Empire producer and writer Yolonda E. Lawrence died suddenly in Los Angeles on Friday. She was 56 years old.
Her career spanned three decades with writing credits on “Riverdale,” “Bel-Air” and “The Good Wife.” The Brooklyn native discovered her passion for television when she attended a taping of “The Cosby Show.”
The veteran television writer earned a bachelor’s degree from Syracuse University’s Newhouse School of Public Communications in 1991. From there, she moved straight to Los Angeles, with the determination to succeed in the television business. She began her career as a production assistant and coordinator before moving into the writers’ room.
Lawrence landed her first writing job on the CBS drama “Shark” in 2006. From there, she went on to write on several YA dramas, including “Lincoln Heights,” “Reaper,” “Star-Crossed” and “Witches of East End.” She then served as a writer and supervising producer on “Riverdale” from 2017 to 2018.
The TV writer became an executive producer when she joined “Empire” for two seasons. She was then tapped to co-develop a potential spin-off, along with Taraji P. Henson, Danny Strong and Stacy A. Littlejohn.
His recent writing credits include “The First Lady,” “Bel-Air” and “Sistas.”
Lawrence is survived by his mother Barbara Simon and his siblings Ayana Simon and Craig Simon. The cause of his death has not been released by the family. A memorial service in Los Angeles is planned for later this month.
