Tisha Campbell Martin

Early life

Campbell born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma and raised in Newark, New Jersey, where she attended Newark Arts High School. Her mother, Mona (née Raye) Shockley (now known as Mona Washington), was a nurse, talent manager, gospel singer, and vocal coach. Her father, Michael Campbell, was a factory worker and singer, and as a chess master, works with underprivileged children on both the east and west coast. Her parents encouraged her love for music. Tisha has an older brother, three younger brothers, and a younger sister.

Acting

Campbell’s first TV appearance was at the age of six, in a 1974 episode of the PBS show, The Big Blue Marble. As a child, she won many talent shows, going on to appear in such children’s programs as Kids Are People Too, Unicorn Tales, and Captain Kangaroo. At age 18, she performed in the musical feature film, Little Shop of Horrors as Chiffon, one of The Supremes-like girl-group Greek Chorus, along with future Martin co-star, Tichina Arnold. After graduating from the Arts High School in Newark, she moved to Hollywood, where she became a star on the short-lived series, Rags to Riches. She also starred in School Daze as Jane Toussaint. In 1992, Campbell released her debut album, Tisha, which was a moderate success, selling 40,000 copies. Two singles received minor airplay on the R&B stations: "Push", which was co-written and produced by Campbell's' friend, Vanilla Ice, and "Love Me Down". Campbell made guest appearances on Everybody Hates Chris. She later played Janet "Jay" Kyle on My Wife and Kids. After My Wife and Kids, Campbell became a part of the sitcoms, Rita Rocks and The Protector. In 2012, Campbell starred in Mindless Behavior's music video, "Hello", starring as Prodigy's mom. In 2015, she began playing Damona on Dr. Ken, starring Ken Jeong. Campbell is a member of the American Film Institute and the Writer’s Boot Camp. She then produced the film short A Luv Tale about two women who fall in love with each other. The film won many awards, including the Audience Choice Award at the Black Hollywood Film Festival.

Singing

Campbell contributed vocals for the soundtrack of her 1997 film, Sprung, singing on the remake of "Don’t Ask My Neighbor" with her Martin co-star Tichina Arnold. She appeared in several music videos in the 1990s and 2000s, including two for Will Smith ("Will 2K" and "Wild Wild West") and Toni Braxton ("You’re Makin' Me High"). On September 21, 2015, she released the single, "Steel Here". On February 24, 2016, Campbell released the single, "Lazy Bitch", as well as an accompanying video, where she featured her friend, Tasha Smith.

Personal life

On August 17, 1996, Campbell married actor Duane Martin. The couple have two sons. In November 1996, Campbell left the FOX series Martin during it's final season, citing "intolerable" working conditions. In early-1997, Campbell filed a lawsuit against co-star Martin Lawrence on the counts of sexual harassment and abuse both on and off set. By April 1997, Campbell had won the lawsuit and returned to appear in the last two episodes of the series, but was never again on the same set with Lawrence.