section_path: Career/2009–2018: Early work and breakthrough
section_name: 2009–2018: Early work and breakthrough
paragraph_text: 2009–2018: Early work and breakthrough
  
  Zendaya began her career working as a fashion model for Macy's, Mervyns, and Old Navy. She was featured in an iCarly toys ad. She also appeared as a back-up dancer in a Sears commercial featuring Disney star Selena Gomez. In 2009, she was a featured performer in the Kidz Bop music video for its cover of the song " Hot n Cold " by Katy Perry, which was released on Kidz Bop 15. In November 2009, she auditioned for the role of CeCe Jones in the Disney sitcom Shake It Up (titled Dance Dance Chicago at the time). For her audition, she performed Michael Jackson 's " Leave Me Alone ". She was selected to play Rocky Blue. Shake It Up premiered on November 7, 2010, and was watched by 6.2 million viewers, becoming Disney Channel's second highest-rated premiere in Disney Channel's 27-year history.
  
  In 2011, Zendaya released " Swag It Out ", a promotional independent single. She also starred in the book trailer for "From Bad To Cursed" by Katie Alender. In June of the same year, she released " Watch Me ", performing with Bella Thorne. The song peaked at 86 on the Billboard Hot 100. The second season of Shake It Up premiered on September 18, 2011. Zendaya hosted Make Your Mark: Ultimate Dance Off 2011 on Disney Channel. In 2011, Target stores began selling D-Signed, a line of clothing inspired by the clothes worn by Zendaya and other cast members of Shake It Up.
  
  Zendaya's first film role was in Frenemies (2012), a Disney Channel Original Movie. On February 29, 2012, " Something to Dance For " was released as a promotional single for Live 2 Dance. For the soundtrack, Zendaya also recorded three other songs: " Made in Japan ", "Same Heart", and "Fashion Is My Kryptonite", released as promotional single. In June 2012, Shake It Up was renewed for a third and final season. On September 2, 2012, she signed to Hollywood Records. In October, she performed at the Teen Music Festival and at the Operation Smile benefit. Zendaya was one of the celebrities who would compete on season 16 of Dancing with the Stars. At 16, she was the youngest contestant ever to participate on the show, before Willow Shields succeeded her at 14 on season 20. She was partnered up with professional dancer Valentin Chmerkovskiy. In May, the couple finished as runners-up behind Kellie Pickler and Derek Hough.
  
  Zendaya's self-titled debut album was released on September 17, 2013. It was preceded by the single " Replay ", released on July 16, 2013, written by Tiffany Fred and Paul "Phamous" Shelton. In August 2013, she was cast as 16-year-old Zoey Stevens, the lead character in the Disney Channel Original Movie Zapped, whose "smart phone begins to somehow control all the boys around her". In November 2013, Zendaya was selected as Elvis Duran 's Artist of the Month and was featured on NBC 's Today, where she performed live her single "Replay".
  
  Zendaya was next cast as the lead in a Disney Channel pilot called Super Awesome Katy. It was ordered to series by Disney Channel in May 2014, with the series now under the title K.C. Undercover, and with Zendaya's character now named K.C. Cooper rather than Katy Cooper. Zendaya exerted influence over the renaming of her character and the retitling of the series, also deciding several key elements of the character's personality. K.C. Undercover premiered on Disney Channel on January 18, 2015, and was renewed for a second season in May 2015. In 2014, Zendaya was a guest judge on an episode of Project Runway: Under the Gunn. In the episode, the contestant designers were given the challenge of creating an outfit for Zendaya to wear in an upcoming concert performance.
  
  In February 2015, after a joke made by Giuliana Rancic concerning Zendaya, in reference to her hair smelling of " patchouli oil " and " weed " at the 87th Academy Awards, Zendaya promptly took to Instagram to address the remark and point out that many successful people have " locs," a hairstyle that has nothing to do with drugs. Mattel honored Zendaya with her own Barbie, replicating her Oscars look. The doll belongs to Mattel's Barbie "Sheroes" project, which honors inspirational living women. The following month, musician Timbaland confirmed that he was working with Zendaya on her second album, following her switching record labels from Disney to Republic. " Something New ", featuring Chris Brown was released on February 5 via Hollywood Records and Republic Records. The song also marks it as her first official release since signing to Republic Records. In December 2016, she appeared as a guest judge in the season finale of the 15th season of the reality television series Project Runway.
  
