Akosua Gyamama Busia (born 30 December 1966)[1][2] is a Ghanaian actress, film director, author and songwriter who lives in the United Kingdom. She played Nettie Harris in the 1985 film The Color Purple alongside Whoopi Goldberg.
Akosua Busia | |
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![]() Busia in 1986 | |
Born | Akosua Gyamama Busia (1966-12-30) 30 December 1966 (age 55) Ghana |
Occupation | Actress, film director, songwriter, author |
Years active | 1979–present |
Known for | Nettie Harris – The Color Purple |
Spouse | |
Children | 1 |
Parent(s) | Kofi Abrefa Busia Naa Morkor Busia |
Relatives | Abena Busia (sister) |
Busia is the daughter of Kofi Abrefa Busia, who was prime minister of the Republic of Ghana (from 1969 to 1972)[3] and a prince of the royal family of Wenchi,[4] a subgroup of the Ashanti, making Akosua a princess too.[citation needed] Her sister, Abena Busia, is a poet and academic, who was a professor in English at Rutgers University,[5] and since 2017 has been the Ghanaian ambassador to Brazil.[citation needed]
Busia grew up in Ghana, and began her acting career at the age of 16, attending London's Central School of Speech and Drama on scholarship.[6] Her first acting role was as Juliet in an otherwise white cast performing Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet at Oxford University, where her siblings were studying.[6]
Busia's film roles include a notable performance as Bessie in a 1986 film adaptation of Richard Wright's novel Native Son (with Geraldine Page and Matt Dillon. She also starred in Hard Lessons alongside Denzel Washington and Lynn Whitfield in 1986.[7] Busia played Nettie (opposite Danny Glover and Whoopi Goldberg) in Steven Spielberg's 1985 The Color Purple,[8] adapted from Alice Walker's novel of the same title, as Ruth in Badge of the Assassin (1985), as Jewel in John Singleton's Rosewood (1997),[9] and as Patience in Antoine Fuqua's Tears of the Sun (2003).[10] She has also appeared on television in the series ER.[4]
Busia is the author of The Seasons of Beento Blackbird: A Novel (Washington Square Press, 1997, ISBN 9780671014094).[11][12] She was one of three co-writers for the screenplay adaptation of Toni Morrison's 1987 novel Beloved for the 1998 film version of the same name directed by Jonathan Demme.[13] In 2008 Busia directed a film about her father: The Prof. A Man Remembered. Life, Vision & Legacy of K.A. Busia.[14] Busia also co-wrote the song "Moon Blue" with Stevie Wonder for his album A Time 2 Love, released in 2005.[15] Her poem "Mama" is included in the 2019 anthology New Daughters of Africa, edited by Margaret Busby.[16]
After 18-year hiatus to raise her daughter, in 2016 Busia returned to acting in the off-Broadway and Broadway production of Danai Gurira's play Eclipsed, alongside Lupita Nyong'o.[17] For her performance off-Broadway, she received an Obie Award for Distinguished Performance as Rita [18]
On 12 October 1996, Akosua Busia married the American film director John Singleton, with whom she has a daughter[13] — Hadar Busia-Singleton (born 3 April 1997); the couple divorced on 15 June 1997. Their daughter attended school in Ghana, before returning to the US.[4]
She co-founded with her sister Abena Busia the Busia Foundation International, aiming "to provide assistance to the disadvantaged".[19]
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
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1979 | Ashanti | The Senoufo Girl | |
1983 | The Final Terror | Vanessa | |
1984 | Louisiana | Ivy | TV movie |
1985 | Badge of the Assassin | Ruth | TV movie |
1985 | The Color Purple | Nettie Harris | |
1986 | Crossroads | Woman at Boardinghouse | |
1986 | Low Blow | Karma | |
1986 | Hard Lessons (a.k.a. The George McKenna Story | Cynthia Byers | |
1986 | Native Son | Bessie | |
1988 | Saxo | Puppet | |
1988 | The Seventh Sign | Penny Washburn | |
1991 | New Jack City | Courtroom Spectator | Uncredited |
1997 | Rosewood | Jewel | |
1997 | Mad City | Diane | |
1997 | Ill Gotten Gains | Fey | |
2003 | Tears of the Sun | Patience | |
2007 | Ascension Day | Cherry |
General | |
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National libraries | |
Other |
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