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Zendaya

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Zendaya is an actress and model most known for her co-starring role in the Disney Channel TV show Shake It Up!

Where did Zendaya grow up?

Zendaya Coleman was born in Oakland, California on September 1, 1996. She grew up in an acting family as her mother worked as the House Manager for the Shakespeare Theatre in Orinda, California. Zendaya spent a lot of her childhood at the theatre. She helped her mom running errands and also got the chance to learn acting and take part in the plays.

How did she get into acting?

Zendaya got into acting through her mom's work in the theatre. Most of Zendaya's young acting experience was on stage. She has performed in a number of plays.

Zendaya also has significant dancing experience. She was in a hip hop dance troupe called Future Shock for three years and also was a hula dancer with the Academy of Hawaiian Arts.

Shake It Up!

Although Zendaya did not have much Television acting experience, her combination of stage acting and dance experience was perfect for the show Shake It Up! on Disney Channel. She landed the co-lead role as Raquel "Rocky" Blue, a teenager who plays a dancer on the local dance show Shake It Up: Chicago. Rocky is more the rule follower than her friend CeCe, but CeCe helps Rocky to try more things, namely to try out for the dance show.

Zendaya has great comedic chemistry with her co-star Bella Thorne and the show had been a success. Shake It Up! had the second highest rated debut for a Disney Channel show right after Hannah Montana. The cast won the Outstanding Young Ensemble In a TV Series for 2011 from the Young Artist Foundation.

After Disney

Zendaya's movie career took off after leaving Disney. She starred in a number of films, including Spider-Man: Homecoming, The Greatest Showman, Spider-Man: Far from Home, Dune, Spider-Man: No Way Home, and Dune: Part 2. By 2024, she was one of the biggest movie stars in the world.

Fun Facts about Zendaya

She was named one of the 100 most influential people in the world by Time magazine in 2022.
Zendaya means "to give thanks" in the African language of Shona.
She has a giant Schnauzer dog named Midnight.
She once was a featured performer in a Kidz Bop video.
Her character Rocky on Shake It Up! is a vegetarian.
She once was a back-up dancer in a Sears commercial with Selena Gomez.
She won the Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series for her role in the HBO drama series Euphoria. At the time, she was the youngest actor to win this award.