Maya Rudolph’s Parents: Everything To Know About Her Musical Mom & Dad

• Maya Rudolph is an award-winning histrion and comedian known for her enactment on Saturday Night Live, Loot, Disenchanted, and more.
• One of her astir memorable roles includes playing the relation of Lillian successful the 2011 comedy Bridesmaids.
• In 2022, Maya joined Disney’s Disenchanted alongside Amy Adams successful the sequel to the 2007 deed movie Enchanted.

Maya Rudolph, 50, is simply a beloved histrion and comedian who is known for her hilarious roles from Lillian in Bridesmaids to Molly successful the Apple TV series Loot. However, Maya is not the lone talented 1 successful her family, arsenic some of her parents worked successful the euphony manufacture for galore years. Below is everything to cognize astir her ma and dad, Minnie Riperton and Richard Rudolph.

Maya Rudolph is the girl of Minnie Riperton & Richard Rudolph. (Elizabeth Goodenough/Everett Collection)

Minnie Riperton

Minnie Riperton is Maya’s mother, who was calved connected Nov. 8, 1947, successful the metropolis of Chicago. The vocalist sadly died connected Jul.12, 1979, successful the metropolis of Los Angeles, California erstwhile Maya was conscionable 7 years old. Minnie was not lone a parent to Maya and her brother, Marc Rudolph, 54, but she was besides a talented vocalist and songwriter. Some of her astir notable songs see the 1975 azygous “Lovin’ You” and “Inside My Love.”

She was besides known for her 4 octave D₃ to F♯₇ coloratura soprano range, arsenic good arsenic being capable to deed a “whistle tone”. In fact, galore media outlets often notation to the precocious vocalist arsenic the “Queen of the Whistle Register” and fertile her arsenic 1 of the astir talented whistle registry singers to date. Aside from her enactment arsenic a signaling artist, Minnie was besides known arsenic a typical of the American Cancer Society, per her obituary successful The New York Times. Her origin of decease was owed to breast cancer, according to the outlet, and she died astatine the property of 31. As a effect of her efforts to amended radical connected the illness, erstwhile President Carter honored with an grant for her “courage and nationalist service.” She besides was the archetypal Black pistillate to beryllium selected arsenic the nationalist acquisition president of the American Cancer Society.

Richard Rudolph

Maya has openly talked astir her childhood, including her mother’s passing. (Nancy Rivera / SplashNews)

Maya’s father, Richard Rudolph, 76, besides has worked successful euphony for galore years. Richard, who was calved successful Pittsburgh successful 1946, wore galore hats successful the euphony concern including songwriter, musician, euphony publisher, and producer. He notably worked with Minnie connected galore of her deed songs including “Lovin’ You”, “Inside My Love”, and “Love Hurts.”

Richard was joined to Minnie from 1970 until her tragic decease successful 1979. Eleven years aft Minnie’s passing, helium remarried different vocalist by the sanction of Kimiko Kasai, 76, successful 1990. Kimiko is simply a retired Japanese jazz vocalist who is known for her songs “Tell Me A Bedtime Story” and “Sunlight.” Richard is besides the begetter to Maya’s brother, Marc, who was calved successful 1968, astir 2 years earlier Minnie’s marriage to Richard.

What Has Maya Said About Her Parents?

The SNL alum opened up astir the decease of her ma during a 2018 interrogation with The New York Times Magazine. “For many, galore years, I couldn’t adjacent interaction this conversation. Like my ma was always—it was specified a painful—” Maya began. “I don’t retrieve if I ever did due grieving. I cognize I did, but it came retired successful ways—like erstwhile I was a kid, I went to a caller schoolhouse and I kicked people.” She besides revealed that lone successful caller years has it gotten easier to speech astir her mom. “Up until precise recently, it was still, like, a sting to speech astir her,” Maya added.

In the aforesaid interview, the histrion opened up astir her narration with her dada erstwhile her ma passed away, calling him a “pretty adorable Jew.” She besides added that her pops struggled to comb his daughter’s hairsbreadth and it was thing she inactive remembers to this day. “So overmuch of my puerility was dealing with my hairsbreadth and being ace embarrassed by it, chiefly due to the fact that I grew up being the lone mixed kid,” she said.