Erika Jayne

Early life

She was born in Atlanta to a single mother, Renee Chahoy. Her mother, a fellow actress and a pianist, was only 18 when she gave birth to Girardi. She had a close relationship with her grandparents, Hollis and Ann Peek. Girardi’s grandfather whom she called “the only father I’ve ever known,” died in July 2010 at the age of 81. Her grandmother died of Alzheimer's disease in November 2014 at the age of 86. “My grandmother and I used to speak on the phone for an hour every day about nothing. When those phone calls stopped, that was the hardest. Because I knew she could no longer communicate. I had always gotten such strength and such love from those phone calls and when they stopped, it was a real marker of, ‘This is over, Erika. The woman that you know is no longer,” she said in an episode of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills.

Jayne attended North Atlanta High School. She enrolled in a magnet program for the performing arts in high school, saying, "That’s where you really learned to love the stage and really hone your early performing skills. I wouldn’t trade that experience for anything in the world." At 18, she moved to New York City. She performed as a member of several girl groups while living in New York. During this time she got married to her first husband and gave birth to a son. A few years later she moved to Los Angeles to pursue her dream of becoming a singer and performer.

Career

Jayne started her career in the 1990s by appearing in small roles in several film and television productions, including High Incident, Lowball and Alchemy. Staying true to her love of music, Jayne's first dance music single "Roller Coaster" was released on January 1, 2007. The song placed at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart. Jayne's debut album Pretty Mess, was released in the United States on August 11, 2009. Jayne also co-wrote several songs on her album. The other singles from the album were "Stars", "Give You Everything" and "Pretty Mess". The album spawned a total of four US number-one singles. She released three different music video versions of "Give You Everything". The music videos were directed by feature film director Marty Thomas. Jayne supported the release of Pretty Mess with tour dates and appearances at festivals and clubs across the United States. In November 2010, Jayne announced the creation of her own record label, Pretty Mess Records.

In November 2011, she released her No. 1 single "Party People (Ignite the World)". Music critics gave the song positive reviews. In 2012, she recorded "All Things Aside", that was released for the soundtrack to comedy film The Watch starring Ben Stiller and Vince Vaughn. Her music has also been featured in films, such as The Neighbor, Deal and reality television show Toddlers and Tiaras. In 2013, she released a single featuring American rapper Flo Rida, "Get it Tonight". The music video for the song garnered over three million views on YouTube and was well received by fans. In September 2014, Jayne achieved her seventh number one dance single with "PAINKILLR". The single "Crazy", featuring Maino was released on February 15, 2015. The song was produced by Scott Storch and Mikey Minden served as a music video director. A music video for the song features Jayne dancing in an underground club with an entourage of dancers. She has a new album in the works through a joint venture with Pretty Mess Records and New Nation Live label, distributed by Universal. Jayne released her new single "How Many Fucks" on April 19, 2016.

In 2015, she joined the cast of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills for the show's sixth season. She soon became a fan favorite on the show and her appearance was well received by the public. In July 2016, she appeared in the science fiction television film Sharknado: The 4th Awakens. In October 2016, Jayne appeared on the Animal Planet series Tanked, in the episode "Real Aquariums of Beverly Hills". On November 7, 2016, Entertainment Weekly broke news that Jayne would guest-star on the CBS daytime soap opera The Young and the Restless, as Farrah Dubose, and would share scenes with her Real Housewives co-star, Eileen Davidson. Jayne performed her latest single "XXpen$ive" for the first time on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen on January 4, 2017. Music video for the single was officially released on February 15, 2017. She described the song as "over-the-top, fabulous and fun.” In May 2017, the song was featured on an episode of Saturday Night Live as Chris Pine and Bobby Moynihan held a lip sync battle to the song.

On March 1, 2017, Jayne was revealed as one of the contestants who would compete on season 24 of Dancing with the Stars. She was paired with professional dancer Gleb Savchenko who had been previously partnered with Jayne's Real Housewives of Beverly Hills co-star, Lisa Vanderpump when she competed in Season 16. They were the fourth couple eliminated from the competition, finishing 9th place. In July 2017, Jayne announced she had partnered with make up brand BeautyBlender. The Beautyblender Swirl starring Jayne became available at Sephora on July 8, 2017. On July 18, 2017, Jayne annouced her plans to release her first book, a tell-all memoir called Pretty Mess. “I hope my intimate story can inspire readers to become their own strong, confident and vibrant pretty messes," she said in the book's press release. The book is slated for release in January 2018 by publisher, Gallery Books, and will let fans into her early days as a dancer and singer and later into her life as a Real Housewife as well as her marriage to Thomas Girardi. In August 2017, it was annouced by media outlets, that she is collaborating with Too Faced Cosmetics, potentially on new products.

Public image

She has been named a dance-pop diva and dance sensation by the public. Described as being "sassy, fun and provocative" when performing on stage, Jayne has said that she originally created the alter ego "Erika Jayne" to keep that stage persona separate from who she really is. She described Erika Jayne as being "a fantasy character", despite being "a real part of me, but not 24 hours a day." She has appeared on several magazine editorials and front covers, including Billboard, LGBT Weekly, and Celebrity Page. Jayne's stage performances and travels have also been created into a book by photographer Marco Bollinger. Jayne has received praise for her stage presence and voice during live performances.

Jayne supports the LGBT community worldwide and "feels at home with the community," as she has several gay friends. She is considered a gay icon, and the gay community has embraced her as a pop culture icon. She often performs at LGBT events and festivals. She was named "News Ally Entertainer of 2015" at the LGBT Ally Awards in recognition of her ongoing support for the rights and equality of LGBT people around the world.

Jayne names Rita Hayworth and Marilyn Monroe as her style icons. She has also discussed how her mother and grandmother have been a continuing inspiration to her.

Personal life

Jayne married her first husband Thomas Zizzo in New York and together they have a son, Thomas Zizzo, Jr. After their divorce, she relocated to Los Angeles. In 1999, Jayne married attorney Thomas Girardi, a founding partner of Girardi & Keese in downtown Los Angeles. She lives in Pasadena with her husband and son. She is good friends with her former The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills co-star Yolanda Hadid. She also has a Dutch Shepherd dog. "I'm kind of a tomboy. I like to fish. I love to stay outdoors. I'm a big sports fan and go to games," she said during an interview with SheKnows in 2009.

Published works