Felicia Pearson

Felicia Pearson
Pearson in 2015
Pearson in 2015
Background information
Also known asSnoop
Born (1980-05-18) May 18, 1980 (age 44)
Baltimore, Maryland, U.S.
GenresHip hop
Occupations
  • Actress
  • author
  • rapper
Years active2004–present

Felicia Pearson (born May 18, 1980) is an American actress, rapper, author. She played a fictionalized version of herself nicknamed "Snoop" on The Wire and wrote a 2007 memoir, Grace After Midnight, detailing her troubled childhood and time in prison for second-degree murder.

Early life

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Pearson was born in Baltimore, Maryland, the daughter of two incarcerated drug addicts, and was raised in an East Baltimore foster home. Born premature and weighing three pounds, she was not expected to live.[1] She was so small that she was fed with an eyedropper until she could be fed normally.[1] According to her memoir, Grace After Midnight, she met her biological parents very few times. Her mother was a crack addict, and her father was an armed robber. As a result of this, she decided to go by her foster family's surname.

Pearson was a tomboy from a young age and worked as a drug dealer as a teenager. At the age of fourteen, she was convicted of second degree murder after shooting a girl named Okia Toomer. Pearson was sentenced to two eight-year terms, to be served consecutively, at the Maryland Correctional Institution for Women in Jessup, Maryland.[2] She was released after six and a half years.

Pearson said her life turned around at the age of eighteen, when Arnold Loney, a local drug dealer who looked out for her and sent her money in prison, was shot and killed.[1] He had coined her nickname "Snoop," because she reminded him of Charlie Brown's beagle Snoopy in the comic strip Peanuts.[1] While in prison, Pearson earned her GED. She was released in 2000,[1] and landed a local job fabricating car bumpers, but was fired after two weeks when her employer learned she had a prison record.[3]

Career

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Television

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Pearson met Michael K. Williams, who played Omar Little on The Wire, in a Baltimore club. He invited her to come to the set one day, and introduced her to the writers and the producers. After subsequent auditions, she was offered a role in the series.[1] For her performance in The Wire, Stephen King called her "perhaps the most terrifying female villain to ever appear in a television series."[3]

Her appearance on the show kickstarted her acting career, leading to appearances in music videos for R&B singer Lil' Mo's "Dem Boyz"; rapper Rick Ross' "The Boss" and "Here I Am"; rapper Ace Hood's "Cash Flow"; A$AP Ferg's "Shabba (feat ASAP Rocky)" and Snoop Dogg's "So Many Pros."[4] She has appeared in the Spike Lee films Da Sweet Blood of Jesus,[5] and Chi-Raq,[6] and in the CBS police procedural drama Blue Bloods, titled "Good Cop Bad Cop."[7]

Pearson joined the cast of the VH1 reality television series Love & Hip Hop: New York for its seventh and eighth seasons.

Music

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Pearson is featured in the song "It's a Stick Up" with Tony Yayo and Mazaradi Fox, with its music video featuring clips from The Wire.[8][9]

Volunteer work

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Pearson has volunteered as a prison visitor, worked on anti-violence and literacy campaigns for youth, and supported The Stay Strong Foundation.[10][11][12]

Personal life

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On March 10, 2011, Pearson and sixty others were arrested and charged with drug offenses. The arrest was made during a predawn raid at her home in Baltimore, following a five-month DEA operation.[13] At the first hearing after Pearson's arrest, Judge John Addison Howard denied her bail due to Pearson's acting ability, stating: "Well, you can change your appearance, I've seen the episodes of The Wire in which you appear. You look very different than you do here today, and I'm not talking about the jumpsuit, I'm talking about your general appearance."[14] After a month in jail, Pearson was offered bail of $50,000 on April 8, 2011.[15] In August 2011, she pleaded guilty to the charges the day before her trial was to begin.[16] She was sentenced to a suspended seven-year prison term, with credit for time served, and given three years of supervised probation.[17]

Pearson is a lesbian.[18]

Filmography

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Year Title Role Notes
2004–2008 The Wire Felicia 'Snoop' Pearson 27 episodes
2009 Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations Herself Episode "Rust Belt" (Buffalo, Baltimore, Detroit)
2013 They Die by Dawn Bartender
2014 Desiree Lou(isa)
Da Sweet Blood of Jesus Lucky Mays
2015 Diamond Ruff KK
By Any Means WIZ Guest role; 2 episodes
Chi-Raq Danai
2016 Guns and Grams Swerve
Blue Bloods Roxy Barnes Episode "Good Cop Bad Cop"
2021 Asbury Park Tag
Swagger Lil Pip Guest role; 2 episodes
2022 Scott Free Detective Ferell
I Thought You Knew Mia
2023 The Family Plan Toothpick

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f McCauley, Mary Carol (March 11, 2011). "Legal troubles nothing new for 'Wire' actress". The Baltimore Sun. Retrieved March 11, 2011.
  2. ^ Hunnie, Jaye (January 2, 2008). "Felicia's Journey". Baltimore City Paper. Archived from the original on December 31, 2009. Retrieved May 12, 2009.
  3. ^ a b Dawkins, Walter (October 21, 2006). "An Actress's Hard Life Feeds 'Wire' Character". The New York Times. Retrieved January 13, 2022.
  4. ^ "15 Times the Wire Actors Appeared in Rap Videos". April 21, 2015.
  5. ^ "Felicia "Snoop" Pearson Talks "The Wire" and Her Challenging New Role in Spike Lee's Latest Film". Complex. Retrieved February 27, 2016.
  6. ^ "'Snoop' from 'The Wire' makes the jump to 'Chi-Raq'". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved February 27, 2016.
  7. ^ "Listings - BLUE BLOODS on CBS". TheFutonCritic.com. Retrieved September 29, 2016.
  8. ^ "Felicia "Snoop" Pearson Intv". YouTube. July 22, 2009. Archived from the original on December 15, 2021. Retrieved June 29, 2014.
  9. ^ "Felicia "Snoop" Pearson On Her Type Of Woman". YouTube. August 10, 2009. Archived from the original on December 15, 2021. Retrieved June 29, 2014.
  10. ^ Teresa Wiltz (March 19, 2007). "The Role of Her Life". The Washington Post. Retrieved April 12, 2007.
  11. ^ "Inspiring People: HBO series The Wire's Snoop Pearson". Dana Roc.
  12. ^ Cannick, Jasmyne (February 25, 2008). "Felicia "Snoop" Pearson is Black, Female, and Out in Hollywood". Jasmynecannick.typepad.com. Archived from the original on December 8, 2014. Retrieved June 29, 2014.
  13. ^ Fenton, Justin (March 10, 2011). "More than 60 people, including 'Snoop' of 'The Wire,' arrested in drug raids". The Baltimore Sun.
  14. ^ Hermann, Peter (March 11, 2011). "The Wire's Snoop spars with judge, gets no bail". Baltimore Sun. Retrieved March 14, 2011.
  15. ^ "Snoop freed from city jail". The Baltimore Sun. April 8, 2011. Archived from the original on April 11, 2011. Retrieved March 22, 2013.
  16. ^ Lee, Felicia (August 9, 2011). "'Wire' Actress, Caught on Wiretap, Pleads Guilty to Heroin Charge". NYTimes Arts Blog. Retrieved August 9, 2011.
  17. ^ "'Wire' actress Pearson pleads guilty in drug case". Japan Times. Associated Press. August 10, 2011. p. 6.
  18. ^ "Felicia "Snoop" Pearson is Black, Female, and Out in Hollywood". Jasmyne Cannick. February 25, 2008. Retrieved February 25, 2008.

Further reading

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