Camille Simoine Winbush (born February 9, 1990) is an American actress and singer, best known for her roles as Emma Aimes on short-lived sitcom '' Minor Adjustments'', Vanessa "Nessa" Thomkins on ''

The Bernie Mac Show ''The Bernie Mac Show'' (often shortened to ''Bernie Mac'' in syndication) is an American sitcom television series created by Larry Wilmore, that aired on Fox for five seasons from November 14, 2001, to April 14, 2006. The series featured Ber ...

'' and as Lauren Treacy on the popular teen drama ''

The Secret Life of the American Teenager ''The Secret Life of the American Teenager'' (often shortened to ''Secret Life'') is an American teen drama television series created by Brenda Hampton. It aired on ABC Family from July 1, 2008, to June 3, 2013. The series features an ensemble ...

''. Her work in television has earned her three

Image Awards The NAACP Image Awards is an annual awards ceremony presented by the U.S.-based National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) to honor outstanding performances in film, television, theatre, music, and literature. The over 40 ...

and a

Young Artist Award The Young Artist Award (originally known as the Youth in Film Award) is an accolade presented by the Young Artist Foundation, a nonprofit organization founded in 1978 to honor excellence of youth performers, and to provide scholarships for young ...

Early life

Winbush was born in

Culver City, California Culver City is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 40,779. It is mostly surrounded by Los Angeles, but also shares a border with the unincorporated area of Ladera Heights, Californi ...

on February 9, 1990, the only child of Anthony and Alice Winbush. She never attended public school, having been

homeschooled Homeschooling or home schooling (American English), also known as home education or elective home education (EHE) (British English), is the education of school-aged children at home or a variety of places other than a school. Usually conducted ...

and educated by an on-set tutor while acting as a child. Winbush was a competitive gymnast during her childhood.

Career

Winbush made her acting debut on television series ''

Viper Vipers are snakes in the family Viperidae, found in most parts of the world, except for Antarctica, Australia, Hawaii, Madagascar, New Zealand, Ireland, and various other isolated islands. They are venomous and have long (relative to non-vipe ...

'' in 1994, playing the role of Lucy Wilkes. The following year, she acted in her first film, ''

Dangerous Minds ''Dangerous Minds'' is a 1995 American drama film directed by John N. Smith, written by Ronald Bass, and produced by Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer. It is based on the 1992 autobiography ''My Posse Don't Do Homework'' by retired U.S. Mar ...

''. She appeared regularly on sitcom '' Minor Adjustments'' (1995−96) as Emma Aimes, the daughter of

Rondell Sheridan Rondell Jerome Sheridan (born August 15, 1958) is an American actor, comedian and television director, best known for his role of Victor Baxter in the Disney Channel sitcom ''That's So Raven'', as well as its later spin-offs ''Cory in the House ...

's character. Winbush reprised her role of Emma on '' Brotherly Love'' in a Halloween episode. She portrayed a young girl named Camille in ''

Eraser An eraser (also known as a rubber in some Commonwealth countries, including South Africa from which the material first used got its name) is an article of stationery that is used for removing marks from paper or skin (e.g. parchment or vellu ...

'' (1996) and appeared as Pearline, a bookworm, in '' Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai'' (1999). Winbush had a recurring role on '' 7th Heaven'' and provided the voice of Ashley Tomossian on the

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cartoon '' Recess''. Winbush's big break came in 2001 when she was cast as Vanessa Thomkins on ''

'', a role she would play until the series ended in 2006. During her run on the show Winbush earned numerous award nominations for her role, winning three

NAACP Image Award The NAACP Image Awards is an annual awards ceremony presented by the U.S.-based National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) to honor outstanding performances in film, television, theatre, music, and literature. The over 40 ...

s for

Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series "Outstanding" is a song originally performed by the Gap Band and written by member Raymond Calhoun. The song originally appeared on the group's RIAA certification, platinum-selling 1982 album ''Gap Band IV''. It is one of their signature songs a ...

and a

for Best Performance in a TV Series (Comedy or Drama) – Leading Young Actress in 2006. She has guest starred on ''

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'', ''

Criminal Minds ''Criminal Minds'' is an American police procedural crime drama television series created by Jeff Davis that premiered on CBS on September 22, 2005. It follows a group of criminal profilers who work for the FBI as members of its Behavioral ...

'', ''That's Life'', ''

The Norm Show ''The Norm Show'' is an American television sitcom that ran on ABC from March 24, 1999, to April 6, 2001. Starting in September 1999, the show's title was shortened to ''Norm''. The series starred Norm Macdonald, who created the series with B ...

'', ''

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'', and '' Any Day Now''. In 2007, she appeared in an episode of ''

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''. Winbush acted in Disney's musical production of ''

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''. From 2008 to 2013, Winbush played Lauren Treacy, a recurring character in ''

''. Winbush was cast as Miriam in the web series '' The Choir'', replacing Idara Victor in the role. She provided the voice of Rhonda in '' Children of Ether'' and portrayed Syrena in '' Cannon Busters'', both productions by animator

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Other ventures

In 2002, Winbush recorded "One Small Voice" featuring singers

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and

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and "The Night Before Christmas Song" for the compilation album ''School's Out! Christmas''. She also sang on the soundtrack of the

musical production of ''Geppetto''. As a teenager, Winbush operated an ice cream shop she named Baked Ice, located in

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. It opened in 2003 and an aunt supervised the store when Winbush was unavailable. She received a Teenpreneur Award from ''

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'' in 2004. The business was still extant as of 2005. In February 2021, Winbush started an

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account.

Filmography

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Winbush, Camille 1990 births Living people 20th-century African-American actresses 20th-century African-American women singers 20th-century American actresses 20th-century American singers 20th-century American women singers 21st-century African-American actresses 21st-century African-American women singers 21st-century American actresses 21st-century American singers 21st-century American women singers Actresses from California African-American child actresses American child actresses American film actresses American television actresses OnlyFans creators Entertainers from Culver City, California