Benita Bailey was born in Thuringia and lives between Berlin and Toronto. She works internationally as an actress, theatre and film maker, speaker and lecturer.

She studied African Studies and International Relations at the University of Leipzig and in Hong Kong as well as acting in Berlin. She worked for the UN in New York and for the German government in Beijing and Berlin, for various local NGOs in Tanzania and South Africa.

She is currently developing her first series project and an interdisciplinary performance in Canada. Since 2020, she has had her own talk format #yellit, for which she is currently producing the fourth season. On screen, she can be seen in the lead role of the ARD series Die Pflegionärin. Politically, she is involved as an organiser of black filmmakers and campaigns for more diversity in the German film landscape.