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Willa Ford | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Amanda Lee Williford |
| Born | (1981-01-22)January 22, 1981 (age 44) |
| Genres | Pop,dance-pop |
| Occupation(s) | Singer, songwriter, dancer, record producer, presenter, actress, interior designer |
| Years active | 1999–present |
| Labels | |
| Website | https://www.wfordinteriors.com/ |
Amanda Lee Williford (born January 22, 1981),[1] known by her stage nameWilla Ford, is an American interior designer and former singer, songwriter, television personality, film actress, dancer, and model. She released her debut album,Willa Was Here, in 2001. Ford also has appeared in movies such asFriday the 13th (2009), hosted several reality television shows, posed forPlayboy and competed onABC'sDancing with the Stars.
Ford was raised inRuskin, Florida.[1] She began singing with the Tampa Bay Children's Choir at age eight. At age 11, she started singing with the Tampa-based children's performing arts troupe, Entertainment Revue.[1] She attendedEast Bay High School inGibsonton, Florida.[citation needed]
In 1999, the 18-year-old Ford started performing under the stage name Mandah and was signed toMCA.[1] Ford was later dropped from MCA and signed byAtlantic Records. Atlantic placed one of Ford's songs, "Lullaby," on the soundtrack forPokémon: The First Movie. Ford changed her stage name from Mandah to Willa Ford to avoid confusion withMandy Moore.[1]
In 2000, she was one of the opening acts on theBackstreet Boys' "Into the Millennium" tour.
In 2001, Ford signed on to a new label, LavaAtlantic Records, while on amall tour forNautica Kids. Ford wrote most of her own lyrics and served as executive producer for most of her first album. On July 17, 2001, she releasedWilla Was Here. The album included the single "I Wanna Be Bad" which featured rapperRoyce da 5'9".Willa Was Here reached 56 on theBillboard 200 and sold approximately 200,000 copies.[citation needed] Ford went on to release a second single from the album, "Did Ya' Understand That," which was released on September 11, 2001, failed to garner much attention. She would later explain that "Everything that happened that day froze;the world stood still, as it should have. My second single didn’t do well because anything that launched that day kind of got canned."[2] "Ooh Ooh" was released as a promotional single, but also failed to find success.
Ford was a spokesperson forPantene Pro-V's ProVoice campaign while promoting the album. She also appeared inUncle Kracker'svideo for "In A Little While." Ford also went on to guest-hostMTV'sTRL andSay What Karaoke, which led to a hosting contract withViacom. Ford hosted the MTV reality showsThe Morning After andI Bet You Will. In 2001, Ford also co-wrote and recorded a duet with South Korean pop starPark Ji-yoon. The song, titled "Nastified," appeared on Park's fifth album,Man. She was also part of an ad campaign forSix Flags.
In 2003, Ford released a song titled "A Toast to Men." The song, which featured guest rapperLady May, was featured in daytime promotional ads for soap operas. The single came from her unreleased second albumSexysexobsessive, which was previously titledPorn Poetry. The title track, "Sexysexobsessive," was to be the second single, but it was only released through Ford's official website.
From 2005 to 2006, she appeared as a guest doll inPussycat Dolls' show at the club inLas Vegas. In 2010, she released the first song since 2003 "All This Time" online, collaborated withRiley Smith. In 2011, Ford resumed her music career with a performance atThe Viper Room in LA. In the performance, she revealed her first solo song since 2003, "Back Back Back." In 2014, she was featured in the song "Rock Tonight" by Willa Ford, Eve Nelson and Ray Cervenka.[3]
She would state that after her music didn't garner as much success as hoped for, she "really took a step back because I felt like I wasn't doing what I was supposed to be at the time." "I know that sounds crazy, but it was the perfect storm, and I walked away," as she would go on to try out many different careers.[2]
In 2002, Ford appeared in an episode of the short-lived television sitcomRaising Dad, playing abully named Edie. In 2005, Ford hosted the first season of the reality showThe Ultimate Fighter onSpike TV.[4] After the show's finale, Ford was contracted as a summer's guest doll performer for theLas Vegas shows ofThe Pussycat Dolls. Ford was later featured as the June celebrity onFHM's 2005pin-up calendar.
In early 2006, Ford played as one of the fourcelebrity quarterbacks for theLingerie Bowl, which was shown during the half-time ofSuper Bowl XL. Later that year, she was featured in anude pictorial in the March 2006 issue ofPlayboy.Stuff magazine ranked her No. 48 in the 101 Sexiest Online Women supplement later that year. In fall 2006, Ford competed on the third season ofDancing with the Stars. Ford and her partner,Maksim Chmerkovskiy, were eliminated in the fifth week of competition. She talked about her experience withMaxim in its January 2007 issue.
