Nakia Secrest

Boston born and raised, Nakia Secrest is a writer, actress, and director. After surviving a near-fatal car accident that left her in a coma, she watched television to escape physical and mental stress during her rehabilitation while learning to walk again. This experience gave her a newfound appreciation for life and a love of storytelling in all forms.

Working in television and film since 2002, Nakia's guest and co-starring roles in shows such as Modern Family, Scandal, Weeds, Two and a Half Men, and C.S.I. NY, as well as her leading role as Mamie Till Bradley in The Perfect Sacrifice, have earned her rich acclaim. Additionally, her role in the cult classic Black Dynamite and her viral "Girl Goes Psycho during Makeup Tutorial" headbanging video, which hit several million views on YouTube and World Star, have spawned their own international subculture.

As a commercial and voice-over actress, Nakia has starred in several national spots for Wells Fargo, Extra Gum, Toyota, Honda (with John Cena), Crossfit, and Fairlife – Core Power Protein Shakes. She also plays the lead in the audiobook series Haitian Legends as historical figure Mother General/Abdaraya Tora, a Dahomey warrior and freedom fighter.

As an award-winning writer and actress, her short film Radio Silence was one of five films selected by HBO to compete at ABFF and has won numerous awards at several film festivals, including Best Writer, Best Actress, Best Featurette, and the Grand Jury Award at the Idyllwild Film Festival.  As a mother and hodophile, Nakia has single-handedly built bunk beds for her daughters, crafted countless popsicle houses, hiked the Inca Trail, and lived in a castle in Holland.