Kelis

Kelis was born and raised in the Harlem neighborhood of New York City.

She has three sisters, Kelis being the third born of the four girls.

As a child, Kelis sang in church choirs and played violin, piano, and saxophone while attending Manhattan Country School, a private school. Kelis left home at age sixteen, but continued her education at age sixteen when she went to the Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts, where she formed the R&B trio BLU (Black Ladies United). After graduation, she formed a band with The Neptunes, Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo, and, with their support, landed herself a record deal.

Kelis is writing a cookbook with Robert Teamer and designing her own line of fashion accessories, called Cake. Kelis is in talks to host a Project Runway-esque show for VH1, and is auditioning for various film and TV roles.