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Happy Founders Day to the ladies of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc.! Celebrating 117 years of sisterhood, scholarship, and service to ALL mankind. Being the “Phrist and Phinest,” these women have been serving their communities since 1908. In honor of Founders Day, here are five notable Alpha women.
Cynthia Erivo
If you haven’t seen Wicked, then what are you waiting for? British actress and singer Cynthia Erivo’s career began way before she landed in Oz.
The Stockwell, London, native graduated from the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art with a degree in acting in 2010. After graduating, Erivo started making appearances on British television shows such as Chewing Gum and The Tunnel. Shortly after she began performing in stage plays. In 2015, she made her Broadway debut in the Menier Chocolate Factory production of The Color Purple, starring as Celie Harris. Her role as Celie earned her, along with the rest of the cast, a Daytime Emmy Award nomination.
Erivo made her film debut in the 2018 film Bad Times at the El Royale. That same year she appeared in other featured films, including Widows and Harriet. That role earned her a Golden Globe Award Best Actress in a Motion Picture—Drama nomination. She also received a second nomination for Best Original Song for the song she wrote for the film, Stand Up. Harriet earned her two Academy Award nominations as well.
After starring in Harriet, Erivo’s career really began to take off. She starred as Holly Gibney in the HBO series, The Outsider. She has made appearances in other projects such as Chaos Walking, Genius, Luther: The Fallen Sun, and the live-action film adaptation of Disney’s Pinocchio.
Most recently, she landed the role of Elphaba Thropp in the 2024 movie adaptation of the popular stage play Wicked. The film has received an outpouring of positive feedback from critics. Erivo’s rendition of Defying Gravity debuted at number two on the US Billboard 200 chart. At this year’s Golden Globes, Erivo was nominated for Best Actress in a Motion Picture—Musical or Comedy.
Cynthia Erivo became an honorary member of Alpha Kappa Alpha in 2021.
Tracee Ellis Ross
Tracee Ellis Ross is all around that girl. From modeling to acting, she has made such a name for herself that people often forget that she is the daughter of legendary singer Diana Ross.
As the daughter of a famous singer and well-known music executive, Ross has always been connected to the entertainment industry. After working as a model in her teenage years, she graduated from Brown University in 1994 with a degree in theater arts. Ross has honorary degrees from both Brown and Spelman College.
Ross made her big-screen debut in 1996 in the independent film Far Harbor. Soon after, she made appearances in several other projects, including hosting the Lifetime series, The Dish. In 2000, Ross landed the role of Joan Clayton in the hit UPN/The CW series Girlfriends. Girlfriends is one of Ross’s most notable roles, earning her two NAACP Image Awards. After Girlfriends ended in 2008, Ross landed roles in several television shows and movies, including CSI, Private Practice, Daddy’s Little Girls, and the BET hit sitcom Reed Between the Lines.
In 2014, Ross was cast as Dr. Rainbow Johnson in the hit ABC series Black-ish, opposite Anthony Anderson. Her role as Rainbow Johnson earned her numerous award nominations and one Golden Globe Award for Best Actress—Television Series Musical or Comedy. Black-ish aired for eight seasons before ending in 2022. Ross also helped create the Black-ish spin-off, Mixed-ish, alongside producer Kenya Barris. She also served as the narrator for the series.
In 2018, Ross launched her natural hair care line, Pattern Beauty, and serves as CEO. Pattern Beauty specializes in natural care products for curly and textured hair.
Tracee Ellis Ross became an honorary member of Alpha Kappa Alpha in 2021.
Sunny Hostin
Sunny Hostin does it all. She is a lawyer, author, and television host best known for being a co-host on the popular ABC morning talk show, The View.
Before making her way to our television screens every morning, Hostin attended Binghamton University, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English and Rhetoric. She later graduated from Notre Dame Law School with her Juris Doctor degree.
Hostin’s law career started as a law clerk to retired Chief Judge of the Maryland Court of Appeals Robert M. Bell and later became a trial attorney in the U.S. Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division. Her television career began as a commentator for Court TV; after that, she earned a spot on The O’Reilly Factor. She also worked as a legal analyst on American Morning before joining The View.
Hostin began making guest appearances as a guest contributor on The View in 2014. In 2016, Hostin joined ABC News as a Senior Legal Correspondent and analyst and a full-time co-host of The View. Hostin has six Daytime Emmy Award nominations for her work on The View.
In 2019, she partnered with Investigation Discovery to host Truth About Murder With Sunny Hostin. Hostin also served as executive producer of the six-episode documentary series.
Sunny Hostin is a spring 1992 initiate of the Upsilon Nu Omega chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha. She joined during her time at Binghamton University.
Jada Pinkett Smith
Baltimore’s favorite fly girl, Jada Pinkett Smith, is a multi-talented entertainer. In addition to being a singer and an actress, Pinkett Smith is a talk show host and businesswoman.
Pinkett Smith has always had a knack for singing and acting. Growing up in Baltimore, Maryland, she attended the Baltimore School for the Arts, where she met the late rapper Tupac Shakur. After graduating from the Baltimore School of the Arts, Pinkett Smith spent a year studying drama at the North Carolina School of the Arts.
After a series of small roles, she landed her first major role as Lena James on the NBC hit show A Different World. She joined the show in its fourth season and remained on it until it ended in 1991. A few years later she appeared in her first film, Menace II Society. After starring in Menace II Society, Pinkett Smith starred in several major films, including A Low Down Dirty Shame, Jason’s Lyric, The Inkwell, and Demon Knight. Other notable roles of hers include The Nutty Professor, Set It Off, Woo, Hawthorne, The Women, Girls Trip, and the Madagascar movie franchise.
In 2018, Pinkett Smith, along with her mother and daughter, hosted the Facebook Watch talk show, Red Table Talk. Red Table Talk earned the women a Daytime Emmy Award and a spot on Time Magazine’s 100 most influential people in the world list. In addition to being an actress, Pinkett Smith is also a singer. Under the name Jada Koren, she performed with the heavy metal band Wicked Wisdom in the early 2000s. The band released a self-titled album in 2006.
Jada Pinkett Smith is an honorary member of Alpha Kappa Alpha.
Alicia Keys
Alicia Keys inspired an entire generation to take piano lessons. She is a talented singer, songwriter, and classically trained pianist whose songs have been dominating the charts since the early 2000s.
Keys' love for music started when she was a child. By age six she had developed a passion for playing the piano, and by age seven she began to classically train. Later, at age 12, she enrolled in the Professional Performing Arts School in Manhattan. Keys began performing at age 13 after meeting manager Jeff Robinson. At age 15, she was signed to Columbia Records. That same year she was accepted to Columbia University on a music scholarship; she attended college while continuing to work on her music. She later dropped out to pursue music full time.
Her debut album, Songs in A Minor, was an instant hit, debuting at number one on the US Billboard 200 chart. Songs like Fallin and A Woman’s Worth helped earn Keys five Grammy Awards at the 44th Annual Grammy Awards. Her second album, Diary of Alicia Keys, was equally successful, also debuting at number one on the US Billboard 200 chart. Singles such as You Don’t Know My Name and If I Ain’t Got You topped multiple Hip-Hop and R&B charts. Keys would go on to release seven more studio albums during her career.
Key is one of the best-selling music artists of all time, selling more than 30 million albums worldwide. She has 16 Grammy Awards, 17 NAACP Awards, 9 Billboard Music Awards, and 7 BET Awards.
Alicia Keys became an honorary member of Alpha Kappa Alpha in 2004.
