Vanessa Baden facts for kids

Vanessa Baden-Kelly (born September 8, 1985) is an American actress, writer, and producer. She also directs. Many people know her best from her acting roles as a child on Nickelodeon. She starred in the TV shows Gullah Gullah Island (from 1994 to 1998) and Kenan & Kel (from 1996 to 2000). Later, in 2017, she helped create and star in the web series Giants. This show was produced by Issa Rae. Vanessa won a Daytime Emmy Award in 2019 for her acting in Giants.

Early Life and Education

Vanessa Baden-Kelly was born in Manhattan Beach, California. She grew up in Satellite Beach, Florida. As a young girl, she started her career as a model. She appeared in many print advertisements.

In 2004, Vanessa won the Florida District Miss Black and Gold Pageant. She represented her college chapter at a bigger competition. She graduated from Florida State University in Tallahassee, Florida. She earned her degree in December 2007.

Acting Career Highlights

Vanessa Baden-Kelly began acting on television when she was a child. Her first big role was playing Vanessa in the Nick Jr. TV series Gullah Gullah Island. After that, she played Kyra Rockmore. This was for more than 60 episodes of the teen sitcom Kenan & Kel. Both shows were very popular on Nickelodeon.

In 1997, she had a supporting role in the movie Rosewood. She also appeared as a panelist on the children's game show Figure It Out. After these roles, she took a break from acting for a year.

Returning to the Screen

In 2011, Vanessa returned to acting. She played Hope in the YouTube comedy series Fail. She acted alongside King Bach in this show. In 2012, she starred as Erin Mult in the TV movie Chris & Todd. She also appeared in the comedy film Secrets of the Magic City in 2014. In this movie, she acted with Jenifer Lewis.

Giants Web Series

Since 2017, Vanessa has starred in the web series Giants. She also helped write and produce the show. Giants is available on Issa Rae's YouTube channel. In the series, Vanessa plays a character named Journee. Her acting in Giants earned her a nomination for a Daytime Emmy Award in 2018. She then won the award in 2019 for Outstanding Lead Actress.

Writing and Producing

Besides acting, Vanessa Baden-Kelly is also a talented writer and producer. She co-wrote and co-produced several episodes of the Giants web series. She has also written articles for The Huffington Post.

In May 2021, Vanessa's collection of essays was published. The book is called Far Away from Close to Home: A Black Millennial Woman in Progress. It was published by Three Rooms Press.

Filmography

See also

In Spanish: Vanessa Baden para niños