Skai Jackson

Born/Date of Birth: April 8, 2002
Place of Birth: New York, New York, United States
Height: 1.58 m
Nationality: American
Parents: Kiya Cole, Jacob Jackson
Occupation: Actress,YouTuber,author
Television: Jessie, Bunk'd
Skai Jackson (born April 8, 2002) is an American actress, YouTuber, and author, who was included in Time’s list of Most Influential Teens in 2016. Jackson first began acting at the age of 5, making her debut in the film Liberty Kid (2007). She later came to international prominence for her portrayal of Zuri Ross in the Disney Channel series Jessie (2011–2015), and in the sequel, Bunk'd (2015–2018). She has also voiced Glory Grant across the Marvel Rising series, and voiced Summer in the animated series DreamWorks Dragons: Rescue Riders (2019–2020). In 2019, Jackson released her debut novel, Reach for the Skai: How to Inspire, Empower, and Clapback.

Early life
Jackson was born on April 8, 2002 in New York City. She began her career as a child model appearing in numerous national commercials, including for Band-Aid bandages, Coca-Cola, Pepsi, and Old Navy.

Career
Jackson’s first major acting role was in the independent film Liberty Kid (2007), followed an episode of Rescue Me (2008) and the film The Rebound (2009). In 2009, she was cast as a member of the Nickelodeon pre-school animated series Bubble Guppies playing the role of Little Fish. From 2010 to 2011 she guest-starred in the television series Team Umizoomi, Royal Pains, and Boardwalk Empire. She also had small roles in the 2011 films Arthur and The Smurfs.

In 2011, she was cast as Zuri Ross in the Disney Channel sitcom Jessie. In 2013, she was also cast in the role of "Joetta Watson" in the Hallmark Channel television film The Watsons Go To Birmingham. In 2014, she guest-starred in an episode of Disney XD's animated series Ultimate Spider-Man. In 2015, a new Disney Channel series Bunk'd, a spin-off of Jessie, was announced where Jackson reprises her role of Zuri Ross.

Following her success with the shows, Jackson promptly made a guest appearance in K.C. Undercover. She then stayed out of film and television for three years, until 2018 when she came back to voice acting with a guest appearance in Marvel Rising: Initiation, as Glory Grant. She reprised this role in 2019 with Marvel Rising: Chasing Ghosts, and Marvel Rising: Battle of the Bands.

In 2019, Jackson was cast in the music video for "Panini", a song by Lil Nas X. The video gained worldwide popularity, and spawned a variety of memes due to her character being unable to escape the rapper. In the same year, Jackson announced that she would be publishing and releasing a new book entitled "Reach for the Skai: How to Inspire, Empower, and Clapback", which was released in October 2019.