Trivia: Born Jo-Issa Rae Diop, Senegalese-American writer, producer and actor Issa Rae adopted her stage name in 2008 after tiring of explaining that her surname is pronounced "Jope." She grew up in predominantly white suburban Maryland with her father, an African pediatrician, her mother, a teacher from Louisiana, and four siblings, but before she reached sixth grade the family moved to an affluent neighborhood of black families in Los Angeles, a transition that cemented her outsider status in both white and black communities.During her senior year at Stanford, this lifetime of fish-out-of-water experiences inspired a Web series called Dorm Diaries. But it also became the basis for the Internet sitcom The Misadventures of Awkward Black Girl, an overnight YouTube sensation in 2011 that garnered millions of hits and hundreds of thousands of subscribers but still left Rae broke. With nowhere else to turn, she and Tracy Oliver, a fellow 2007 Stanford graduate who was also a producer and costar on the series, launched a successful Kickstarter campaign that assured the show would go on. And go on it did, winning the award for Best Web Show at the 2012 Shorty Awards, which recognizes achievements in social media.Rae has been all over a number of influential up-and-comer lists, including two appearances on Forbes' "30 Under 30," but suffered a minor setback in 2013 when ABC passed on her sitcom with Shonda Rhimes called I Hate LA Dudes, which would have been the first foray into half-hour comedy from the Scandal producer's Shondaland. In February 2015, however, HBO ordered a pilot for Insecure, a project starring Rae that she began developing in 2013 with Larry Wilmore, host of Comedy Central's The Nightly Show, and in the same month, Simon & Schuster published a collection of Rae's essays under the same name as her Awkward Black Girl Web series.

Trivia: Entered a pageant as a favor for a friend; for the talent portion, wrote and delivered her first standup comedy routine. After graduating with her Masters, she lived in Liberia for six months working with an HIV prevention effort. Before being cast in Insecure, she worked as a wedding emcee. Wrote and starred in the virally distributed pilot episode for First Gen, an autobiographical sitcom about a Nigerian woman who abandons med-school in favor of stand-up comedy. Serves as a creative consultant for Beauty and the Baller.

Trivia: In 2005, her performance in Adam Rapp's Red Light Winter earned her a Joseph Jefferson Award nomination.Worked at the Steppenwolf Theatre Company in Chicago, Illinois, after graduating college.In 2009, won a Helen Hayes Award for Outstanding Lead Actress, Resident Play, for her performance in Blackbird.Her work in André Gregory's stage production of Ibsen's The Master Builder led to her working in Wallace Shawn's film adaptation A Master Builder (2013).The movie A Master Builder (2013), which she stars in, was filmed in just one week.

Trivia: As an Air Force brat, grew up relocating in different places with her family.One of her first jobs was working at Blockbuster.Performed at the Tokyo Comedy Store in Tokyo for a year.Worked as a drama teacher in a high school in the Bronx for four years.Joined and worked with the Upright Citizens Brigade before landing a writing job at Saturday Night Live.Named her dog Lloyd Dobler after John Cusack's character in the movie Say Anything... (1989).Her first meeting with Issa Rae, creator of Insecure, was on a video conference call.Volunteers at the Downtown Women's Center, and supports Planned Parenthood, Emily's List, HRC, ACLU, SPLC and RAINN.

Trivia: Transferred from Morehouse College to NYU's theatre program following the advice of fellow Morehouse alum Spike Lee.Trained in clowning, movement, directing, Shakespeare, voice and self-scripting at the International Theatre Workshop in 2009.Made his feature film debut in the 2013 drama/ thriller House of Another.Landed the recurring role of Daniel King on the HBO series Insecure in 2016. After admitting to feeling somewhat insecure around women he likes, Y'lan prepared for his role of Daniel King by reading, watching videos and listening to podcasts by pick-up artists.

Trivia: Due to his father's career in the air force, he attended 12 schools in 13 years. Attended Concordia University on a basketball scholarship. Completed college in three years. Is co-owner of spin and Pilates health clubs in Louisiana. Actively involved with the charities Miracles for Kids and Mind Matters.

Trivia: Studied martial arts growing up. First on-screen appearance came at the age of 14 on the martial arts show WMAC Masters, which launched his acting career. Cold-called casting director Sarah Finn to schedule a general audition, which led to him being cast in 2009's Fast and Furious. First audition for Straight Outta Compton flopped; he re-auditioned several months later and was cast as DJ Yella.

Trivia: A memorable voice and a major talent, Chicago-born Harry J. Lennix first caught audiences' attention with the role of Dr. Greg Fischer on the medical drama ER. He would go on to make waves in films like Collateral Damage, The Matrix sequels, and Ray. as the 2000's and 2010's unfolded, Lennix would add more prominent TV roles to his resume, memorably starring on 24, Commander in Chief, and Dollhouse.

Trivia: Born in a small town just outside of Chicago, IL, performer Keke Palmer initially gravitated to singing as a young child, but soon landed a memorable screen role as the niece of Queen Latifah in the urban comedy Barbershop 2: Back in Business (2004). Palmer turned to acting given the success of this first assignment; its positive reception prompted the budding actress' family to relocate to Southern California and doubtless helped open the doors that led to Palmer's first lead portrayal. She played Akeelah, the 11-year-old daughter of a single parent who ascends through the ranks of spelling bee competitions, in the sleeper hit Akeelah and the Bee (2006). Palmer subsequently teamed up with director Tyler Perry twice, first with a role in his comedy Madea's Family Reunion, then with a guest spot on his series Tyler Perry's House of Payne, and landed the lead role in the teen movie musical Jump In! (2007), a made-for-television picture about two adolescents who compete against one another in a rope-skipping competition.

Trivia: Actress Lela Rochon started her career in show business as a bikini-clad party girl in Spuds MacKenzie beer commercials during the '80s. A trained dancer, she was in the background of Breakin', Breakin' 2: Electric Boogaloo, and Lionel Richie's music video for "All Night Long." In 1985, she starred in her first feature, A Bunny's Tale, a TV-movie starring Kirstie Alley as feminist activist Gloria Steinem during her Playboy Bunny days. Rochon went on to appear in the low-budget movies Stewardess Schooland Foxtrap, as well as the Eddie Murphy blockbusters Harlem Nights and Boomerang. Her big film breakthrough came in 1995, when her friendship with author Terry McMillan helped her to get an audition with director Forest Whitaker for the role of Robin in Waiting to Exhale. The film was a surprise Hollywood hit and Rochon was offered several new projects. After joining the cast of the WB series The Wayans Bros. as Shawn Wayans' girlfriend Lisa, she starred opposite Timothy Hutton in the made-for-cable movie Mr. and Mrs. Loving. She showed her versatility in her next few films as a wide array of characters: an exotic dancer in Gang Related, a government aide in The Chamber, a schoolteacher in Why Do Fools Fall in Love, a corporate vice president in Knock Off, and a kooky best friend in Labor Pains. In 2001, she joined the cast of the Lifetime original series The Division as Inspector Angela Reide. She and her husband, director Antoine Fuqua, have two children.