Queen Melé Le'iato Tuiasosopo Muhammad Ali (born November 12) is an American filmmaker, composer, social activist and visual anthropologist. Queen and her husband

Hakeem Khaaliq Hakeem Khaaliq (also Hakeem Abdul-Khaaliq) is an American cinematographer, film director, producer, and photographer known for his work in documentary filmmaking, visual anthropology, and photography. He began his career in the 1990s as a music p ...

founded Nation19, a magazine and film production company, and she is the director of the Manuia Samoa, a social wellness hub in

American Samoa American Samoa is an Territories of the United States, unincorporated and unorganized territory of the United States located in the Polynesia region of the Pacific Ocean, South Pacific Ocean. Centered on , it is southeast of the island count ...

Early life

Queen was born in

Watts, Los Angeles Watts is a neighborhood in southern Los Angeles, California. It is located within the South Los Angeles region, bordering the cities of Lynwood, Huntington Park and South Gate to the east and southeast, respectively, and the unincorporated co ...

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

, to an

n mother who worked as a teacher, and an

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

father who worked as a percussionist and singer and toured the Caribbean. After graduating high school at an early age, she attended Mt. San Jacinto College in

Riverside County Riverside County is a county located in the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, its population was 2,418,185, making it the fourth-most populous county in California and the 10th-most populous in the Unit ...

, where she studied art. Her grandmother, Princess Masaniai Tunufa'i Le'iato Tuiasosopo, is the daughter of Tuli Leʻiato, a ''

Faʻamatai ''Faʻamatai'' is the indigenous political ('chiefly') system of Samoa, central to the organization of Samoan society. It is the traditional indigenous form of governance in both Samoas, comprising American Samoa and the Independent State of ...

'' paramount chief of the islands of

Tutuila Tutuila is the largest and most populous island of American Samoa and is part of the archipelago of the Samoan Islands. It is the third largest island in the Samoan Islands chain of the Central Pacific. It is located roughly northeast of Brisba ...

and Aunu'u. From 1999 to 2007, part of which coincided with her time in college, Queen worked as a teacher at a private elementary school.

Career

Queen was a composer on the

MTV MTV (an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable television television channel, channel and the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group sub-division of the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global. Launched on ...

reality show ''

Adventures in Hollyhood ''Adventures in Hollyhood'' is a reality television series about the rap group Three 6 Mafia and its members Juicy J and DJ Paul. The show primarily takes place at a Hollywood Hills home that the pair resides in along with Hypnotize Minds artist ...

'', starring rap group

Three 6 Mafia Three 6 Mafia is an American hip-hop group from Memphis, Tennessee, formed in 1991. Emerging as a horror-themed underground hip-hop group, they went on to enjoy mainstream success. The group's 1995 debut album ''Mystic Stylez'' became an influen ...

, which premiered on April 5, 2007. Queen and

were consulting producers on the MTV reality show ''

T.I.'s Road to Redemption ''T.I.'s Road to Redemption'' is an American reality television show that premiered on February 10, 2009, on MTV. The show was produced by T.I., Michael Hirschorn, Stella Stolper, and Chris Choun of Ish Entertainment. The series, focusing on the 4 ...

'', starring rapper

T.I. Clifford Joseph Harris Jr. (born September 25, 1980), known professionally as T.I. or Tip, is an American rapper and singer raised in Atlanta, Georgia. Harris is credited as a pioneer of the hip hop subgenre trap music, along with fellow Georgi ...

, which premiered on February 21, 2009. In the winter of 2010, the couple established '' Nation19'', first as a printed magazine and artist collective before expanding into visiting lectures, photography exhibitions and film production with emphases on

ethnography Ethnography is a branch of anthropology and the systematic study of individual cultures. It explores cultural phenomena from the point of view of the subject of the study. Ethnography is also a type of social research that involves examining ...

and

hip hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hip- ...

culture. In 2014, the couple produced ''¿Quiénes son los afro-mexicanos?'' (Who are the

Afro-Mexicans Afro-Mexicans (), also known as Black Mexicans (), are Mexicans of total or predominantly Sub-Saharan African ancestry. As a single population, Afro-Mexicans include individuals descended from both free and enslaved Africans who arrived to Mexi ...

?), a two-part documentary short film that aired across

Univision Univision () is an American Spanish-language terrestrial television, free-to-air television network owned by TelevisaUnivision. It is the United States' largest provider of Spanish-language content. The network's programming is aimed at the L ...

stations, premiering on July 14 and July 15 on KTVW. It also aired as a combined one-part short film in some markets. In 2015, the couple produced and directed the documentary short film '' #Bars4Justice'' which had its premiere on October 1 in

Phoenix, Arizona Phoenix ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities and towns in Arizona#List of cities and towns, most populous city of the U.S. state of Arizona. With over 1.6 million residents at the 2020 census, it is the ...

