Tabitha Brown (actress)

Tabitha Bonita Brown (born February 4, 1979) is an American social media personality and actress. In 2020, she gained immense internet popularity with her online video content which often incorporates veganism, humor and motivational speaking.[4][5][6] Brown has amassed over four million followers on TikTok and over two million followers on Instagram as of July 2020.[7] She has been described by HuffPost as "America's Mom"[8] and her content has been deemed by critics as "comforting"[9] and "calming".[10]

Tabitha Brown
Brown in 2013
Born
Tabitha Bonita Brown[1][2]

(1979-02-04) February 4, 1979[3]
Eden, North Carolina, U.S.
Occupation
Years active2002–present
Websiteiamtabithabrown.com

Early life and career

1979–2007: Early years and career beginnings

Brown was born in Eden, North Carolina.[5][11] She was raised in Stoneville, but grew up and did schooling in Eden.[7] She started studying fashion design at Miami International University of Art & Design, but dropped out at age 19 and moved to Laguna Niguel, California.[12] After struggling economically, she returned to North Carolina, this time moving to Greensboro, where she lived for five years.[12][11][13] It was here where she gave birth to her daughter Choyce, her firstborn.[14][15]

In 2002, Brown got a job as the co-host of a local late-night show, where she interviewed celebrities who performed at Greensboro Coliseum Complex.[12] In 2004 she moved with her husband to Los Angeles where she tried out stand-up comedy.[5] After failing to land as a TV actress, Brown spent five years working at a Macy's in Century City.[14][5] After six months of being settled in, Brown began bouncing between North Carolina and Los Angeles to care for her mother who had developed ALS.[12]

2008–2016: Acting and performance hiatus

Brown had spent three years taking care of her mother.[7] Following her mother's death in 2007,[16] Brown began her career acting small roles in several indie films and direct-to-video films.[12][17] She gave birth to her son, Queston, in 2012.[12][15] Brown consequently developed chronic pain and fatigue and could not work for a year.[12] Brown was introduced to veganism after her daughter had suggested adopting it to help with her recovery.[12][15]

2017–present: Social media breakthrough

In late 2017, Brown was running out of disability insurance funds, which led to her becoming an Uber driver in October 2017,[7] in order to make ends meet as a "struggling"[18] part-time actress.[16] Her video review from December 2017 of a Whole Foods Market vegan BLT sandwich went viral, after which the company hired her as a brand ambassador to travel the country.[7][16] In early March 2020, she created a TikTok account on which began sharing vegan recipes, cooking tips, family moments, and encouraging advice, amassing 2 million followers in the space of five weeks.[5][6] Brown had also been broadcasting live cooking shows and product reviews on Facebook live since early 2020.[19][20]

In late April 2020, Brown was signed to Creative Artists Agency.[21] In late June 2020, she was also given her own show, All Love, on Ellen Digital Network, a network operated as subsidiary of Ellen Digital Ventures, a collaborative venture between Ellen DeGeneres and Warner Bros’ Digital Networks.[20][22]

Artistry

Brown told USA Today about why she believes she failed as an actress in her early career:[23]

For years, I always covered my accent because I was told to. I always wore my hair long and straight because I was told to, always trying to be a certain look to fit in to what I thought Hollywood wanted me to be. I often think that some of the reason I got sick is because I was suffocating the real me.

Personal life

Brown is married.[24]

Selected filmography

Adapted from IMDb:[17]

Film

As Writer

Year Title Writer Notes
2019Love or LaughsYesCo-written with Bo Starks

As Actress

Year Title Role Director Notes
2005 Bad Reputation High School Student / Partygoer Jim Hemphill
2008 Outrighteous Simone Jill Maxcy
2009 Thug Love CeCe Marcello Thedford
2010 Helpless Tabitha Johnson Brent Huff Short film
2010 Caution to the Wind Veronica Paige Douglas Herman
2012 Laughing to the Bank Various Brian Hooks
2017 I Am Still Here Alicia Mischa Marcus
2018 All Between Us Aubyrn Jamie Jones
2018 I Hate LA Roxie Reuben Johnson
2018 A Stone Cold Christmas Homeless Santa Courtney Miller
2019 Princess of the Row Aunty Tammy Max Carlson

Television
Year Title Role Notes
2011 Lbs Sabrina Wright 3 episodes
2013 Fat Ass Anonymous Sabrina Pilot episode
2014 Black Boots Dr. Freeman Episode: "Revolutions"
2015 Family Time Dr. Darlene Episode: "What's Ours is Mine"
2015–19 Black Jesus Theresa / Teresa 2 episodes
2016 Sex Sent Me to the ER Dr. Mary Manson Episode: "Bedroom Eyes"
2017 The Ellen DeGeneres Show Lorraine Episode: "Felicity Huffman/Lea Michele/Stephen 'tWitch' Boss"
2017 Switched at Birth Nurse Reed Episode: "Four Ages in Life"
2017 CH Originals Aunt Tiffany Episode: "Disarming Conversational Land Mines"
2018 Vengeful Dr. Darcel Anderson-Ramirez Pilot episode
2020 Will & Grace Female Officer Episode: "What A Dump"
2020 Anatomy of Black Love Self TV documentary
2020 The Talk Self Episode: "Joel McHale/Tabitha Brown"

Awards and nominations
Award Year Recipient(s) and nominee(s) Category Result Ref.
Veggie Awards 2020 Herself Favorite Vegan Social Media Personality Won [25]
gollark: 1.3 dimensions? Is that some sort of weird fractal dimension thing?
gollark: COMPACT MACHINES
gollark: So, *will* you add Compact Ma¢hines?
gollark: It's NullPointerException:-1 here in the Potato Kingdoms.
gollark: Refined Storage?

