About Onika Day
Born to an activist, jazz singing, mother and the first and only African American Art Professor / Chairman at San Francisco City College, she was raised in the historic town of Berkeley, CA, it didn't take long for Onika Day to develop a passion to entertain. After winning several poetry competitions, performing in local talent shows and dancing in street competitions with her friends for meal money, she was accepted to the Berkeley Arts Magnet School and secured a scholarship with the Bay Area Youth Theatre, where she studied Acting, Dance (Afro-Haitian, Jazz,Tap) and Voice, starring in several of their seasonal productions.Once Onika reached Berkeley High School, known for it's cultural diversity and radical student body, she balanced her love for acting alongside a passion for sports where she earned several local titles with the Women's Water Polo and Basketball and Swim teams. She also was part of the street dance troupe "The Lady UFO's" which included members of Digital Underground.Onika's big brother, Sway Calloway, from "MTV", "Shady45" and the "Wake Up Show", noticed her talents. He convinced her to record drops and create different on air character during his radio days at KMEL, Power 106 and HOT 97.While working as a front desk attendant at a popular Oakland Health Club, Onika was offered a job with the Golden State Warriors and was on the road to securing a career in the NBA front offices. But after a few years in the field and after breaking off an abusive engagement with an NFL player, she realized she couldn't shake "the acting bug" and moved to Los Angeles to make her dream a reality.Working various jobs, such as a personal chef for a few NBA players, receptionist gigs, hotel maid (for a week) sampler passer outer (in an giant apple costume), she finally caught a break when a friend asked her to join her in Tupac Shakur last recorded music video "2 Live and Die in LA" as one of the three starring ladies next to Tupac in the infamous Yellow Lowrider.Onika then relocated to New York, where she continues to "hone" her craft studying with various Master Classes of the Labyrinth Theatre Company and cruises the subways to "people watch", feeling the need to keep her "edgy, artistic, street smarts" sharp.She Produced, and starred in her first project, "Monika's Day" that she wrote (alongside Boondock's co-writer Jason Van Veen), produced and is starring in alongside Sway Calloway and Cle "Bone" Sloan which has generated over 100,000 views on YouTube and counting.Onika has guest and co-starred in "Billions", "The Loudest Voice", "Wu Tang: An American Saga", "Law & Order" opposite Jesse L. Martin and Dennis Farina, "Damages" opposite Golden Globe nominee Rose Byrne, and "Dexter" opposite her favorite actor Golden Globe Winner Michael C. Hall. She has also appeared in an episode of "The Chappelle Show", "The Jamie Foxx Show", and handpicked for a music video with Amy Whinehouse directed by Dave LaChapelle a part alongside Sean "Puffy" Combs in "Carlito's Way: Rise To Power". Onika continues to grace the screen with her talents, with a recurring role on "Blue Bloods", an appearance on "Do No Harm", with Steven Pasquale, "Political Animals" with Sigourney Weaver, Steven Soderbergh's upcoming film "The Bitter Pill" and "The Challenger" starring Michael Clarke Duncan, S. Epatha Merkerson and Kent Moran.Onika Day now divides her time between New York and Los Angeles and is developing a night time Dramedy for television.::Brown / Leader...