Ford appeared on an episode ofMy Celebrity Home on theStyle Network, which aired on January 31, 2007[5] She also hosted the third season ofPants-Off Dance-Off onFuse TV. On August 23, 2007, Ford and her then-husband,NHL hockey playerMike Modano, were featured in an episode ofMTV Cribs.
Ford appeared in the 2009slasher filmFriday the 13th.
Ford played Becca in thedirect-to-videoUniversal Squadrons, which was first shown at theComic-Con International Independent Film Festival in 2010.[6][7]
Ford appeared in a 2011 episode ofThe Glades. In 2012, she appeared in 4 episodes of theMagic City and an episode ofLeverage season five. In June 2014, it was announced that she was working on four films:Submerged,[8]Any Day,The Nurse, andCheckmate.[9]
Ford was also cast in the filmAssassin's Fury, but was later dropped. In an interview with BZFilm.com, producer Fabio Soldani said that Ford was replaced after five days of shooting and that she was "a nightmare to be around" and "shooting was a really sad place to be for those 5 days".[10]
She currently runs a home interior design business, WFord Interiors.
In 2019, Ford appeared on anE!'s reality showFlip It Like Disick.[11]
Ford and hockey playerMike Modano married in a small, private ceremony on August 25, 2007, inAthens, Texas.[12][13] In August 2012, Ford and Modano announced that they were divorcing.[14]
In April 2015, Ford married formerNFL linebackerRyan Nece.[15] In March 2016, it was announced that the couple were expecting their first child.[16] On September 7, 2016, Ford gave birth to a son.[17]
| Title | Album details | Peaks |
|---|---|---|
| US [18] | ||
| Willa Was Here | 56 |
| Year | Title | Peak chart positions | Album | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US [19] | US Dance [20] | US Sales [21] | US Pop [22] | US Top 40 [23] | US R&R [24][25] | AUS [26] | |||
| 2001 | "I Wanna Be Bad" | 22 | 4 | 6 | 11 | 19 | 11 | 52 | Willa Was Here |
| "Did Ya' Understand That" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Santa Baby (Gimme, Gimme, Gimme)" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | MTV: TRL Christmas | |
| 2003 | "A Toast to Men" (featuringLady May) | — | 11 | 45 | — | — | 46 | — | Non-album singles |
| 2004 | "Sexy Sex Obsessive" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | The Anna Nicole Smith Story | Anna Nicole Smith | |
| 2008 | Impulse | Claire Dennison | |
| 2009 | Friday the 13th | Chelsea | |
| 2011 | Universal Squadrons | Becca | |
| 2014 | The Nurse | Lynette | |
| 2015 | Any Day | Cherry | |
| Checkmate | Sasha | ||
| 2016 | A Father's Secret/Hunt For Truth | Kerry Evans | TV film. EntitledEnquête sécrète in France. |
| Submerged | Carla |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | The Mind of the Married Man | Popstar | |
| 2002 | I Bet You Will | Host | |
| Raising Dad | Edie | ||
| The Morning After | Host | ||
| Miss Teen USA | Host | ||
| 2003 | Jimmy Kimmel Live! | Guest appearance | |
| 2005 | The Ultimate Fighter | Host | |
| 2006 | Lingerie Bowl III | Celebrity Quarterback for theDallas Desire | |
| Calvin Ayre WildCard Poker | Player | ||
| Dancing with the Stars | Celebrity Dancer | ||
| Jimmy Kimmel Live! | Guest appearance | ||
| Live with Regis and Kelly | Guest appearance | ||
| 2007 | Pants Off Dance Off | Host | |
| Red Eye | Guest Appearance | ||
| MTV Cribs | Introduced her home | ||
| My Celebrity Home | Introduced her home | ||
| 2010 | Chelsea Lately | Guest appearance | |
| 2011 | The Glades | Shelby Adams | Episode: "'shine" |
| 2012 | Magic City | Janice Michaels | 4 episodes |
| Leverage | Tabatha Delavega | Episode: "The Low Low Price Job" | |
| 2019 | Flip It Like Disick | Herself |
| Year | Title | Artist |
|---|---|---|
| 2001 | "I Wanna Be Bad" | Herself |
| "Did Ya' Understand That" | ||
| "Santa Baby (Gimme, Gimme, Gimme)" | ||
| 2002 | "In a Little While" | Uncle Kracker |
| 2003 | "A Toast to Men" | Herself |
| 2011 | "Burn It Down" | Awolnation |
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Artists | |
| People | |
