Yo-Yo (rapper)

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Yo-Yo
Yo-Yo in 2023
Born
Yolanda Whitaker

(1971-08-04) August 4, 1971 (age 52)
Compton, California, U.S.
Occupations
  • Rapper
  • songwriter
  • actress
Spouse
DeAndre Windom
​
​
(m. 2013; div. 2016)​
Kelvin J. King engaged 2023
Musical career
OriginSouth Central, Los Angeles, California, U.S.
GenresWest Coast hip hop
Years active1989–present
LabelsEast West America
Websiteyoyoschoolofhiphop.com

Yolanda "Yo-Yo" Whitaker (born August 4, 1971)[1] is an American rapper and actress.

Much of Yo-Yo's music advocates female empowerment. She is the protégé of gangsta rapper Ice Cube. Yo-Yo has dubbed her crew the IBWC, Intelligent Black Woman's Coalition.[2] She also performed on a couple of stages with 2Pac's group Digital Underground.

Career[edit]

Music[edit]

Yo-Yo first appeared as a guest on Ice Cube's 1990 debut studio album AmeriKKKa's Most Wanted on the track "It's a Man's World".[3] Cube returned the favor by appearing on "You Can't Play with My Yo-Yo", on Yo-Yo's 1991 debut album, Make Way for the Motherlode.[3] Each of the videos for the singles from the album were directed by Okuwah Garrett of Power Films.

Her follow-up album released in 1992, Black Pearl,[3] was well received by critics,[4] partly because of its focus on positive messages and uplifting themes that heavily contrasted with the popular gangsta rap style at the time.[4] Despite a plethora of renowned producers such as DJ Muggs, this failed to translate into a hit with mainstream hip-hop audiences, and the album's sales were considered a disappointment.[4]

Less than a year later, Yo-Yo released her follow-up album, titled You Better Ask Somebody.[3] The final track on the album was her third recorded hip-hop duet with Ice Cube, "The Bonnie and Clyde Theme".[3]

Yo-Yo in 1997

Yo-Yo's next album, Total Control, was released in 1996.[3] In 1998, Yo-Yo finished her fifth studio album, Ebony, though it was not released. In 2008, her single, "You Can't Play With My Yo-Yo" was ranked number 92 on VH1's 100 Greatest Hip-Hop Songs.[5] Later that year, she performed with MC Lyte, The Lady of Rage, and Salt-N-Pepa at the BET Hip Hop Awards. She also performed on the Arsenio Hall show in 1994 alongside many other famous rappers and rap groups. Yo-Yo opened up the show and was later followed by rappers and groups like Naughty by Nature, A Tribe Called Quest and Wu-Tang Clan.

As of 2009, Yo-Yo has been working on an EP, titled My Journey to Fearless: The Black Butterfly.[6]

In 2013, it was announced she joined the upcoming BET reality series Hip Hop Sisters which will focus on six female rappers' lives and their attempts to relaunch their careers.[7] Other rappers confirmed to appear are MC Lyte, Lady of Rage, Monie Love, Lil Mama, and Smooth.[8] Yo-Yo currently hosts a cooking show on the Aspire network "Downright Delicious with Yo-Yo."[9]

Acting[edit]

Yo-Yo appeared in the 1991 film Boyz n the Hood. She had a recurring role on the television show Martin as Keylolo, the sidekick to comedian Martin Lawrence's alter ego Sheneneh. Yo-Yo also appeared on other TV shows, including the Fox network's New York Undercover. She made a cameo appearance in the music video for Missy Elliot's "The Rain (Supa Dupa Fly)". She also appeared in the 2004 video game Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas as the voice of Kendl Johnson.[10] She has a reoccurring role in the series Saturdays on Disney Plus starring role as skating rink owner, Duchess.

Personal life[edit]

Yo-Yo was in a relationship with Tupac Shakur for some time in the 1990s. She was with Shakur in the hospital shortly before he died.[11] Later, Yo-Yo became engaged to DeAndre Windom, the former mayor of Highland Park, Michigan, in August 2012.[12] The two married on August 17,[13] 2013 in the Cayman Islands[14] and divorced in 2018.[15]

On November 23, 2023 Yo-Yo became engaged to Kelvin King a successful businessman and real estate mogul from Jamaica Queens, New York

Yo-Yo has been active in advocating for hip-hop artists to become involved within their community. Notably, she testified in 1994 for a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing about whether the government should require rating labels on gangsta rap.[16] She also founded the Yo-Yo School of Hip-Hop to use hip-hop in curriculum for at-risk students.[17]

Discography[edit]

Main article: Yo-Yo discography
Studio albums

Filmography[edit]

Film[edit]

Year Title Role Notes
1991 Boyz n the Hood Herself
1993 Who's the Man? Woman
Menace II Society Girl at Party
Strapped Ann TV movie
Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit Sondra
1994 Adventures of D.P. Boys 17: South of the Border Video
1995 Panther Pregnant Junkie
1997 Sprung Sista #3
Trials of Life Jennifer
1999 The Breaks Loretha
Beverly Hood Tilly
2000 3 Strikes Charita
2001 Longshot Herself
2002 Paper Soldiers Judge Prince [18]
2006 Da Jammies Mrs. Mangual (voice) Short
Waist Deep Female Radio DJ (voice)
2016 Janitors Herself

