Courtney Kemp

Courtney A. Kemp was born on May 4, 1977, in Westport, Connecticut. Her father, Herbert Kemp Jr., was the first African American graduate of Dartmouth College’s Tuck School of Business. Growing up in Westport, a setting where her family was one of the few African American households, she developed a deep interest in literature and politics from a young age, starting with Shakespeare’s plays by age ten. She graduated from Staples High School in 1994, then pursued higher education at Brown University for her bachelor’s degree and Columbia University for her Master’s in English Literature. Initially, Kemp aimed for a career in journalism, working as an editorial assistant at ‘Mademoiselle’ and contributing to ‘GQ’ for three years before shifting her focus to television production.

Kemp transitioned to television writing at the age of 26, moving to Los Angeles. Her career began as a staff writer for ‘The Bernie Mac Show’. She subsequently contributed to several other television series, including ‘Justice’, ‘Eli Stone’, and ‘Beauty & the Beast’. Her work on CBS’s political drama ‘The Good Wife’ further established her reputation in the industry. A significant turning point in her career was co-creating the series ‘Power’ with Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson and Mark Canton, which premiered on Starz in 2014. The show’s success led to a multi-series franchise, the ‘Power’ Universe, including spin-offs like ‘Power Book II: Ghost’, ‘Power Book III: Raising Kanan’, and ‘Power Book IV: Force’.

In August 2021, Courtney Kemp signed a multi-year overall deal with Netflix, signaling a new phase in her career to develop and produce content for the streaming giant. This collaboration underscores her influence and demand as a creative force in television. She is currently working on new projects, including an HBO drama titled ‘Dirty 30’, based on rogue NYPD police officers. Throughout her career, Kemp has received one Primetime Emmy nomination and has accumulated a total of one win and five nominations for her work in television, cementing her status as a prolific and impactful producer and writer.