Born Dana Elaine Owens on March 18, 1970, in Newark New Jersey. Queen Latifah is not only an accomplished actor but a prominent figure in the hip hop music scene. Her first album "Wrath of My Madness," was released in 1988. followed a year later with her long-player, "All Hail the Queen." 

In 1994, she won a Grammy in 1994 for Best Solo Rap Performance for "U.N.I.T.Y." and received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on January 4, 2006 for her work as a hip-hop artist (the first such award to that genre of music).  

Queen Latifah received her nickname 'Latifah' from a cousin while she was a teenager. See also JEWELRY