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She killed SNL! The triple-threat actor, writer, and producer, Quinta Brunson, has been sweeping the awards shows this season, so it’s about time to look back at how she became the talent she is today! Here is the evolution of meme star, Quinta Brunson.

Born and Raised

Quinta Brunson was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on December 21, 1989. She grew up performing in dance troupes, setting her up for the success she is seeing today as a multi-award-winning actor, writer, and producer.

Chasing her dreams

Brunson attended Temple University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. While in school, she became interested in comedy and would take trips to Chicago for classes at The Second City. She took off a semester to spend time in Los Angeles, take classes at The Second City, and work jobs as a production assistant and styling assistant.

Back to Temple University

She eventually moved back to Philadelphia but dropped out of Temple University to jumpstart her entertainment career when the Communications department, her major, was shut down.

Move to Los Angeles

In 2013, Brunson officially moved to Los Angeles where she worked at an Apple store, and continued working in assistant jobs. She also started doing improv and open-mic comedy. In the same year, she started posting comedy content on social media.

“He Got Money!”

In 2014, Quinta began posting on Instagram, starting the hit series: “The Girl Who’s Never Been on a Nice Date”. This is the series that gave us the iconic phrase, “He got money!”.

Money struggles and social media

Brunson was starting to become popular online, but she struggled to make stable money. One day, a friend invited her to a video shoot at Buzzfeed, “International Doritos Taste Test” where she was paid $50. She continued to get invited to video shoots. In 2014, she was hired as a junior producer at Buzzfeed.

Quinta’s Legacy

Quinta became widely known for her relatable content at Buzzfeed. She starred in, wrote, and produced videos about what it’s like to be the only Black girl in the room, Black hair, Natural hair vs The Perm, and more.

“Broke”

While at Buzzfeed, Quinta pitched the idea for a series called “Broke,”which hit 1 million views in the first week. She became a development partner and sold the show to Youtube Red. She also sold the show “Adopted” to Verizon’s go90, which shut down in July 2018.

Leaving Buzzfeed

Quinta left Buzzfeed in 2018 and started building up her resume by starring in Quinta Vs. Everything on Facebook (which she also wrote and produced), New Girl, iZombie, Single Parents, and Miracle Workers.

Voice Acting

She starred as a voice actor in Magical Girl Friendship Squad, Big Mouth, Lazor Wolf, and Cars on the Road.

A Black Lady Sketch Show

In 2019, Quinta Brunson began starring in and writing for A Black Lady Sketch Show, one of her biggest acting roles.

She Memes Well

Brunson’s first book She Memes Well, a collection of personal essays, was published in 2021.

Abbott Elementary

The Buzzfeed alum’s show, Abbott Elementary, was picked up by ABC in 2021, writing, producing, and starring in the show. Abbott Elementary received tremendous accolades since premiering in December 2021. Quinta Brunson, Sheryl Lee Ralph, Tyler James Williams, and Janelle James have all received major awards wins, and nominations for their roles. The show has won Best Comedy Series awards for the Golden Globe Awards, Critics Choice Awards, and Primetime Emmy Awards.

Kimmel Controversy

Quinta won the Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series in 2022. As she walked up to accept her speech, late-night talk show host, Jimmy Kimmel, continued his prior skit by laying across the floor. Quinta had to delay the beginning of her acceptance speech to play into the skit and ask him to get up. Kimmel received fair criticism from viewers that he took away from such an honorable moment for Brunson. Kimmel has since apologized and Brunson was given the chance to finish her speech on his show.