How Quinta Brunson Got Her Start Before Abbott Elementary

"Abbott Elementary" creator, writer, and star Quinta Brunson is having an amazing year. According to Variety, the show's Season 2 premiere quadrupled in ratings once Nielsen factored in delayed viewing on streaming services. Then, in September, "Abbott Elementary," which follows a group of plucky teachers in an underserved area as they fight to give their students the best possible education, won three Emmys, with one going to Brunson for Writing in a Comedy Series, per Deadline. (Brunson's historic win, which made her the second Black woman to win in the category, was met with much fanfare, despite the fact that Jimmy Kimmel's behavior during Brunson's speech stirred up major backlash.) 

And while it can't be denied that "Abbott Elementary" benefits immensely from its talented cast — which includes Sheryl Lee Ralph, Tyler James Williams, Lisa Anne Walter, Janelle James, and Chris Perfetti, per IMDb — much of its success falls on the shoulders of Brunson, who plays rookie teacher Janine Teagues. "Abbott Elementary," which first premiered in December 2021, might be Brunson's first taste of the primetime spotlight, but the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania native's past in entertainment forewarned and prepared her for a bright (and hilarious) future. 

Quinta Brunson's first claim to fame occurred back in 2014 when Part 2 of her Instagram sketch series, "The Girl Who's Never Been On A Date," went viral. In the video, which has since amassed nearly 1.5 million views on YouTube, Brunson's character reacts excitedly to her date when he racks up their snack tab at a movie theater. Her spirited reaction of "You got f***ing money" became a popular internet meme, and served as a launchpad for Brunson's future success. Soon after, Brunson's friend Justin Tan helped her landed a temporary gig at BuzzFeed, which she parlayed into a full-time job thanks to her charm and comedic timing, per BuzzFeed.

During Brunson's tenure, she appeared in a variety of videos, such as "When You're New To Makeup," "If We Were Honest Making Plans," and "Quinta Vs. Womanhood." According to Wonder Women Tech, Brunson "was the first BFMP producer to be signed under contract to write, direct, star and produce her own projects within [Buzzfeed's] studio division." Brunson eventually left BuzzFeed in 2019 to pursue other passions. "I knew it was time to leave when my ambitions became kinda different than just working a 9-5 job," shared Brunson during her "Why I Left Buzzfeed" video. 

Outside of BuzzFeed, Brunson also created and starred in YouTube Red's "Broke," which followed three financially strapped friends as they navigated life, per IMDb, as well as "Quinta Vs. Everything."

After leaving BuzzFeed's safety net, Quinta Brunson stretched her creative muscles and dabbled in a little of everything. In addition to landing a writing and voice acting gig for Netflix's "Lazor Wolf" and "Big Mouth," Brunson also racked up acting credits on shows like "iZombie," "Miracle Workers," and "Magical Girl Friendship Squad," per IMDb. Amid Brunson's ever-expanding résumé, she also wrote and released the book "She Memes Well," which Goodreads describes as a "deeply personal and funny collection of essays featuring anecdotes about trying to make it when you're broke, overcoming self-doubt and depression, and how she's used humor to navigate her career in unusual directions."

Of course, Brunson also continued sharpening her comedic chops. In 2019, Brunson joined HBO's "A Black Lady Sketch Show," which is a "half-hour sketch comedy written by and starring Robin Thede," per IMDb. Brunson appeared on the show during the show's first season, but didn't return for Season 2. However, Brunson was there long enough to star in a hilarious sketch entitled "Rome and Julissa" with her future "Abbott Elementary" co-star, Tyler James Williams.