Britini D'Angelo, "Big Brother" 23 Houseguest
Britini D'Angelo. Credit: Cliff Lipson/CBS 2021 CBS Broadcasting, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
“Big Brother” Houseguest Britini D’Angelo Inspires As An Advocate for Autism Acceptance
4th Degree Blackbelt and Three-Time World Champion in the Chuck Norris System, Valedictorian From Niagara University, Dance Superstar on TikTok, Among Britini’s Multifaceted Talents and Accomplishments
On Sept. 29, 2021, during the historic season 23 finale of “Big Brother” on CBS, host Julie Chen Moonves gave houseguest and jury member Britini D’Angelo the floor, and on a much larger scale, a national platform, to reveal to her fellow houseguests and to America, that not only is she a fourth-degree karate black belt, but that she has autism. By doing that, her goal was to bring acceptance about autism, and ultimately to stop the stigma associated with it. Standing up, Britini gave an empowering speech proclaiming, “When I was 22 months old, I was diagnosed with autism and I have been living with autism every single day. The reason why I did not disclose that to all of you in the house was that I wanted to be seen as me. I wanted you guys to get to know me for me. Britini for Britini. Not as a label. Not as a diagnosis. I am so much more than what my disability is! And I am so proud of the journey I have had to be standing on this stage right now. This is an anomaly that I am here. And I just wanted to say thank you all for accepting me with open arms.”
Born and raised in Niagara Falls, New York, Britini graduated from Niagara University (NU) with her Masters in Early Childhood and Childhood Education, with additional certifications in Special Education Grades 1-6 and Theatre Education Grades K-12. She did a study abroad trip to London during her undergraduate work at NU. In 2019, she won both the Niagara Medal (voted on by the members of the senior class as the individual who represents NU the best) and the Senior Medal (Valedictorian - Perfect 4.0 GPA across two Degrees). She was the first individual in the 162 year history of the University to win both awards in the same year. Purple, which happens to be the official color of NU, is also Britini’s favorite color.
In December 2020, she was promoted to the rank of 4th degree black belt in the Chuck Norris System, and she is a three-time world champion at the United Fighting Arts Federation World Championships Tournament. She also plays on a co-ed Bar League Softball team and at 5’ 2,” she plays first and second base. “I have to be the shortest first baseman in the history of the league, haha,” she jokes.
Her many other talents include playing four musical instruments (alto saxophone, tenor saxophone, piano, and flute). She has danced for 19 years in 12 different styles to audiences as large as 20,000 at different sporting events. She is now a dance teacher and teaches Musical Theatre and Assistant Teach Tap at a local studio. And she has reached over 335.7K followers on TikTok where she regularly posts inspirational dance videos. “My friends, family, and doctors say that I dance better than I walk. I have sprained my right and left ankles 11 times a piece, with 15 of those sprains coming from walking,” says Britini. She has also been singing as long as she can talk. In 2018, she was asked to sing the National Anthem on the finale night of the Miss New York Pageant at Shea’s Performing Arts Center in Buffalo.
On July 7, 2021, Britini debuted as a houseguest on the long-running CBS reality competition show “Big Brother.” She joined the house with 15 other contestants. In the first episode, she became a member of the Jokers team with Brandon "Frenchie" French, Azah Awasum and Derek Frazier. Week after week, Britini played in competitions with her team, and eventually as an individual player, battling for Head of Household, Power of Veto and more. In week 5, Britini won the “Kingdom of Curl A Lot” competition winning Power of Veto, and was given the nickname “The Denialtor” (also emboldened on the cover of her BB Comic). She was ultimately evicted on Day 44, becoming Juror #1. Britini also became known as the Rapping Queen of the Block for almost every time she was nominated for eviction, on eviction night, she would give a speech in the form of a rap, to help convince the remaining houseguests to keep her in the house. And on Sept. 29th during the season finale, she helped vote for the winner, Xavier Prather, who was a member of the historic “Cookout” alliance, and who became the first African-American winner of “Big Brother.”
Incredibly grateful for the experience she had and the friends she made on “Big Brother,” Britini took to Instagram on Oct. 5th to share her heartfelt thoughts. Here is an excerpt: “My experience of being a Houseguest on #BB23 is a dream come true . . . To those who watched me this season and those who have always been by my side, I truly want to just say the largest THANK YOU to each and every one of you . . . Thank you for believing in me, cheering me on, and standing by my side throughout this entire experience! . . . I’m honored for the opportunity to be unapologetically, authentically and completely myself. I’ve never had the opportunity to talk publicly about having autism, but I’m thrilled to be able to start by sharing my journey and hopefully inspiring others. I want to be an advocate, cheerleader and offer hope. I am so much more than my label or my diagnosis . . . My diagnosis does not define me but honestly is my superpower! Starting off as being nonverbal, having no eye contact, and no social cues, my journey has not been easy by any means. I’ve had to learn what works and doesn’t work for me. However, I’ve faced hurdles and broken down boundaries that have all made me stronger. I wasn’t just doing this for me. I wanted to do this for every single kid, teenager or adult who has a disability. Your disability does not define you and is not a dead end. Your path is up to you! You can do ANYTHING you set your mind to. No matter what disability someone has, we need to see them as the person FIRST, not as their disability or diagnosis. We are capable of so many things in this world, and it’s due time that we start emphasizing what we CAN do, as opposed to what we cannot do.”
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