Quinta Brunson Made Her Own Way With (And Before) Abbott Elementary
Abbott Elementary is a mockumentary style show that follows the lives of elementary school teachers are a fictional school in Philadelphia. The show is based on Quinta Brunson's middle school teacher Ms. Abbott, who Quinta recalls stayed close to her long after she left middle school. Abbott Elementary boasts an amazing cast as part of its production, including the likes of Quinta Brunson herself as the lead protagonist on the show. And this is certainly not Brunson's first acting gig, having made appearances in the likes of New Girl and iZombie, while also doing some voice acting for popular shows like Lazor Wulf and Big Mouth.
Brunson, like many before her, had to work her way up the Hollywood food chain before she was able to become the lead in a show, and her beginnings in the industry are definitely humble. While many may get their start as a background actor, Brunson got her foot in the door thanks largely in part to her social media presence.
Her Popularity Started On Social Media
Quinta Brunson's career path started, oddly enough, on social media platforms, more specifically Instagram and her own YouTube Channel. The then-unknown comedian used to post short sketches that she would star in.
Slowly but surely, Brunson's social media presence started to gain traction and her following blew up. People flocked to her social media pages to see what kind of content she posted for their entertainment, even sharing her posts several times, allowing Brunson to eventually go viral.
And as she went viral, popular portions of her video posts became incredibly popular memes. Many fans of Brunson may know her specifically from the He Got Money meme, a reference to a now-deleted Instagram post that the comedian made.
The clip was originally uploaded in 2014 under the name The Girl Who's Never Been on a Nice Date, which shows Brunson acting surprised at the number of snacks her date in the clip is ordering, which makes her exclaim "He got money!"
The post is still available on Quinta's YouTube page and boasts an impressive 1.4 million views with 17,000 likes.
It was once again brought to the forefront of social media when a viewer of Abbott Elementary noticed a slight nod to the viral post in an episode of the show.
Many May Recognize Brunson From Her BuzzFeed Days
While Brunson definitely went viral in the early days of her online career, many fans and viewers of her content will likely recognize her from her time at BuzzFeed, one of the largest media companies in the country, which pumps out anything from news to cooking tutorials.
Quinta Brunson was part of the BuzzFeed family from 2014 through 2017 and made a total of 43 posts according to her author page. Joining BuzzFeed was a logical step for Quinta, who had been showing an interest in comedy since high school, as it really allowed her to flex her creative muscles.
She has appeared in videos alongside Keith Habersberger of Try Guys fame, and has made a wide variety of sketches for the platform including comedic ones like Conversations All Cat People Will Recognize, and ones that address more serious topics like Social Media. Vs. Real Life.
Quinta eventually left the BuzzFeed platform, something she addressed with BuzzFeed directly a few years after she had moved on in her career.
She admits "For me, it was time to leave when my ambitions kind of became different than just working a nine to five. Requesting time off, to do things like write on a TV show and that conflicted with keeping a nine to five honestly."
She goes on to admit that she looked at the experience like going her college and that it was finally her time to graduate.
Brunson further clarifies that she didn't leave because of any negative experiences, because there simply weren't any that made her want to leave.
Brunson says "I feel fortunate to have had the experience" and that it was a very positive experience overall which allowed her to support herself, others, and other young Black creators.
She Is The Creative Visionary For Abbott Elementary
Abbott Elementary boasts an amazing cast including the likes of Sheryl Lee Ralph, Lisa Ann Walter, Tyler James WIlliams, and, of course, Quinta Brunson as the lead role on the show.
The show has been compared to the likes of The Office, perhaps the most popular mockumentary-style show out there.
Not only does Quinta Brunson star in the hit mockumentary show, but she is also the creator, writer, and executive producer for the show, a huge step up from her humble start on social media and BuzzFeed.
The show already boasted an impressive seven Emmy nominations, and won three of them including Outstanding Supporting Actress In A Comedy Series going to Sheryl Lee Ralph.
It also won Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series and Outstanding Casting for a Comedy Series, and is currently up for many nominations on the Critics Choice Awards.
The nominations include Best Comedy Series, two nominations for Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series for both Chris Perfetti and Tyler James WIlliams, one for Best Actress in a Comedy Series for Quinta herself, and Janelle James for Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series, alongside Sheryl Lee Ralph.
Brunson has certainly made impressive leaps and bound in her career that some can only dream of. From her humble start on social media to being the one helping lead Abbott Elementary to success in more ways than one, Quinta Brunson shows that she is certainly a creative force to be reckoned with.
ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7tbTErZ%2Bippeoe6S7zGiuoaddmL%2BmrdOem2aZkpe8tcCMnqOepZWjwaK%2B2GaorqGeqa5urtGupaynnmQ%3D