Remember Ashley, the TV cousin of Will Smith? This is Tatyana Ali today

What has become of Tatyana Ali?
Little Banks
Ashley became more important over time
Seven years of filming
An icon of the 90s
30 years later... She's the same!
What is he doing now?
Early debut
Sesame Street, Star Search...
World fame with 'The Fresh Prince'
Six seasons
Musical career
Taking advantage of Ashley's momentum
Aspiring to be an R&B star
But then, her star faded
She hasn't stopped working
She supported Obama
A song: 'Yes we can'
A long-awaited reunion
The daughter of two Banks mothers
Relationship in the 90s
The love of her life
Family life
Two little ones
She now specializes mostly in Christmas TV movies
But she's also back in Bel-Air!
What has become of Tatyana Ali?

If you were born in the 80s or before, you'll surely remember 'The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.' But do you remember this actress from the sitcom?

Images: @tatyanaali / Instagram and Getty

 

Little Banks

Will Smith was the big boss of the series, without a doubt. And Carlton and Uncle Phil played essential roles. But the women of Bel-Air were important too.

 

Ashley became more important over time

With the passing of the years and the seasons, Ashley's persona in the series gained relevance. She matured and had more to say with every scene.

Image: NBC

Seven years of filming

Tatyana Ali started filming at the age of 10 and finished at 17. The world watched her go from Will Smith's perky little cousin to a gorgeous teenager with a special talent for singing.

An icon of the 90s

Ashley became a 90s' Hollywood crush. Along with characters like Kelly Kapowski, Shawn Hunter, Topanga Lawrence, and Brandon Walsh, she covered miles of teenage walls.

30 years later... She's the same!

It's been 30 years since 'The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air' and, like many of her peers, Tatyana Ali has all but disappeared from TV.

What is he doing now?

The actress seems to have changed her look only a little. What is she doing now?

Early debut

If we go all the way back in time, we can tell you that Tatyana Ali already had a tremendous career behind her, as an actress and as a singer, before she went on 'The Fresh Prince'.

 

Sesame Street, Star Search...

The child actress appeared in shows like 'Sesame Street' and she also won 'Star Search' twice when she was only five years old.

World fame with 'The Fresh Prince'

Obviously, her fame at a global level came from the Banks family in Bel Air.

Six seasons

For 148 episodes, she gave life to Ashley Banks, the youngest member of the family until (the often forgotten) baby Nicky arrived.

Image: NBC

Musical career

In 1996, when the end of the series was announced, Tatyana Ali opted for the musical path.

Taking advantage of Ashley's momentum

The actress had shown her talent in several episodes, singing great songs like 'Respect' by Aretha Franklin, as well as her own song, 'Make up your Mind.'

Aspiring to be an R&B star

Tatyana Ali aimed to dominate the R&B scene of the new century. Her first and only studio album, 'Kiss the Sky', went gold in 1999.

But then, her star faded

Songs like 'Boy you knock me out,' 'Everytime,' and 'Daydream' got worldwide airplay. Yet, she wouldn't make it to the level of Beyoncé or Rihanna.

She hasn't stopped working

Meanwhile, she continued working in TV and film. She has accumulated more than 60 credits as an actress. Of course, all of them are less famous than the role of cousin Ashley.

Image: a scene from the movie 'Brother' (2000)

She supported Obama

Ali's moment of greatest visibility came in 2008, when she publicly supported Barack Obama's candidacy for US President.

A song: 'Yes we can'

She participated in the song 'Yes we can', produced by Will.i.am.

A long-awaited reunion

Obviously, the reunion of 'The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air,' to celebrate the 30th anniversary of its premiere, transcended the Obama moment.

The daughter of two Banks mothers

The special episode of 'The Prince of Bel-Air', produced by HBO Max, was one of the big showbiz events of 2020. Especially since the two aunt Vivians, Ashley's mothers in the series, appeared together in that special.

Relationship in the 90s

On a personal level, the actress had a relationship with Jonathan Brandis that ended at the same time as 'The Prince of Bel-Air', in 1996.

The love of her life

Twenty years later, Tatyana Ali married Dr. Vaughn Raspberry, a professor at Stanford University.

Family life

The couple met through the well-known dating app eHarmony. The wedding took place in July 2016 and just two months later, their first child, Edward Aszard, was born.

Two little ones

In August 2019, the couple's second son, Alejandro, arrived. Tatyana shares pictures of her children on social media now and then.

She now specializes mostly in Christmas TV movies

Among Tatyana Ali's recent works is a series of Christmas TV Movies for Lifetime: 'Christmas Hotel', 'My best wish for Christmas', 'Jingle Belle,' and 'Christmas Everlasting.'

Image: Lifetime

But she's also back in Bel-Air!

On top of that, Ali is in Peacock's spin-off series 'Bel-Air.' She plays an English teacher at Bel-Air middle school who takes an interest in supporting one of her young students... Ashley Banks! The student is now played by Akira Akbar.

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