golden Globe for “Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series – Musical or Comedy” in 2017.
- His oldest daughter inspired the character of Zoey Johnson, played by Yara Shahidi.
- He once made an anti-Donald Trump episode for Black-ish. However, ABC’s editors had cut the material in such a way that it didn’t represent what he wanted to depict, so it never aired.
- In 2019, Kenya abandoned his ABC contract to write and produce for Netflix exclusively. When he did, Warner Bros. made an ever richer offer than Netflix. However, he feared he would continue to do TV shows and pilots instead of taking advantage of Netflix’s “artists come first” mantra, so he declined.
- After he signed a 3-year contract for $100 million with Netflix, Kenya decided to make his acting TV debut in a regular role. He created and was scheduled to star in a comedy series #blackexcellence alongside Rashida Jones in 2020.
Featured Image by Peabody Awards / Flickr / CC BY-2.0
