Congratulations are in order for Zaya Monique Campbell, daughter of Grammy Award-winning singer Erica Campbell from the gospel duo Mary Mary!
Zaya,12, recently won the top prize at the Little Miss African American Scholarship Pageant.
This achievement is particularly special, as last year, Zaya was the first runner-up in the same competition.
Proud mama Erica couldn’t contain her excitement, sharing a video on social media of the moment Zaya was crowned and received her pageant title sash.
She kicked off the Instagram post, saying, “She did it!!!!!!”
“SHE WON More videos to come but I am so proud of my baby girl!! She worked so hard @littlemissafricanamerican 2024 #30thanniversary Thank You @officiallisaruffin and the entire staff!!! #zayacampbell #Queen Fun fact! That’s 5 ur old Zaya singing the background vocals on this @charlesjenkins7 song Winning,” Campbell concluded her caption.
The pageant was held at Barnsdall Art Park in Los Angeles, CA. Contestants were judged by a panel of famous faces and influencers who included: Michael Beach (Mayor of Kingstown), James Pickens, Jr. (Grey’s Anatomy), Ella Joyce (Roc), Lamon Archey (All America”), Elia Cantu, (Days of Our Lives), Mattel’s Black Barbie doll designer, Stacey McBride-Irby, Ingrid Hadley, founder ILH Possibilities, Parker McKenna Posey (My Wife and Kids), Kamilah Moore, reparatory justice scholar and attorney, Sedrick Spencer, VP of government relations at Paramount, and Norman Towns (Showtime’s The Affair & TruTV’s Those Who Can’t).
Pageant founder Lisa Ruffin, a NAACP Theater Award nominee, created the event to boost the confidence of young African American girls across the country. Since 1994, the pageant has awarded thousands in scholarships, inspiring girls aged 6-12 to excel academically, and be proud of the skin that they are in.
From being the face of a Nationwide Insurance Company commercial to the pageant stage, we cannot wait to see what is next for Zaya. Congratulations!
