April Maiya
April Maiya is an American film producer, director and fashion designer.
Background
April Maiya was born of Vietnamese and Pacific Island descent. Maiya grew up in the suburbs of Los Angeles to Buddhist parents. She attended the University of California as a law major until she made her home in New York City to pursue her a career as a documentary filmmaker. Maiya dated film director John Singleton and is currently married to a music industry personality.
Career
Maiya started her career as a music supervisor for the Paramount Pictures for various films including The Ladies Man. Maiya founded Bella Honey, a lingerie swimwear line which featured in Chris Brown "Yo" video. The brand was featured in Maxim, Stuff, FHM publications in the U.S. and Patricia Field boutique which subsequently landed the bikinis on HBO's popular Sex and the City series.
She also worked for Black Entertainment Television (BET) as a producer for the hip hop show, "Rap City", and made her directorial debut in the critically acclaimed music documentary Chronicles of Junior M.A.F.I.A. (2004) featuring rappers: The Notorious B.I.G, Junior M.A.F.I.A. and Lil' Kim.
Maiya went on to produce and direct Life After Death: The Movie (2007) detailing the story behind the shooting in front of New York's Hot 97 which landed rapper Lil' Kim in prison. The film featured actor Jamie Hector, a/k/a "Marlo Stansfield" of the HBO's television series The Wire, as the narrator.