Biography:

Tika Sumpter (born Euphemia Sumpter; June 20, 1980) is an American actress, singer, and model known for her roles as Layla Williamson on One Life to Live, recurring roles as Raina Thorpe on Gossip Girl and as Jenna Rice in the The CW/BET sitcom The Game. As of 2013 she is starring as Candace Young in the OWN drama series The Haves and the Have Nots.

She began her career modeling and appeared in commercials for Hewlett-Packard and Liz Claiborne's Curve fragrances. In 2004, she served as the co-host for the N network series Best Friend's Date. The following year she landed the role of Layla Williamson on One Life to Live.From January to May 2011, Sumpter appeared on Gossip Girl as Raina Thorpe, the daughter of Russell Thorpe and Chuck Bass/Nate' former love interest.She played singer Jason Derülo's girlfriend in the video for his song "It Girl".

On September 12, 2011, it was announced that Sumpter would be playing one of the sisters, Deloris, in the music-themed film Sparkle alongside Jordin Sparks, Whitney Houston, Derek Luke & Carmen Ejogo. Sparkle is a remake of the 1976 film of the same name inspired by the story of The Supremes. The remake was set in 1968 Detroit, during the rise of Motown. The story will focus on the youngest sister, a music prodigy named Sparkle Williams (Jordin Sparks), and her struggle to become a star while overcoming issues that are tearing her family apart. R&B singer Aaliyah was originally tapped to star as Sparkle; however following her death in a 2001 plane crash, production on the film was derailed. Production would have begun in 2002. Sparkle was filmed in the fall of 2011 over a two-month period. The film, which co-stars Sumpter, was released in the United States on August 17, 2012.

On May 21, 2012, "Celebrate", the last song Whitney Houston recorded with Sparks, premiered at RyanSeacrest.com. The song is the first official single featured on the Sparkle: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack album which Sumpter is a part of. The accompanying music video for Celebrate was filmed on May 30, 2012 and the video featured herself and the rest of her Sparkle cast mates .

As of 2013, Sumpter stars as Candace in OWN drama series The Haves and the Have Nots. In 2014, Sumpter will be the female lead in Ride Along opposite Kevin Hart and Ice Cube, and also was cast as Yvonne Fair in James Brown' biopic, Get On Up.

Born in Queens, New York City, Sumpter graduated from Longwood Senior High School in Middle Island, New York and studied at Marymount Manhattan College where she majored in communications.

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