Janelle Monae Biography

Janelle Monae was born on December 1, 1985, in Kansas City, USA. Her father was a truck driver and her mother worked as a janitor. Her initial days spent in Kansas City were difficult due to the poor financial condition and drug addiction of her father.

She was part of the choir in the local Baptist church and started song writing as well as story writing at a young age. She wrote the script for a play at the age of twelve.

In 2001, she moved to Atlanta, Georgia, where she met Big Boi from the American hip hop group called ‘Outkast’ and joined the ‘Wondaland Arts Society’ consisting of young likeminded artists. She went on to release her debut EP titled ‘The Audition’ in 2003, that was a limited edition CD.

Janelle Monae got her first break in 2006, when she performed with ‘OutKast’ in their album titled ‘Idlewild’ where she appeared in the numbers ‘Call the Law’ and ‘In Your Dreams’. Her talent was recognised by Big Boi and his friend Sean Combs who helped her build her profile as a singer.

She released her first solo titled ‘Metropolis’ in 2007, which was again released in 2008, with some additional tracks and called ‘Metropolis: The Chase Suit’. The EP got her a nomination for Best Urban / Alternate Performance at the Grammy Awards.

She was selected as a spokesperson for America’s cosmetic brand, ‘Cover Girl’ and performed in the festival in support of former US President Obama. She has appeared in a number of commercials including the campaign for Sonos Wireless HiFi home audio systems.

Janelle has made a number of live performances that include her appearance at the Global Citizens Festival in Central Park with stars like Stevie Wonder. She also made a guest appearance on Saturday Night Live with host Edward Norton.

In 2016, she made her debut appearance in the movie ‘Moonlight’ with Andre Holland and Naomie Harris. This was followed by a role in the film ‘Hidden Figures’ with Octavia Spencer the same year. 'Hidden Figures' was a box office hit and 'Moonlight' bagged in the 89th Academy Award for Best Picture.

During this period she remained active on the music scene with the release of the number ‘Venus Fly’ and the soundtrack for the series ‘The Get Down’ on Netflix. She was also part of the soundtrack for her film ‘Hidden Figures’. She also appeared in ‘The Women of Marwen’.

Janelle Monae has received several nominations and won numerous awards at various award ceremonies that include Best R&B / Pop Album of 2010, for her album ‘The ArchAndroid’, Rising Star Award at the Billboard’s Women Music Awards, Black Women in Music Award and Best Art Director at the MTV Awards.

Janelle presently resides in Atlanta, Georgia, USA. She is a supporter of the LGBTQ community and maintains that she only dates androids, who are people she can identify with. She came out publicly as non-binary in April 2022, on the American talk show the 'Red Table Talk