Karen Malina White

Karen Malina White
Born	(1965-07-07) July 7, 1965 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1980–present

Karen Malina White (born July 7, 1965) is an American film and television actress. She is best known for her roles as Kaneesha Carter, the high school student in the 1989 film, Lean on Me, as Charmaine Brown during the two final seasons on The Cosby Show and the final season of A Different World, Nicolette Vandross on Malcolm & Eddie and the voice of Dijonay Jones on the Disney Channel animated comedy, The Proud Family.

Early life

Karen Malina White was born and raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She studied at the Philadelphia High School for Creative and Performing Arts. When she graduated high school, White continued her studies at Howard University where graduated cum laude with a Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree. In her senior year White won the title "Miss Howard University" and landed her first role as an actress.

Personal life

Contrary to rumors, White is not married to actor Malcolm-Jamal Warner. Warner states, "I'm not married. People probably started saying that because we were in a relationship for seven and a half years."

Career

In 1989, White starred in Lean on Me alongside actor Morgan Freeman. She was nominated for the 1990 Young Artist Award for Best Young Actress Supporting Role in a Motion Picture for her performance in the film. During the 90's she made many guest appearances in various television shows. She portrayed Charmaine Brown during Seasons 7 and 8 of The Cosby Show (1990-1992), and Season 6 of A Different World (1992-1993). White also guest starred as Jewel, Jazz's wife in two episodes of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. From 2001-2005, she performed the voice of Dijonay Jones on the animated Disney Channel series The Proud Family. White has also appeared in various stage productions.

Filmography

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1980	In Our Lives	Jasmine
1989	Lean On Me	Kaneesha Carter	Young Artist Award (nominated)
1989	A Man Called Hawk	Lisa	Episode: "Beautiful Are the Stars"
1990–1992	The Cosby Show	Charmaine Brown
1992–1993	A Different World	Charmaine Brown
1993	Herman's Head	Rene	Episode: "There's a Fly Girl In My Soup"
1993–1994	Getting By	Yolanda
1993–1994	Roc	Michelle	Episodes: "The Poker Hand That Rocks the Cradle", "God Bless the Child", & "Citizen Roc"
1993, 1996–1997	Hangin' with Mr. Cooper	Florence	Episodes: "Father Fairest", "Seoul Shake", "Episode: Will She or Won't She?", "Security", & "The Spa"
1994	The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air	Jewel Robertson	Episodes: "The Ol' Ball and Chain" & "Episode: Mother's Day"
1994, 1995	My So-Called Life	Abyssinia Churchill	Episodes: "Self-Esteem" & "Betrayal"
1995	Me and the Boys	Janet	Episodes: "The B Word" & "When Stanley Met Shirley"
1995	Chicago Hope	Jennifer Koosman	Episode: "Hello Goodbye"
1995	The Parent 'Hood	Nina	Episode: "Track Dreams"
1995	Too Something	Episode: "Meter Feeders"
1995	Statistically Speaking	Short film
1995	Once Upon a Time...When We Were Colored	Mary
1996	The Home Court	Leslie	Episode: "Laborer of Love"
1996	Living Single	Shayla	Episode: "Woman to Woman"
1996	Dave's World	Natalie	Episode: "Do You Want To Know A Secret?"
1996–2000	Malcolm & Eddie	Nicolette Vandross
2000	Seven Days	Tracy Donovan	Episode: "Mr Donovan's Neighborhood"
2001–2005	The Proud Family	Dijonay Jones (voice)
2002	Jeremiah	Rickie	Episode: "City of Roses"
2003	The Shield	Episode: "Barnstormers"
2004	Boston Public	Sonia Williamson	Episode: "Chapter Seventy-Eight"
2004	Fronterz
2005	The Proud Family Movie	Dijonay Jones	Disney Channel TV-Movie
2006	The Ties That Bind	Madison	Short
2014	How to Get Away with Murder	Carla	Episode: "Let's Go Scooping"
2015	I Didn't Do It	Betty LeBow	Recurring role (Season 2)

External links

• Karen Malina White at the Internet Movie Database