Taryn Southern

Born and raised in Wichita, Kansas, Taryn Southern began exploring her place in the media while still in high school. Active in her school's theater department, Southern appeared on local stage and TV productions before heading to the University of Miami to pursue a degree in anthropology and journalism. While still in school she appeared on "American Idol" (Fox, 2002-2016) and made it into the top 50, earning a trip to Los Angeles. After graduation, Southern's first national exposure came in 2007, when she wrote and starred in "Hot4Hill," a satirical music video response to videos posted by ObamaGirl during the 2008 presidential primary race. That work led to her casting in "Sorority Forever" (theWB.com, 2008), the first web series produced by Warner Bros. In 2010, Southern earned her most exposure to date, with a multi-episode arc on the David Spade series "Rules of Engagement" (CBS, 2007-2013). She has also appeared in guest roles on a number of series including "New Girl" (Fox, 2011-), "The League" (FX, 2009-15), and "Last Man Standing" (ABC, 2011-). Her old media appearances were secondary to her internet presence. Southern continued to be active in online communities, with over 400,000 subscribers to her channels on YouTube.