Raven-Symone

by Matt Collar
An actress and vocalist, Raven-Symoné is perhaps best remembered for portraying Olivia, the youngest member of comedian Bill Cosby's family on the hit NBC sitcom The Cosby Show. Though The Cosby Show ended in 1992, Raven's career was just beginning, and a year later she joined the cast of another sitcom, Hangin' with Mr. Cooper. It was also in 1993 that she released her first album, the kiddie rap-flavored Here's to New Dreams. Featuring the single "That's What Little Girls Are Made Of," the album sold poorly and it would not be until 1999 that Raven would return with her R&B-inflected follow-up, Undeniable. Although released to little fanfare, the album was not the only career path Raven would pursue during the late '90s and early 2000s. While attending school, she also starred in the Eddie Murphy vehicle Dr. Doolittle and its 2001 sequel. In 2003, Raven starred in the Disney Channel movie Cheetah Girls as well as her own Disney series, That's So Raven. A year later she released her third solo album, This Is My Time; From Then Until (2006) and Raven-Symone (2008) followed.