Bre-Z

Bre-Z was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and was raised in Wilmington, Delaware.^[6][7][8] Her grandmother gave her the nickname "Bre-Z" at birth when she would not stop crying until a window was shut, so they called her "breezy".^{[8][7][9][10]} She found out it wasn't her real name when she began elementary school.^[8][7][9] As a child, she had short hair and people would often mistake her for a boy.^[5] In sixth grade, she decided that she wanted to pursue music.^[9] Her mother worked in the entertainment industry, and once woke up to Wu-Tang Clan in her living room, so she knew that she would become involved in the entertainment industry from a young age.^[4] Bre-Z graduated high school in 2005.^[5] She attended Full Sail University in Winter Park, Florida.^[8] In 2008, she moved to Atlanta when her mom found a job there.^[7][4][2] Bre-Z began cutting hair at the age of 10,^[9] and comes from a family of barbers, with her grandfather, father, and mother all working as barbers.^[8][4][2] While working as a barber, she cut hair for Akon, Ludacris and Rob Dougie .^[7][11][12] In 2014, she moved to Los Angeles to pursue her dream of becoming a musician with only one dollar in her bank account.^[8][4]

Bre-Z began her music career at age 14 with impromptu performances around Philadelphia.^[6] Her brother used to rap, and she would perform his songs until she began writing her own.^[4] When she was 15, she met Freeway.^[7] Freeway put her in a studio and recorded her first song with her.^[7]

Bre-Z began writing songs with Dr. Dre, Jennifer Lopez, and The Game.^[10] She moved to Los Angeles when she was 24 to pursue her music.^[9][11] In 2015, after landing an audition through a barbershop connection, Bre-Z was cast in the role of Freda Gatz.^[6][4][13] It was her first audition and first time acting.^[10] She appeared on the soundtrack several times throughout her time on the show, sometimes performing her own raps.^{[7][11][14][2]} In November 2018, she was the grand marshal of the Xavier University homecoming parade.^[2]

In 2018, Bre-Z was cast as Tamia "Coop" Cooper in the drama All American.^[9] She once stated that "Coop is literally Bre-Z in high school," emphasizing the similarities between her and her character.^[5][2] Her role has been praised as breaking barriers for the LGBTQ community.^[6]

She released an EP, The Grl in 2015 on her independent label.^[4][13] Her most recent album is titled Full Circle.^[6]

In regard to her sexuality, Bre-Z has stated that she wants to keep her romantic interests private.^[5] In one interview, Bre-Z said, "I love everybody. But when it gets down to whatever is underneath my clothes, whatever is inside of my home, or in my bedroom... I feel like at some point, being in the public eye, you have to keep something for yourself. And that's just what I choose to keep for me."^[1][4]

Bre-Z is very spiritual.^[11] She lives in Los Angeles, California.^[4] Her favorite movie is Juice.

• The Grl. (2018)
• Full Circle (2020)