Kym Whitley

Whitley was born in Shaker Heights, Ohio to Kaysonia and William Whitley.[2] Her father was a founding partner of the black architectural firm of Whitley and Whitley. Whitley and Whitley was involved with work on Tower City Center, the Cleveland State University Convocation Center, Lincoln Junior High School, the Lee-Harvard Branch of Cleveland Public Library, the Central Area Multi-Service Center, and the Cleveland Clinic Guesthouse development.[3] They were also involved in a joint venture to design and build Jacobs Field (now Progressive Field), home to the Cleveland Indians.[4] She attended Shaker Heights High School (graduating in 1979)[5] and Fisk University in Nashville, Tennessee.[6] She was initiated into the Alpha Beta chapter of the Delta Sigma Theta sorority.[7]

In 1989, Whitley got her big break starring in Shelly Garrett's popular play Beauty Shop, which started in Los Angeles then later traveled across the U.S. Whitley's major acting roles include the short-lived sitcoms My Brother and Me and Sparks. She made guest appearances on several television sitcoms, including The Parent 'Hood, Married... with Children, Moesha, That's So Raven, The Parkers, My Wife and Kids and Curb Your Enthusiasm. She also hosted the short-lived BET show Oh Drama (2000). Whitley also had a small role in Next Friday as Craig's aunt Suga. She was one of the group called "The Adults", who were adult cast members in the earlier seasons of All That. In the early spring of 2010, Whitley was a co-host with R&B musician Brian McKnight on the short-lived talk show The Brian McKnight Show. From 2012 to 2013, Whitley had a recurring role on the BET comedy Let's Stay Together as Charmaine Wax.

Kym's reality docu-series entitled Raising Whitley on the Oprah Winfrey Network premiered on April 20, 2013 with a total of 1.2 million viewers, making it the fifth most-widely viewed premiere in the history of the network.[8] OWN ordered a second season, which premiered on January 4, 2014.

Whitley joined the cast of the television sitcom Young & Hungry which premiered on ABC Family (now Freeform) in 2014, where she plays Josh's housekeeper Yolanda.[9] The show ran for five seasons, ending in 2018.[10]

In 2017, she guest starred in the web series The Bay where she played Big Candi. She received a Daytime Emmy Award nomination for Outstanding Supporting or Guest Actress in a Digital Daytime Drama Series.[11]

In 2018, she guest starred in the "Thanksgiving" episode of Master of None as Denise's aunt Joyce, and sister to Angela Bassett's character.[12] The episode won an Emmy for Best Writing for Master of None's actors Aziz Ansari and Lena Waithe[13]

In 2013, Whitley and her friend Rodney Van Johnson launched a line of t-shirts titled "Don't Feed Me." The shirts alert caregivers about children who have specific food allergies.[14][8]

Whitley has two older brothers, Kyle and Scott.[3]

In January 2011, Whitley adopted a son, Joshua (born January 9, 2011).[2][14][15]

• Kym Whitley at IMDb