Ayo Edebiri, a Nigerian-American actor and comedian, was born in Boston in 1995 to a Barbadian mother and Nigerian father who came to the US. She was raised in a Pentecostal environment and began doing comedy in middle school.
This will eventually impact her university course of study. After graduating from Boston Latin School in 2013, she attended New York University to further her career, with an emphasis on teaching. However, her growing passion in comedy pushed her to switch to Dramatic Writing.
After interning at Upright Citizens Brigade during her sophomore year, she developed a passion for stand-up comedy. Her breakthrough came in 2000, when she worked as a writer and voice actress on the animated comedy series “Big Mouth.” In 2014, she appeared in an episode of the show Defectives.
However, the Dorchester native began her career as a stand-up comedian, performing a show on Comedy Central’s Up Next. Ayo and Rachel Are Single, a digital series she co-wrote and co-starred with comedian Rachel Sennott, premiered on the network in May 2020, according to Premium Times Nigeria.
She made her film debut in the 2020 comedy-drama Shithouse in an uncredited role before gaining a role in “The Bear” as Sydney Adamu in 2022. The film earned her an Emmy for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series.
She became the third Black woman to win her category with her performance in The Bear. Past Black winners include Jackee Harry (1987) and Sheryl Lee Ralph (2022).
“This is a show about family—found family and true family. And my parents are here tonight. “I’m making them sit a little far away because I’m a bad kid,” she remarked last month, thanking her parents for supporting her to pursue her aspirations.
“Probably not like a dream to immigrate to this country and have your child be like, I want to do improve,'” she went on to say. Edebiri recently received her first Golden Globe for the same role.
Edebiri has written for shows such as “Dickinson,” “What We Do in the Shadows,” and “Craig of the Creek.” Additionally, the co-host of the famous podcast “Iconography” has contributed voice work for the Netflix animated series “Big Mouth,” the Oscar-nominated “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse,” and “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem.” The 28-year-old has acted in blockbuster ABC sitcom “Abbott Elementary,” lesbian fight club flick “Bottoms,” and “Theater Camp.”
The “Bear” actress hosted “Saturday Night Live” for the first time on February 3, with Jennifer Lopez as her musical guest.
“One for the grid bc I still can’t believe it,” she posted on Instagram.