Cynthia Denise Bailey was born on February 19, 1967. She is an American model, TV personality, podcaster, and actress. She was born and raised in Alabama. At 18 years old, she moved to New York City to start a modeling career. In New York, she signed a five-year contract with Wilhelmina Models. She later appeared in magazines and advertising campaigns. She also worked as a runway model in Paris and Milan.

Bailey acted in movies, such as Without You I'm Nothing (1990) and For Love or Money (1993). She also appeared on TV shows, including The Cosby Show. In 2010, she joined the Bravo TV show The Real Housewives of Atlanta. She married Peter Thomas in 2010, and their divorce was completed in 2017. From 2018 until she left the show in 2021, her relationship with sportscaster Mike Hill was shown on The Real Housewives of Atlanta.

Early life

Cynthia Denise Bailey was born on February 19, 1967, in Decatur, Alabama, and grew up in Tuscumbia. Her father, Elijah, worked at an auto factory, and her mother, Barbara, worked at a sewing factory. Barbara was 18 years old when she became pregnant with Cynthia and had another daughter, Malorie, about a year later. During her childhood, Cynthia was inspired by her grandmother, Mae Frankie Ford, who worked in a sewing factory, sold hot dogs and hamburgers, cleaned homes, and volunteered to care for an elderly woman. Cynthia described Ford as "the first female Black entrepreneur in [her] life."

Bailey took freshman-level classes at the University of Alabama in Huntsville and competed in local beauty pageants. She became the first African American homecoming queen at Deshler High School. After winning the event, she entered a homecoming queen pageant but did not win. However, a talent scout from Wilhelmina Models contacted her. At age 18, she moved to New York City and signed a five-year contract with the modeling agency. She used money earned from part-time work at a mall to pay for the move.

Career

Bailey appeared in the 1989 music video for New Order's "Round & Round." In 1990, she played Roxanne in the film Without You I'm Nothing and remained friends with its star, Sandra Bernhard. Naomi Campbell was considered for the role. Bailey appeared in a 1990 episode of the sitcom The Cosby Show. Her audition for a role in the 1991 film The Five Heartbeats was featured in the 2018 documentary The Making of the Five Heartbeats. In 1993, she played a model in the film For Love or Money, and the following year, she appeared in the music video for Heavy D's single "Nuttin' But Love" from the album of the same name. She played a masseuse in a 1995 episode of New York Undercover.

After working as a runway model in Paris and Milan for a year, Bailey returned to New York City and modeled for Maybelline, Oil of Olay, and Target, as well as in magazines including Vogue, Glamour, Elle, and Vanity Fair. She appeared on two Essence magazine covers in June 1995—her first job as a model—and again in 1997. The magazine's then-editor-in-chief, Susan L. Taylor, described Bailey as one of her favorite models. Bailey's favorite modeling job was a Vanity Fair cover shot by Annie Leibovitz, which also featured Iman, Beverly Johnson, Naomi Campbell, and Tyra Banks. Iman had invited Bailey to participate in the shoot.

In 2010, Bailey joined the Bravo reality television show The Real Housewives of Atlanta, which featured her relationship with club owner Peter Thomas and her friendship with NeNe Leakes. She was introduced in the show's third season along with Phaedra Parks. Bailey was initially uncertain about joining the show, describing it as "too dramatic," but changed her mind after viewing it as a business opportunity. She was contacted by Bravo shortly after moving to Atlanta with Thomas; the network said they "wanted to bring more class to the cast and feature more women who already had successful careers before the show."

In 2011, Bailey opened her modeling school, Bailey Agency School of Fashion, in Atlanta. The following year, she held a model search in several cities in the Southern United States as part of a contest to win representation by a New York modeling agency. Bailey appeared in a trilogy of music videos ("Age Ain't a Factor," "Baby x3," and "Chase Forever") for Jaheim's 2013 album Appreciation Day. In the "Age Ain't a Factor" video, she was shown in a fictional Essence article on "Ageless Beauty," alongside LisaRaye McCoy and Vivica A. Fox. The "Baby x3" video focuses on infidelity, with Bailey and Thomas portraying "secret lovers."

