Kandi Burruss facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Kandi Burruss
Burruss in 2023
Born	(1976-05-17) May 17, 1976 (age 49) College Park, Georgia, U.S.
Other names	Kandi
Occupation	Actress businesswoman dancer producer singer songwriter television personality
Years active	1991–present
Spouse(s)	Todd Tucker ​ (m. 2014)​
Children	3
Musical career
Genres	R&B pop hip hop soul
Instruments	Vocals
Labels	Sony UpFront BME Asylum
Associated acts	Xscape Rasheeda Fantasia LaTocha Scott Tameka Cottle Tamika Scott Solé Whitney Houston Toni Braxton Tamar Braxton Pink Destiny's Child TLC NSYNC Michael Dion

Kandi Burruss (born May 17, 1976), also known as Kandi, is an American actress, businesswoman, singer, and TV star. She became famous in 1992 as a member of the popular R&B girl group Xscape. Kandi is also a talented songwriter. She helped write hit songs like "Bills, Bills, Bills" for Destiny's Child and "There You Go" for Pink. In 2000, she won a Grammy Award for her work on the TLC song "No Scrubs".

Kandi's own songs, like "Don't Think I'm Not", were also very popular. She starred on the Bravo reality TV show The Real Housewives of Atlanta for many years. This made her one of the longest-running cast members in the The Real Housewives series. Kandi has also appeared in several spin-off shows, including The Kandi Factory and Kandi's Wedding.

Beyond music and reality TV, Kandi has acted in TV shows like The Chi. She won the third season of The Masked Singer, becoming the first female winner. She also placed fifth on Celebrity Big Brother. In 2023, she was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Revival of a Play for her work as a producer on the Broadway play The Piano Lesson.

Early Life and Education

Kandi Burruss was born in College Park, Georgia. Her parents are Titus Burruss Jr. and Joyce Jones. Kandi had an older brother, Patrick Riley, who sadly passed away in a car accident in 1991. She went to Tri-Cities High School in East Point, Georgia, and graduated in 1994. Kandi first appeared on the BET TV show Teen Summit when she was 15 years old.

Music Career

Xscape: A Group's Journey

Before joining Xscape, LaTocha Scott was part of a group called Precise. While attending Tri-Cities performing arts high school, LaTocha's sister Tamika met Kandi Burruss. The three started singing together. They soon added Tameka "Tiny" Cottle to the group, and Xscape was officially formed.

After their first big performance on BET's Teen Summit in 1992, the girls met music executive Ian Burke. He later became their manager. Xscape then caught the attention of Jermaine Dupri, who signed the group to his music label, So So Def Recordings.

On October 12, 1993, Xscape released their first album, Hummin' Comin' at 'Cha. The album became very popular and sold over a million copies within a year. It also produced two top ten hit songs. After this success, Xscape released their second album, Off the Hook, in 1995, which also sold over a million copies.

Their third and final album, Traces of My Lipstick, also sold more than a million copies. After this album, LaTocha Scott left the group to try a solo career. The group later reunited for appearances on movie soundtracks like Big Momma's House.

In 2017, the group decided to reunite for a TV show called Xscape: Still Kickin' It. This show premiered on BravoTV on November 5, 2017. Before rejoining, Kandi wanted an apology from Tamika Scott, who had said in an interview that Kandi broke up the group. Kandi received an apology from Tamika on stage during a concert in 2017.

Solo Music and Songwriting Success

After Xscape took a break, Kandi Burruss focused on writing and producing music. In 1999, Kandi, along with Kevin "She'kspere" Briggs, helped write three huge hit songs: "No Scrubs" for TLC, "Bills, Bills, Bills" for Destiny's Child, and "There You Go", which was Pink's first single. "No Scrubs" was also co-written by Kandi's former groupmate Tameka "Tiny" Cottle.

In 2000, Kandi released her first solo album, Hey Kandi.... The song "Don't Think I'm Not" from this album was very popular, reaching number 24 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

Kandi won the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers's Songwriter of the Year award in 2000. She was the first African-American woman to win this award in the Rhythm & Soul category.

Kandi also helped write and produce the 2009 song "Tardy for the Party" for her Real Housewives of Atlanta co-star Kim Zolciak. There was a disagreement about the song, but a lawsuit filed by Kandi was later dismissed.

After a break from music, Kandi released her first EP, The Fly Above EP, in 2009. Her second album, Kandi Koated, came out in 2010. Kandi also formed a music duo called Peach Candy with Atlanta rapper Rasheeda.

In 2017, the song "Shape of You" by Ed Sheeran became a massive hit. Because parts of the song sounded similar to "No Scrubs", Kandi Burruss, Tameka Cottle, and Kevin Briggs were given co-writing credits for "Shape of You".

Television Appearances

Reality TV Star

Kandi Burruss joined The Real Housewives of Atlanta in its second season in 2009. She appeared in every season until 2023, making her the longest-serving cast member on the show. She is tied with other "Housewives" stars for the longest time on the entire Real Housewives series.

When she first joined the show, Kandi was engaged to A.J. and wanted to restart her music career. She became friends with Kim Zolciak and helped her record "Tardy for the Party." Kandi also became friends with castmates Phaedra Parks and Porsha Williams. In February 2024, Kandi announced she was leaving the series.

Kandi also had her own spin-off shows from The Real Housewives of Atlanta. The first was The Kandi Factory in 2012, where she helped new artists launch their music careers. Then came Kandi's Wedding in 2014, which showed Kandi and Todd Tucker getting married. This show had very high ratings. Her third spin-off, Kandi's Ski Trip, aired in 2015.

Kandi was a contestant on the second season of Celebrity Big Brother. She finished in fifth place and was a fan favorite. She also appeared as a guest judge on RuPaul's Drag Race in 2019.

In 2020, Kandi competed on the third season of The Masked Singer as "Night Angel." She won her season, becoming the show's first female winner. In 2022, Kandi began starring in another Bravo show called Kandi & The Gang.

Acting Roles

Kandi Burruss has also made guest appearances in several TV shows. These include Single Ladies, Thicker Than Water: The Tankards, and Let's Stay Together.

She had a recurring role as Roselyn Perry in the third season of the drama series The Chi.

Personal Life

Kandi Burruss has a daughter named Riley Burruss, born in 2002. Riley is named after Kandi's late brother, Patrick Riley.

In 2008, Kandi started dating Ashley "A.J." Jewell, and they got engaged in 2009. They later ended their engagement but remained friends. A.J. sadly passed away in October 2009 after an incident.

On January 15, 2013, Kandi announced her engagement to Todd Tucker. Todd was a producer for The Real Housewives of Atlanta. They had been dating since 2011. Kandi and Todd got married on April 4, 2014. In 2015, Kandi announced she was pregnant, and they welcomed their son, Ace, on January 6, 2016. They welcomed their second child, a daughter, via a surrogate in November 2019. The family lives in Atlanta, Georgia.

Discography

Studio albums

• Hey Kandi... (2000)
• Can't Rain Forever (2006) (Not released)
• Kandi Koated (2010)

Film and Television Roles

Film

Television

Awards and Recognitions