. The film was shot on August 9 in

Ferguson, Missouri Ferguson is a city in St. Louis County, Missouri, St. Louis County, Missouri, United States. It is part of the Greater St. Louis metropolitan area. Per the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 18,527, and is predominantly Bla ...

, documenting the first anniversary of the police shooting and killing of Michael Brown. It screened across film festivals internationally, including the 24th

Pan African Film Festival Pan African Film Festival (PAFF) is a non-profit corporation in Los Angeles, California, United States, that states its goal is to promote "cultural understanding among peoples of African descent" through exhibiting art and film. It hosts a film ...

in Los Angeles in February 2016 and the

Museum of Modern Art The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is an art museum located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, on 53rd Street (Manhattan), 53rd Street between Fifth Avenue, Fifth and Sixth Avenues. MoMA's collection spans the late 19th century to the present, a ...

's 17th Doc Fortnight film festival in

Manhattan, New York Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...

in February 2017. In 2016, the couple produced and directed the documentary short film ''War on Us'', starring

Rhymefest Che Armond Smith (born July 6, 1977), known professionally as Rhymefest, is an American rapper and songwriter from Chicago, Illinois. He is best known for his work with fellow Chicago rapper Kanye West, with writing credits on his songs includi ...

and Jasiri X in Bogota, Colombia, which had its premiere on April 19. The film highlights the negative consequences of the War on Drugs and was screened at the Museum of Drug Policy's pop-up exhibition held in Manhattan, New York on April 19–21 coinciding with the

Special Session of the United Nations General Assembly A special session of the United Nations General Assembly, or UNGASS, occurs when the United Nations General Assembly meets in order to discuss an important wide-ranging topic. Under Chapter IV, article 20 of the United Nations Charter, "Special se ...

(UNGASS) that discussed the "world drug problem" and policies around it.

Activism

Queen was an organizer and speaker at the Indigenous Peoples March held in

Washington, DC Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and Federal district of the United States, federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from ...

on January 18, 2019, where she highlighted the health issues faced by

and

Pacific Islanders Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the Pacific Islands. As an ethnic/racial term, it is used to describe the original peoples—inhabitants and diasporas—of any of the three major subreg ...

, and was a speaker at the first Indigenous Peoples Movement conference held in

Houston, Texas Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...

on May 10–12. She was a speaker on the December 21, 2020 virtual session of the Inter-Generational Dialogue (IGD) organized by Global Peace, an initiative of ACCORD (African Centre for the Constructive Resolution of Disputes) based in Mount Edgecombe, South Africa. The IGD was a part of the Global Conversation initiative launched by the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

in January 2020 to mark the body's 75th anniversary. On February 2, 2021, Queen was selected by the

Yerba Buena Center for the Arts Yerba Buena Center for the Arts (YBCA) is a multi-disciplinary Contemporary art, contemporary arts center in San Francisco, California, United States. Located in Yerba Buena Gardens, YBCA features visual art, performance, and film/video that cel ...

San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

as part of its YBCA 100 honoring a hundred "everyday heroesartists, activists, and community leaderswhose work is in service of building sustainable, equitable, and regenerative communities" held virtually at the YBCA 100 Summit on April 3. On February 25, 2023, she received the Acie J. Belton Life Achievement Award in

Baton Rouge Baton Rouge ( ; , ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Louisiana. It had a population of 227,470 at the 2020 United States census, making it List of municipalities in Louisiana, Louisiana's second-m ...

Louisiana Louisiana ( ; ; ) is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It borders Texas to the west, Arkansas to the north, and Mississippi to the east. Of the 50 U.S. states, it ranks 31st in area and 25 ...

Personal life

Queen Muhammad Ali and Hakeem Khaaliq have three children. Their daughters are Melé Aliyah Khaaliq and Manaia Oli'oli Khaaliq.

Works

Filmography

Educational exhibits and installations

* Invisible México: Afro-Mexicanos Arizona Community Foundation (The Karen Work Seleznow Gallery) * Invisible Mexico: ''Global Education Center Nashville, Tennessee September 2017'' * A New New Wave!: ''monOrchid Gallery Phoenix Arizona'' * Invisible Mexico: ''monOrchid Gallery Phoenix Arizona March 2017'' * Exhibit19: ''February 2015 Glendale Community College'' * Invisible Mexico: ''Private Gallery Univision Television April – July 2014'' * #TURNUP Denver: ''DVSN WEST Cherry Creek Denver CO 2014''

Design and multimedia

Michael Jackson Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the "King of Pop", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Michael Jackson, one of the most culturally significan ...

commissioned Queen and her partner

to design for his This Is It concerts. The work included the design of the Earth Song website, design of MichaelJacksonCO.com website, print campaigns and the design of the Earth Song logo.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ali, Queen Muhammad Film directors from Los Angeles Living people Year of birth missing (living people) 21st-century African-American artists 21st-century African-American women African-American film directors African-American Muslims American people of Samoan descent American women film directors Samoan film directors Samoan women film directors