Janelle James

Janelle James (born Sept. 23, 1979, in St. Thomas, U. S. Virgin Islands) is a first-time Golden Globe nominee in the Best Supporting Actress in a Musical, Comedy or Drama TV series category for her role as Ava Coleman in the comedy series Abbott Elementary. James is also a stand-up comedian who can be seen on The Comedy Lineup on Netflix. She has toured with Chris Rock, Amy Schumer, and David Cross among others, and runs the Eugene Mirman Comedy Festival (now the Janelle James Comedy Festival) in Brooklyn, NY. Her writing credits include Showtime’s Black Monday (2020-2021), and she has acted in Crashing (2017), Corporate (2020), and the animated series Central Park (2020-2022). Her debut comedy album “Black and Mild” was released in 2017.