Farrah Franklin

Actor

Born: May 3, 1981 (age 45) · Des Moines, Iowa, USA

Farrah Laron Franklin (born May 3, 1981) is an American R&B singer and actress. She is also a former member of the girl group Destiny's Child. Along with Michelle Williams, she replaced the group's original members LaTavia Roberson and LeToya Luckett. Franklin spent several months with the group before departing as a member. While her musical contribution to the group was minimal, Franklin's vocals are featured on the group's single "Independent Women Part I" which peaked at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart following her departure.

Franklin was born in Des Moines, Iowa, and raised in Fresno, California. She considers Lawrence Bohanon to be her father, as she never met her biological father, Rodney Allen Heard. She is of African-American and Italian descent, and the oldest of fifteen children, including a younger sister named Karrie. She is also the cousin of late singer and rapper Natina Reed. Franklin grew up attending church. She started singing at age two, inspired by Bohanon, who played bass guitar in local bands. When Franklin was eight, she began performing in plays at the Fresno Memorial Auditorium. She was in the concert choir at Central High School, where she was bullied. At fifteen, Franklin decided to leave Fresno to pursue a career in entertainment following her aunt's relocation to Los Angeles. She went by the name 'Destiny Franklin' before her stint in Destiny's Child.

In 1999, while living in Los Angeles, Franklin was hired to be an extra in the music video for Destiny's Child's "Bills, Bills, Bills". It was there that she met with group members Beyoncé Knowles, Kelly Rowland, LeToya Luckett, and LaTavia Roberson. At the time, she was in a fledgling singing group called Jane Doe, which was in the process of disbanding. In January 2000, Mathew Knowles invited Franklin and Michelle Williams to join Destiny's Child, replacing previous group members LeToya and LaTavia without notice. The two were introduced to fans in February 2000, by appearing in the music video for "Say My Name". Franklin toured and performed with the group, and also appeared in the music video for "Jumpin', Jumpin'". She contributed vocals to various Destiny's Child songs, including "Jumpin', Jumpin'" (Remixes), "Upside Down" (Live at VH1 Divas), and "Dot", as well as a few tracks on Survivor, released after her departure, like "Independent Women" and "Dance with Me".

On July 20, 2000, after six months with Destiny's Child, Franklin exited the group. A day later, group member Beyoncé claimed in an interview that Franklin had missed three major promotional dates and expressed a lack of interest in continuing with the group, leaving them with no other choice but to dismiss her. In a later interview, Franklin denied Beyoncé's allegation, stating that she had suffered from dehydration and a stomach virus but was recovering as she traveled with the group to do shows in Seattle and Europe. Farrah contended that after being verbally attacked by management, due to her not showing up because she was ill, she stormed out of the room and quit the group. ...

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