Bailey appeared in the 2015 documentary series Black Friday, which is about how little consumer spending is retained within Black communities. The same year, she acted in Kenya Moore's television pilot, Life Twirls On. For the character, she used a Jamaican accent. In 2016, she had a minor role in the film Sharknado: The 4th Awakens and guest-starred on The Next:15 alongside former The Real Housewives of Atlanta costar Claudia Jordan. She was featured on a celebrity edition of Cupcake Wars with Nene Leakes.

Bailey was a guest judge for the preliminary and finals competition of the 65th Miss Universe competition. In 2018, Bailey signed a contract with the New York-based agency Major Models; her daughter is also signed with the company. In April 2018, Bailey underwent surgery to remove a lipoma tumor from her left shoulder blade. The procedure was successful without any reported complications. In 2019, Bailey guest-starred in an episode of Last Call and acted in How High 2, the sequel to the 2001 film How High. She started a line of bags, named CB VIOR, as well as a line of candles, leather goods, and eyewear.

Bailey opened a wine bar, The Bailey Wine Cellar, and an event space, The Bailey Room, in Grant Park, Atlanta, in July 2019. The same year, she had a partnership with Seagram, creating a signature drink, a Bellini cocktail. It was sold in April 2019. The launch party was shown on an 11th season episode of The Real Housewives of Atlanta. In it, Leakes was angry that Bailey had invited Kenya Moore to the event without her knowledge. The incident was discussed during the season's reunion episodes, and Leakes and Bailey publicly ended their friendship. Bailey is a brand ambassador for Seagram since 2018. In 2019, she guest-starred on Star and Tales.

Bailey chose to leave The Real Housewives of Atlanta in 2021, after being a part of the series for 11 seasons. She starred in the first season of The Real Housewives Ultimate Girls Trip, a spin-off featuring various women from The Real Housewives franchise, which premiered on Peacock in 2021. In an Essence interview conducted in the same year, she said she was shifting her focus from reality television to acting. Bailey had a recurring role in the second season of Games People Play as documentarian Ndasia.

In 2022, Bailey competed as a HouseGuest in the third season of Celebrity Big Brother, placing third in the competition. The same year, she appeared in the 2022 Lifetime movie Cruel Instruction. The following year, Bailey returned to The Real Housewives of Atlanta as a guest for its 15th season.

In 2024, it was announced that Bailey would be returning to The Real Housewives of Atlanta in a "friend of" capacity for its 16th season. As of October 2024, Bailey is set to co-host the Humble Brag with Crystal and Cynthia podcast alongside Crystal Kung Minkoff, focusing on topics related to pop culture, reality television, and celebrities.

Personal life

Bailey dated Jayson Williams in 1996. During a halftime show for the New Jersey Nets, he proposed to her. She refused the proposal and returned the engagement ring. She also declined a marriage proposal from Russell Simmons. Bailey had a romantic relationship with Leon Robinson. On November 9, 1999, she gave birth to their daughter, Noelle. During her pregnancy, Bailey discovered she had a uterine fibroid, which she described as "the size of a grape." She chose to treat the fibroid with uterine fibroid embolization instead of a hysterectomy because she wanted the possibility of having more children in the future. She worked with USA Fibroids Centers to educate others about fibroids and treatment options.

Bailey married Peter Thomas on July 24, 2010, at the Fernbank Museum of Natural History. The wedding was featured in a season three episode of The Real Housewives of Atlanta. In 2013, Bailey and Thomas wrote a book about their relationship titled Carry-On Baggage: Our Nonstop Flight. They announced their separation in 2016, and their divorce was finalized in March 2017. Bailey moved with her daughter to a home she named "Lake Bailey." Initially, she wanted to rent an apartment to enjoy a lifestyle similar to New York City. However, producers from The Real Housewives of Atlanta encouraged her to buy a house instead.

In August 2018, Bailey publicly shared that she was in a relationship with Fox Sports correspondent Mike Hill. Hill and Bailey became engaged in July 2019 and married on October 10, 2020. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, strict rules were followed at the wedding in Acworth, Georgia, to protect the 250 guests. The venue was thoroughly cleaned before the event. However, Bailey faced criticism on social media after photos and videos showed some guests not wearing masks. In October 2022, Bailey announced she had filed for divorce from Hill. The divorce was finalized later that same year.