BACKGROUND

Born and raised in Wichita, Kansas, Taryn was extremely active in large-scale music theatre productions, starring in the pre-Broadway premieres of Jane Eyre and Violet.  During her senior year of high school, she was offered the chance to host a regional teen talk show for The WB, called Real ACTION, in which Taryn discussed controversial topics such as teen sex, drug abuse, and drinking with area teenagers.

After graduation, Taryn traveled to LA for a summer and on a last minute whim, decided to try out for American Idol.  Although she was just beginning college on a full scholarship to the University of Miami, she began the process of traveling back and forth to LA for the American Idol Hollywood finals. Her nerves eventually caught up to her, and Taryn didn’t make it into the final Top 32 round after forgetting her lyrics on stage.

Taryn then returned to UM, receiving several grants to conduct studies in South America. She spent time in Iquitos, Peru, studying the shamanic use of ayahuasca among rainforest communities, Glover’s Reef Island off the coast of Belize, researching the impact of local fisherman on the marine ecology, and Key West, Florida, as a field archeologist for the Audobon Association. She also was active in UM’s long distane running program, and competed in the 2006 Miami half-marathon, winning first place in her age category.

At 20 years old, Taryn graduated from the University of Miami with degrees in Journalism and Anthropology and headed to Europe for a three-month backpacking and photography trip.  Upon her return, she was approached to host a show for Discovery Channel, inevitably leading her back to Los Angeles to pursue a career in television hosting, acting, and writing. 

Two and a half years later, she has hosted red carpets for major networks, executive produced a travel/adventure show, filmed roles in several independent films, and made her mark as a well-known writer, producer, and actress in the web content world.

THE FIRST ‘WEBUTANTE’

With more than 20 million views on her viral videos and recognition in world press, Taryn has become a face for the newest entertainment medium. 

In 2007, she wrote, produced, and starred in HOTT 4HILL, which quickly earned more than 2 million online views and was featured on “Good Morning America,” PEOPLE, MSNBC, Inside Edition, FOX, NBC, CNN, and USA TODAY as one of the most influential videos of 2007.

Shortly after the release of HOTT4HILL, she was offered her own weekly show on Heavy.com, THE HEAVY SHOW, in which she wrote and played different characters spoofing current events, celebrity gossip, and of course, politics. She also took on a year-long contract as the face for Cosmopolitan.com, and starred in series and specials for CBS.com, MySpace, and MSN.  On her own time, Taryn continued writing and producing videos, including a spoof of THE GOLDEN GLOBES for TVGuide.com, NOT MY SOCK with Jamie Kennedy for T-Mobile, and more.

In 2008, she was featured in Maxim Magazine and was of the top internet celebrities of the year, and won Spike TV’s 2008 Guy’s Choice Award for Hott4Hill.

Taryn’s first major writing, producing, and acting debut is PRIVATE HIGH MUSICAL, a web series musical spoofing the popular HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL franchise. The series, in association with 60Frames’ Red Band division, will be released in September of 2008 across major content platforms such as MySpace and YouTube. Taryn plays Sandra, a home-schooled dorky virgin whose one wish is to find love in high school. It also stars young up-and-comers Robert Adamson, Lauren Mayhew, Mark Hapka, Marisa Lauren, and Jeff D’Agostino, as well as SAVED BY THE BELL’s infamous Dennis Haskins, and features music written by Taryn Southern and music producer Jay Condiotti.

This September, Taryn stars alongside Jessica Lee Rose (lonelygirl15, GREEK) and Mikaela Hoover (Prom Queen, Sam has 7 Friends), in Warner Brother’s first ever web series, SORORITY FOREVER. Taryn plays the character Taryn O’Malley, a troubled college freshman who will stop at nothing to be a part of the most popular sorority on campus. The series debuts on September 8^th and ends on Halloween on theWB.com.

Her new website, www.taryn-southern.com, will feature daily blogs and musings by the actress about her misadventures in Hollywood.

TELEVISION

In 2006, Taryn and her two friends took an idea for a travel show to DirecTV – and three months later, it was on the air. The half-hour program, which Southern executive produced and starred in, chronicles the global adventures of Taryn and her two girlfriends searching for adventure, friendship, and music through MySpace. The show premiered in the fall of 2006 on DirecTV’s The 101 and has since ran for two successful seasons.

FILM

In the spring of 2008, SENIOR SKIP DAY, in which Taryn played a supporting role, was released to the public on DVD and Netflix. It scored some of the highest selling ratings of the month and will be re-broadcast on Comedy Central in October of 2008. The film also stars Clint Howard, Norm MacDonald, Leah Thompson, Larry Miller, Tara Reid and Talan Torriero, and produced by George Gallo (Bad Boys, Wise Guys.)

In 2007, she also filmed a cameo role in DEEP IN THE VALLEY, starring Scott Caan, Chris MacDonald,  Denise Richards, and Kim Kardashian, produced by Persistent Entertainment.

TV HOSTING

No stranger to red-carpet events, Taryn was the leading red carpet correspondent at the 2008 GRAMMY’s for CBS.com, the 2007 GOLDEN GLOBE AWARDS for MSNBC, YOUNG HOLLYWOOD AWARDS for SHOWTIME, and many more. After the release of Hott4Hill, she acted as a guest correspondent for various political shows, such as Hardball with Chris Matthews, Fox and Friends, Red Eye on FOX, and more. 

In addition, Taryn has hosted entertainment news and gaming segments for Verizon V-Cast and GoTV, and is currently the official host for AT&T’s new entertainment cable channel, U-VERSE.