Angie Thomas
As an adult
Angie Thomas was born, raised and still resides in Mississippi as indicated by her accent. She is a former teen rapper whose greatest accomplishment was an article about her in Right-On Magazine with a picture included. She holds a BFA in Creative Writing from Belhaven University and an unofficial degree in Hip Hop. She can also still rap if needed. She is an inaugural winner of the Walter Dean Myers Grant 2015, awarded by We Need Diverse Books. Film rights for her debut novel, The Hate U Give, have been optioned by Fox 2000 with George Tillman attached to direct and Hunger Games actress Amandla Stenberg set to star.
Things you didn’t know about Angie Thomas
- I was a rapper when I was a teenager. Now, I can only rap other people’s songs.
- As seen by my past career ambitions, I am a huge hip hop fan. Tupac is my favourite rapper, followed closely by Kendrick Lamar.
- My favourite colour is light blue.
- I was homeschooled in high school.
- Like my main character, Starr, I love sneakers. My dream shoe is the self-lacing Nike Mag from Back to the Future.
- Speaking of Back to the Future, it’s one of my favourite movies, along with Forest Gump, Boyz N the Hood and Friday.
- Favourite TV shows: Empire, Queen Sugar, A Different World, and (like Starr) the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.
- I hate squash.
- My favourite food is macaroni and cheese.
- According to all of the quizzes I’ve taken, I’m a Ravenclaw.