Janelle James

Janelle James is an American comedian, actress, and writer. She is best known for her role as Ava Coleman in the ABC television series Abbott Elementary, for which she won a Screen Actors Guild Award, and an NAACP Image Award, in addition to nominations for two Primetime Emmy Awards, and a Golden Globe Award. Her writing credits include Black Monday, and she acted on the programs Crashing, Corporate, and Central Park. Her debut comedy album Black and Mild was released in 2017. She was named one of Varietys 10 Comics to Watch for 2020. Career Stand-up and television While in high school, James stood in line for 12 hours to audition for one of the three annual renditions of MTV's Wanna Be a VJ, which ran from 1998 to 2000. James began her career in 2009 at an open mic she attended while living in Champaign, Illinois. She described her style of comedy as "just talking shit" and her stand-up includes a range of topics such as the Trump administration, motherhood, being a woman over 35, and dating. James named Bill Burr, Hadiyah Robinson, John Early, Wanda Sykes, Richard Pryor, and Kareem Green as favorite comedians.