Taraji Penda her name means hope and love in Swahili was born in Washington DC in September 1970 to department store manager Bernice and janitor Boris Henson. Although she initially set her heart on a career in show business, she changed tack and began studying electrical engineering after being rejected by an acting programme. She lasted just a year on the course.
In 1995, she enrolled at Washington's Howard University to study theatre arts. She worked two jobs to pay the fees - as a secretary at the Pentagon in the morning and as a singing/dancing waitress on a dinner cruise ship at night. She'd not long embarked upon the course when she was faced with another steep learning curve that of motherhood after her son Marcel was born.
In 1996 Henson and her son moved to Los Angeles so she could pursue a professional acting career. She had just $700 in her bank account at the time. After two years of auditioning while also working an office job to make ends meet, Henson landed her first professional acting gig, a recurring role on the television show Smart Guy. The role led to a part on the sitcom Sister, Sister, starring teen twins Tia and Tamera Mowry. Early in her career, Henson also made appearances on TV's Homicide: Life on the Streets and the popular medical drama ER.
SHE KEPT GOING!!
