Biography - Kandi Burruss

Who is Kandi Burruss?

Kandi Burruss is a singer, songwriter, actress, businesswoman, and reality TV star by profession, and American by nationality. Since rising to fame with the group R&B vocal group Xscape, the Grammy Award-winning talent is well known for starring in Bravo TV’s The Real Housewives of Atlanta.

Kandi Burruss – Age, Parents, Siblings

Kandi Burruss’s birth took place on May 17, 1976, in College Park, Georgia, USA. She was born as Kandi Lenice Burruss to father Titus Burruss Jr. and mother Joyce Jones. 

She was not the only child of his parents and had an older brother Patrick Riley Burruss, who died in a car crash at the age of 22 in 1991.

Education, Ethnicity

For education she studied at Tri-Cities High School, graduating in 1994. Her ethnicity is African-American.

Kandi Burruss – Boyfriend, Husband, Children, Divorce

Since her rise to fame in 1993, Kandi Burruss has had numerous high-profile romantic relationships. She has had affairs with Chuck Smith, and Jermaine Dupri (1998).

In 2000 she began dating Russell "Block"  Spencer. She and her boyfriend welcomed their daughter Riley Burruss on August 22, 2002. But they broke up the same year. 

Burruss went on to date Ashley "A.J." Jewell in 2008 and after months of dating the couple got engaged, which was announced in January 2009. Unfortunately, on October 22, 2009, her fiancé, Jewell died from head injuries following a brawl in the parking lot of an Atlanta strip club.

She moved on with Willis McGahee, having dated him in 2010. 

On January 15, 2013, Kandi Burruss announced via social media she was engaged to Todd Tucker, a producer after two years of dating. They married on April 4, 2014. 

She and her husband have two children together- son Ace Wells (born on January 6, 2016) and daughter Blaze Tucker via a surrogate on November 22, 2019. The surrogate was pregnant with twins but lost one of the babies.

From marriage to Tucker, she is a stepmother to his daughter Kaela Tucker (born in 1996) from the previous relationship. Currently, the couple is living without rumors of extra-marital affairs and divorce.

Also read: Tiffany Hendra - Reality TV star, Model, Actress 

Kandi Burruss – Career

With Xscape 

Burruss started her career at a young age. At the age of 15, she made appearances in the BET series, Teen Summit. While still a student in high school, Kandi Burruss started performing with a group named Precise before joining the female R&B vocal group Xscape with Tameka "Tiny" Harris, LaTocha Scott, and Tamika Scott.

The Xscape released their debut album Hummin' Comin' at 'Cha on October 12, 1993. The album was certified RIAA Platinum. 

This was followed by the release of albums Off the Hook (1995), and Traces of My Lipstick (1998) which were both certified  Platinum by RIAA. They also released two compilation albums- Understanding (2002), Super Hits (2009), and extended play Here for It (2018).

Also read: Kary Brittingham - Reality TV star, Jewelry designer 

Solo Career 

Following Xscape’s disbanding, Kandi Burruss began her solo career. She has released two 2 studio albums Hey Kandi… (2000), Kandi Koated (2009), EP Fly Above EP (2009), 4 music videos, and 5 singles. 

Her first solo album peaked at #72 on the Billboard 200.

Reality show

Kandi Burruss replaced DeShawn Snow in season 2 of Bravo TV’s reality TV series The Real Housewives of Atlanta, which was announced in March 2009. 

In 2012 she received a spin-off series The Kandi Factory, which followed “Burruss and her record producers as they attempted to launch the music careers of undiscovered artists”. But just after one season, the series was canceled.

Her second spin-off, Kandi's Wedding features her wedding with Todd Tucker. The series which premiered on June 1, 2014, and concluded on July 6, 2014, had high ratings for Bravo. Burruss’ third spin-off series Kandi's Ski Trip was announced by the network. Moreover, she was a competitor in season 2 of Celebrity Big Brother, where he finished in the fifth position.

Also read: Brandi Redmond - Reality TV star 

Others

Over the years Kandi Burruss has made appearances in numerous series including Single Ladies, Thicker Than Water: The Tankards, and Let's Stay Together, among others. She also owns a sex toy company titled Bedroom Kandi and starred in Kandi Koated Nights, a "sex and relationship" web series on Ustream in 2018.

Co-stars

Kandi Burruss’s fellow The Real Housewives of Atlanta (RHOA) cast includes Cynthia Bailey, Kenya Moore, Mike Hill, and Marc Daly.

Also read: Kim Fields - Actress, Director 

Kandi Burruss – Awards, Nominations

Burruss was awarded the Grammy Award - Best R&B Song in 2000 for her writing contributions to the TLC hit song No Scrubs. She also earned a nomination for 2019’s Choice Awards — Favorite Reality TV Star.

Kandi Burruss – Net Worth, Salary

Her net worth has been estimated to be well over $30 million while her salary per season of RHOA is revealed to be $450k.

Kandi Burruss – Instagram, Twitter, Facebook

On social media handles such as Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook, Kandi Burruss is active with millions of followers. She also has a YouTube channel Kandi Online with over 307k followers and an official website -  kandionline.com.

Also read: Demetria McKinney - Singer, Actress