Who Is That? #5 - China Anne McClain
She was discovered by Tyler Perry for her singing talents in 2007 and he cast her on the TV show
Tyler Perry's House of Payne, which was China's first claim to fame. From that she had several guest appearances on various Disney shows including
Hannah Montana and
Wizards of Waverly Place until she was able to land the starring role in Disney's
A.N.T. Farm (pictured above). The show follows Chyna Parks as she first attends a school for gifted musical prodigies in San Francisco known as the A.N.T. program or "Advanced Natural Talent". The show lasted three seasons. A soundtrack was released for the show which has China and her sisters appearing on the bonus tracks (they often sing together and call themselves the McClain Sisters -- they've even released music under this name). The song "Calling All the Monsters" was performed on a Disney Halloween special and is the lone single from the soundtrack; it reached #86 on the Hot 100. The title may have you thinking it's too cheesy, but I promise you that it's a mega bop that I loved from day one.
Just this past year China was cast as a villain named Uma in the Disney film
Descendants 2. The movie is about the rivalry between the children of various Classic Disney characters and China plays Ursulla's daughter; she is the main antagonist in the story. Her theme song in the movie is "What's My Name?" which was the first song I ever heard from the soundtrack and it captivated me instantly. This is why we're rating it but also it reached #61 on the Hot 100. Get ready for an incredible bop with China delivering tons of swag throughout. Hopefully some of you will lose your wigs like I did the first time I heard it.
Other things to note about China are that she also did a cover of Taio Cruz's "Dynamite" on the A.N.T. Farm soundtrack, that got her some national attention. She also appeared on ABC's
Sing Your Face Off as the youngest contestant and won the first season, so she certainly has the chops.
Musical Comparison: She lists Rihanna as a main inspiration for her music, so we'll call her Baby Rih.