Tika Sumpter
One Love, One Life
Culture
At 17, Tika Sumpter, a Queens native, found herself hostessing at a New York City club, dreaming of a solid career in acting. She knew what she wanted, she knew she had the fire and passion for it, but like many other actors, could do little but work hard and hope it all paid off. A supporter of her dreams, Sumpter’s boss introduced her to an agent he knew and Tika set off working. Initially working as a model, landing gigs with Hewlett-Packard and Liz Claiborne, Tika kept up her studies at Marymount Manhattan College. The one day she got the break she had been waiting for, playing the role as Layla Williamson on the well known soap opera, One Life to Live. After years at the show Layla was able to transition from the soaps to a primetime roles on hit show like The Game and most recently on Gossip Girl as the love interest to Chuck Bass (played by Edward Westwick).