References
  1. "Tabitha Bonita Brown (born 4 Feb 1979) - United States Public Records". FamilySearch. United States Public Records. Retrieved July 1, 2020.
  2. "Resume - Tabitha Bonita Brown". Nowcasting.com. Retrieved July 15, 2020.
  3. Tabitha Brown [@IAmTabithaBrown] (February 4, 2019). "It's my birthday!!!! Feb 4th [...] Omg I'm 40 THANK YOU…" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  4. Jackson, Leigh-Ann (June 27, 2020). "She came to L.A. for fame. 20 years later, this auntie is a bonafide TikTok star". Los Angeles Times. ISSN 0458-3035. Retrieved July 1, 2020.
  5. Blackmon, Michael (April 21, 2020). "How A Vegan TikTok Star Became A Daily Pick-Me-Up For Millions Of People". BuzzFeed News. Retrieved April 25, 2020.
  6. Zoledziowski, Anya (April 17, 2020). "TikTok Star Tabitha Brown's Vegan Recipe Videos Will Soothe Your Soul". Vice. ISSN 1077-6788. Retrieved July 1, 2020.
  7. Murphy, Desiree; Behar, Deidre (July 21, 2020). "How Tabitha Brown Overcame Obstacles to Live Out Her Dream Life". Entertainment Tonight. Retrieved August 4, 2020.
  8. Finley, Taryn (May 3, 2020). "How TikTok Star And Actor Tabitha Brown Is Becoming America's Mom". HuffPost. Retrieved August 5, 2020.
  9. Shapiro, Ari (May 20, 2020). "Viral Vegan Influencer Makes Comforting TikTok Videos During The Pandemic". NPR. Retrieved August 5, 2020.
  10. Abrams, Margaret (July 17, 2020). "Why Tabitha Brown is TikTok's best chef to follow". Evening Standard. Retrieved August 5, 2020.
  11. "Tik Tok Sensation Tabitha Brown Remembers Her Triad Roots". Spectrum News. May 24, 2020. Retrieved July 1, 2020.
  12. Garcia, Sandra E.; Rago, Rozette (May 13, 2020). "The Joy of Vegan Cooking, 60 Seconds at a Time". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved July 1, 2020.
  13. Welch, Hailey (May 20, 2020). "How Vegan TikTok Star Tabitha Brown Started Her Viral Career". The Beet. Retrieved July 1, 2020.
  14. McFeters, Chloé (March 14, 2018). "Interview with Actress and Vlogger Tabitha Brown". Chloé McFeters. Retrieved July 1, 2020.
  15. Garrity, Kate (April 28, 2020). "TikTok Sensation, Tabitha Brown, Is a Vegan Chef and Mother of Two". Distractify. Retrieved July 1, 2020.
  16. Bowie, Richard (May 31, 2020). "Black Wellness Matters: How Vegan TikTok Star Tabitha Brown is Healing Her Community". VegNews. Retrieved July 1, 2020.
  17. "Tabitha Brown". IMDb. Retrieved July 1, 2020.
  18. "Making Tomato Sandwiches—Because That's Our Business!—With TikTok Star Tabitha Brown on A Zoom of One's Own". Vogue. May 7, 2020. ISSN 0042-8000. Retrieved July 1, 2020.
  19. Raven, Robin (March 4, 2020). "Tabitha Brown Is On a Mission to Inspire You to Eat More Plants". Chowhound. CBS Interactive. Retrieved April 25, 2020.
  20. Starostinetskaya, Anna (June 25, 2020). "Vegan Influencer Tabitha Brown Gets Own Show on Ellen's Network". VegNews. ISSN 1544-8495. Retrieved July 1, 2020.
  21. Axworthy, Nicole (April 29, 2020). "Vegan Influencer Tabitha Brown Signs With One of Hollywood's Top Talent Agencies". VegNews. ISSN 1544-8495. Retrieved July 1, 2020.
  22. Tomky, Naomi (June 29, 2020). "Tabitha Brown Is Finally Getting Her Own TV Show (and We Hope There's More Carrot Bacon)". The Kitchn. Retrieved July 1, 2020.
  23. Reed, Anika (July 17, 2020). "Tabitha Brown, more Black creators and celebs are focusing on joy amid pandemic, trauma". USA Today. ISSN 0734-7456. Retrieved August 1, 2020.
  24. Blackmon, Michael. "How A Vegan TikTok Star Became A Daily Pick-Me-Up For Millions Of People". BuzzfeedNews. Retrieved August 8, 2020.
  25. "The Results Are In! Here are the Winners of the 2020 Veggie Awards". VegNews. April 2, 2020. ISSN 1544-8495. Retrieved July 5, 2020.
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