Kandi Lenice Burruss Tucker (born May 17, 1976), also known mononymously as Kandi, is an American singer-songwriter, television personality, producer, and businesswoman. Hailing from College Park, Georgia, she first came to fame as one-fourth of R&B Girl Group Xscape in the mid-1990s. She late went on to become a songwriter for other R&B artists. She and her bandmate, Tameka "Tiny" Cottle-Harris co-wrote the massive hit "No Scrubs" by TLC. The song scored them their first Grammy for Best R&B Song.
In 2009, Kandi joined the cast of The Real Housewives of Atlanta for its second season—becoming the first newbie to the show. She has since become the show's longest-running cast member with fourteen seasons under her belt as of 2023. With the help of the show, she has been able to successfully launch her adult toy line, Bedroom Kandi; become a playwright with A Mother's Love; as well as open two restaurants: Old Lady Gang Restaurant, and Blaze Seafood and Steakhouse.
She is also an active YouTuber. She hosts the shows Speak On It and Kandi Koated Live there.
Kandi aspires to become an EGOT winner. With a Grammy already under her belt, in May of 2023, she received her first Tony nomination for Best Revival of a Play for The Piano Lesson.
Discography
Solo albums
- Hey Kandi... (2000)
- Kandi Koated (2010)
with Xscape
- Hummin' Comin' at 'Cha (1993)
- Off the Hook (1995)
- Traces of My Lipstick (1998)
Extended Plays
- Fly Above EP (2009)
Filmography
As herself
- Soul Train - (1993-94; as a member of Xscape)
- New York Undercover - "Sympathy for the Devil" (1996; as a member of Xscape)
- The Jay Leno Show
- The Real Housewives of Atlanta (2009-2023)
- The Kandi Factory (2013)
- Kandi's Wedding (2014)
- Kandi's Ski Trip (2015)
- Xscape: Still Kickin' It (2017)
- Kandi Koated Nights (2018)
- Kandi & The Gang (2022)
- Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? (2010) - "The Real Housewives of Millionaire 1-4"
- Unsung (2015)
- Celebrity Big Brother (2019)
- The Masked Singer (2020)
- SWV & Xscape: The Queens of R&B (2023)
Acting roles
- The Chi (2020-2023) - Roselyn Perry
Stage
- Thoughts of a Colored Man (2021) - Producer
- The Piano Lesson (2022-23) - Producer
- The Wiz (2024) - Producer
I may be small, but my trope list keeps growing!
- Album Title Drop: Track #2 of Hey Kandi...
- Girl Group: Xscape. Her claim to fame.
- Grief Song: Her duet with fellow singer Faith Evans, "Easier." She opens the track by dedicating it to her late brother, Patrick Riley.
- Singer Name Drop: To herself with both her debut album and its title track.
- Singer-Songwriter:
- Spin-Off: Kandi has received the most spin-off series of the RHOA cast.