Television[edit]

Year Title Role Notes
1992-98 Soul Train Herself 3 episodes
1993-95 Martin Keylolo Recurring cast: season 1, 3
1995 New York Undercover Nikki Episode: "You Get No Respect"
1996 Moesha Security Guard Episode: "A Concerted Effort: Part 1"
1997 The Parent 'Hood Audrey Episode: "When Robert Met Jerri"
1998 The Jamie Foxx Show Kierston Episode: "Passenger 187"
2005 Ego Trip's Race-O-Rama Herself TV series documentary
2006 3rd Annual VH1 Hip-Hop Honors Herself TV special
2007 Parallel Paths Herself TV series
2008 Baisden After Dark Herself Episode: "Getting Lazy After Marriage"
Ego Trip's Miss Rap Supreme Herself/co-host TV series
The Greatest Herself Episode: "100 Greatest Hip Hop Songs"
2011 Way Black When: Primetime Herself Episode: "Episode #1.12"
2015 Da Jammies The Real Rosanne (voice) Episode: "Old School"
2016 VH1 Hip Hop Honors: All Hail the Queens Herself TV special
2018 Unsolved Pretty Woman Episode: "Wherever It Leads"
2019 Love & Hip Hop: Hollywood Herself Main cast: season 6
2023 Saturdays Duchess Recurring cast

Video games[edit]

Year Title Role Notes
2004 Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas Kendl Johnson (voice)

Documentary[edit]

Year Title
1999 After Stonewall
2010 The Wordz Project
My Mic Sounds Nice: A Truth About Women and Hip Hop
2011 The Power of Words

Awards and nominations[edit]

Year Award
1995 MTV Video Music Award nomination for Best Rap Video for "I Wanna Be Down" (Remix) (featuring Brandy, MC Lyte and Queen Latifah)[citation needed]
1996 Grammy Award nomination for Best Rhythm & Blues Vocal Performance - Duo or Group for "Stomp"[citation needed]

References[edit]

Notes[edit]

Citations[edit]

  1. ^ Ron Wynn (August 4, 1971). "Yo-Yo | Biography". AllMusic. Retrieved August 11, 2014.
  2. ^ "SUMMER SPLASH III". (May 26, 1991). L.A. Times, p. 50
  3. ^ a b c d e f Colin Larkin, ed. (1998). The Virgin Encyclopedia of Dance Music (First ed.). Virgin Books. pp. 372/3. ISBN 0-7535-0252-6.
  4. ^ a b c Abdul-Adil, Jaleel (August 1, 1993), "Yo Yo and MC Lyte Turn Tables on Male Rappers", Chicago Sun-Times, p. 9
  5. ^ "VH1′s 100 Greatest Hip-Hop Songs". Stereogum. September 29, 2008. Retrieved April 9, 2012.
  6. ^ "Lifestyle | Icons Speak: YoYo Talks Keri Hilson, Female Emcees, more". Singersroom.com. January 6, 2009. Retrieved April 9, 2012.
  7. ^ "MC Lyte to Executive Produce 'Hip Hop Sisters' on BET". Black Enterprise. June 12, 2013. Retrieved May 20, 2020.
  8. ^ "@VIBEVixen» BET Announces 'Hip Hop Sisters' and Jeanette Jenkins Reality Series » Madison Lafayette". Vibevixen.com. Archived from the original on August 12, 2014. Retrieved August 11, 2014.
  9. ^ "Yo-Yo Is In Her Happy Place On 'Downright Delicious With Yo-Yo' Cooking Show". Vibe.com. June 10, 2023. Retrieved August 19, 2023.
  10. ^ Jones, Francis. "Ice Cube - AmeriKKKa's Most Wanted (album review 3)". sputnikmusic.com. Sputnik Music. Retrieved May 28, 2015.
  11. ^ "Unsung". TVOne. September 21, 2015. Retrieved September 26, 2015.
  12. ^ Blackman, Ritch (August 24, 2012). "Rapper Yo Yo Engaged To Highland Park, Mi Mayor". UnsungHipHop. Retrieved June 3, 2013.
  13. ^ "Facebook". Facebook.com. Archived from the original on February 26, 2022. Retrieved June 30, 2021.
  14. ^ Sylk, Sam (2013). "Yo Yo's Husband, Mayor DeAndre Windom, Shot In Detroit Nightclub". WZAK. Retrieved July 31, 2019.
  15. ^ "MC Lyte, Yo-Yo & Remy Ma Featured in New Episode of OWN's 'Girlfriends Check-In' [Video]". July 17, 2020.
  16. ^ "Free Speech for Rappers". The Progressive. 58 (4): 9. April 1994 – via ProQuest Central.
  17. ^ "Compton Artist YoYo Gives Students Hip-Hop Education". NBC Southern California. Retrieved March 23, 2018.
  18. ^ "Full cast and crew for Paper Soldiers (2002)". IMDb. Retrieved June 2, 2013.

External links[edit]

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