Before Amanda Seales was on your television screen on Sundays as the perfectionist Tiffany DuBois, she was an adorable, fast-talking kid on Nickelodeon’s My Brother and Me. Seales played Deonne Wilburn, a fan favorite because of her quick snapbacks. The show was only on for one season (1994-1995) but has gained a cult following nonetheless.

This will be Seales’ first time hosting the BET Awards, but she is no stranger to being the master of ceremony. She created and hosts a project called Smart, Funny & Black, a dynamic showcase of wit, song, humor, and of course Black culture. Celebrity friends join in and it’s always a good time. She also held her own as co-host of The Real. On top of that, Seales had her own HBO stand-up special called I Be Knowin’.  Suffice to say, the woman knows her way around a stage and definitely understands how to keep an audience engaged.

Acting and comedy aren’t her only talents. Seales also has musical abilities. She has previously taken to singing and rapping. Seales even went on tour with Floetry (after Natalie Stewart left the group) and you can catch her on the hook and in the video for Q-Tip’s “Manwomanboogie” track from his solo 2008 album The Renaissance. She was going by the stage name Amanda Diva back then. If there are any snafus at the 2020 BET Awards, Seales has a plethora of talents at her disposal to keep the show going!

If there’s one thing Amanda Seales is never afraid to do, it’s sharing her opinion, especially when it comes to racism, injustice, or anything to do with Black culture. She’s not just spouting off either. Seales has a master’s degree in African American Studies from Columbia University. In addition to the lived experience of being a Black person in America, Seales can break it down for you in a real way too. Her Instagram feed is full of off-the-cuff ruminations on everything from her trampoline de-stressing to how to recognize a real freedom fighter. She shares even more on her podcast Small Doses. You might cry, you might laugh, but you will most certainly think after you take in Seales PSA gems.

If you’re even a casual observer of Amanda Seales’ social media, then you know that her mother is her biggest fan and vice versa. Seales has chronicled when the two have headed back to her mother’s place of birth, Grenada and the adventures they experience together. Growing up in a single-parent household, Seales and her mother share a special bond and she is grateful for her mother’s love and guidance. In 2019, Seales gave her mother a sugar-sweet surprise that was caught on camera and shared with her followers. Under the ruse of needing her mother with her for some hum-drum bank errand, Seales paid off her mom’s house in full. That’s a class act!