Background and career
Yaya DaCosta (born November 15, 1982) is an American actress and model. She was the runner-up in Cycle 3 of America's Next Top Model. DaCosta eventually appeared in ABC's daytime drama series All My Children (2008), ABC's comedy-drama Ugly Betty (2009), and NBC's medical drama Chicago Med (2015–2022). In 2010, she appeared in the film The Kids Are All Right, being nominated with the cast at the Critics' Choice Movie Award and at the Gotham Award. DaCosta starred in the Lifetime television film Whitney (2015) as singer Whitney Houston. She received praise for her performance and was nominated for the Black Reel Award for Outstanding Actress, TV Movie or Limited Series.
DaCosta was born on November 15, 1982. She was raised in the Harlem neighborhood of New York City. She is of African-American and Brazilian descent. In addition to English, she speaks Portuguese. She attended Northfield Mount Hermon School during high school before attending Brown University, where she majored in Africana studies and international relations.
After being the runner-up on Cycle 3 of America's Next Top Model, DaCosta went on to have a successful career. DaCosta appeared once in the bottom two during the competition. She appeared on the cover of Hype Hair. In 2014, she landed a spot in Tom Ford’s Fall/Winter advertising campaign. DaCosta began acting in 2005 after guest-starring in an episode of the UPN sitcom Eve. She appeared in the 2006 dance film Take the Lead. DaCosta had supporting roles in the independent films Honeydripper (2007) and The Messenger (2009). She appeared in the ABC soap opera All My Children in 2008 as Cassandra Foster. According to an interview with All My Children's new head writer, Charles Pratt, Jr., DaCosta left the role some time in August 2008, less than four months after joining the show, to join the cast of The First Breeze of Summer on Broadway. The First Breeze of Summer was presented from 2008 to 2009 by the Negro Ensemble Company. In 2009, she had a recurring role as Nico Slater in the fourth and final season of the ABC comedy-drama series Ugly Betty. In 2010, DaCosta had supporting roles in the comedy-drama film The Kids Are All Right and the science fiction action-adventure film Tron: Legacy. Later, she appeared in magazines, including on the cover of W (September 2010), in L'Officiel (in November 2010), and in Vogue (in January 2011 by Patrick Demarchelier). In 2013, she appeared as Carol in the historical drama film The Butler.
In 2015 DaCosta starred as singer Whitney Houston in a Lifetime television film about her life. DaCosta received praise for her performance. From 2015 to 2021, DaCosta starred in the NBC medical drama Chicago Med as April Sexton, an ED nurse. On May 14, 2021, DaCosta announced that she was leaving Chicago Med after six seasons, and before her exit she would be joining Fox's drama series Our Kind of People in the lead role; the new series was cancelled after 12 episodes. DaCosta was a recurring character on The Lincoln Lawyer season 2 and then a main character in season 3. She departed the cast ahead of season 4, which began filming in February 2025.
DaCosta was in a relationship with independent film producer and director Joshua Bee Alafia from 2012 to 2015. In September 2013, she gave birth to their son, Sankara. In November 2015, it was reported that DaCosta and Alafia broke up. Contrary to popular reports, DaCosta and Alafia were never officially married.
Sources
Net-worth figure: Celebrity Net Worth (October 2026), in USD. Biography and career facts: the person's Wikipedia article and linked reporting. Snapshot date for all StarWorth figures: 28 October 2026.
