Editor’s note: The following article is an op-ed, and the views expressed are the author’s own. Read more opinions on theGrio.
Maia Campbell in the 1990s was an artist to keep your eyes on. With a beautiful face and a smile that could stop traffic, for a lot of us whose television education happened during that decade, Maia Campbell was part of that experience. While personal issues stalled what those of on the outside thought could be a long and storied career, when she did show up, she showed up big and memorably. Here are five of Maia Campbell’s most iconic TV and film roles.
1. “Tiffany” from “In The House”
On the LL Cool J-led sitcom that ran on NBC and then UPN, Campbell played “Tiffany Warren,” the daughter of Debbie Allen’s character, “Jackie Warren,” who rented the house from down on his luck ex-NFL player, “Marion Hill.” As “Tiffany,” Campbell showed up with the 90s cool and shenanigans that defined life for so many of us who came of age in the mid-to-late 90s. When folks think of Campbell at her most entertaining and engaging, they think of “Tiffany.”
2. “Nicole” on “South Central”
While “South Central” only lasted for one season, folks remember Campbell from her performance as “Nicole,” love interest for “Andre,” played by Larenz Tate. In fact, Andre got beat up on the way to meet up with “Nicole,” and that’s the most I truly remember from that episode, but in the 1990s, we all understood and getting beat up to meet with Maia Campbell was something that seemed totally worth it.
3. “Cinny Hawkins” in “Trippin’”
“Trippin’” was a vehicle for Deon Richmond, who most of us knew as “Bud” from “The Cosby Show.” Grown-up Richmond, however, was a lost, love-struck fool who made some questionable decisions and wanted nothing more than to take Campbell’s character, “Cinny” to the prom. She ends up tutoring him and they fall for one another in one of her most fantastic roles. She rapped. She joked. She was thebomb.com as we used to say in the early 00s.
4. Tyrese’s “Sweet Lady” and “Lately” videos
Tyrese in 2025 might be more known for videos he shouldn’t post than any of his actual talents, but Tyrese in the late 1990s was the king of the ballad. One such song was 1998’s “Sweet Lady.” The video featured Maia Campbell at her apex. In the follow-up single, Campbell returned to her role as Tyrese’s love interest for “Lately.” And the rest of us watched, wishing we could sing like Tyrese so Campbell would be in our music videos.
Panama Jackson is a columnist at theGrio and host of the award-winning podcast, “Dear Culture” on theGrio Black Podcast Network. He writes very Black things, drinks very brown liquors, and is pretty fly for a light guy. His biggest accomplishment to date coincides with his Blackest accomplishment to date in that he received a phone call from Oprah Winfrey after she read one of his pieces (biggest) but he didn’t answer the phone because the caller ID said “Unknown” (Blackest).