  Zendaya made her feature film debut as Michelle in the Marvel Cinematic Universe film Spider-Man: Homecoming, which was released in July 2017. Zendaya wore no makeup to her screen test, a decision that was carried through in production, and "add her own embellishments to the role, such as carrying around a mug of herbal tea". Zendaya described the character as "very dry, awkward, intellectual". She added that it was "refreshing" that Michelle was weird and different, feeling that "a lot of young people—especially young women—can relate to that." The film grossed $117 million in its first weekend, ranking number one at the box office. John DeFore of The Hollywood Reporter praised her as a "scene stealer", while David Ehrlich of IndieWire called her the film's " MVP ", despite her brief screen time. In August, Zendaya appeared in the music video for the song " Versace on the Floor " by Bruno Mars.
  
  In December 2017, Zendaya co-starred in the original musical film The Greatest Showman. She portrayed a trapeze artist who falls in love with Zac Efron 's character at a time when interracial romance was taboo. Owen Gleiberman of Variety praised her chemistry with Efron. The Hollywood Reporter praised Zendaya for " strongest, bringing touching sensitivity to her handful of scenes". She appeared on three tracks of the film's soundtrack, including " Rewrite the Stars ". The film met mixed reception but became the third-highest grossing live-action musical ever released. In September 2018, Warner Bros. released the animated film Smallfoot, in which Zendaya voiced the yeti Meechee. She also sang two songs for the soundtrack. The film received positive reviews.
  
  Zendaya began her career working as a fashion model for Macy's, Mervyns, and Old Navy. She was featured in an iCarly toys ad. She also appeared as a back-up dancer in a Sears commercial featuring Disney star Selena Gomez. In 2009, she was a featured performer in the Kidz Bop music video for its cover of the song " Hot n Cold " by Katy Perry, which was released on Kidz Bop 15. In November 2009, she auditioned for the role of CeCe Jones in the Disney sitcom Shake It Up (titled Dance Dance Chicago at the time). For her audition, she performed Michael Jackson 's " Leave Me Alone ". She was selected to play Rocky Blue. Shake It Up premiered on November 7, 2010, and was watched by 6.2 million viewers, becoming Disney Channel's second highest-rated premiere in Disney Channel's 27-year history.
  
  In 2011, Zendaya released " Swag It Out ", a promotional independent single. She also starred in the book trailer for "From Bad To Cursed" by Katie Alender. In June of the same year, she released " Watch Me ", performing with Bella Thorne. The song peaked at 86 on the Billboard Hot 100. The second season of Shake It Up premiered on September 18, 2011. Zendaya hosted Make Your Mark: Ultimate Dance Off 2011 on Disney Channel. In 2011, Target stores began selling D-Signed, a line of clothing inspired by the clothes worn by Zendaya and other cast members of Shake It Up.
  
  Zendaya's first film role was in Frenemies (2012), a Disney Channel Original Movie. On February 29, 2012, " Something to Dance For " was released as a promotional single for Live 2 Dance. For the soundtrack, Zendaya also recorded three other songs: " Made in Japan ", "Same Heart", and "Fashion Is My Kryptonite", released as promotional single. In June 2012, Shake It Up was renewed for a third and final season. On September 2, 2012, she signed to Hollywood Records. In October, she performed at the Teen Music Festival and at the Operation Smile benefit. Zendaya was one of the celebrities who would compete on season 16 of Dancing with the Stars. At 16, she was the youngest contestant ever to participate on the show, before Willow Shields succeeded her at 14 on season 20. She was partnered up with professional dancer Valentin Chmerkovskiy. In May, the couple finished as runners-up behind Kellie Pickler and Derek Hough.
  
  Zendaya's self-titled debut album was released on September 17, 2013. It was preceded by the single " Replay ", released on July 16, 2013, written by Tiffany Fred and Paul "Phamous" Shelton. In August 2013, she was cast as 16-year-old Zoey Stevens, the lead character in the Disney Channel Original Movie Zapped, whose "smart phone begins to somehow control all the boys around her". In November 2013, Zendaya was selected as Elvis Duran 's Artist of the Month and was featured on NBC 's Today, where she performed live her single "Replay".
  
  Zendaya was next cast as the lead in a Disney Channel pilot called Super Awesome Katy. It was ordered to series by Disney Channel in May 2014, with the series now under the title K.C. Undercover, and with Zendaya's character now named K.C. Cooper rather than Katy Cooper. Zendaya exerted influence over the renaming of her character and the retitling of the series, also deciding several key elements of the character's personality. K.C. Undercover premiered on Disney Channel on January 18, 2015, and was renewed for a second season in May 2015. In 2014, Zendaya was a guest judge on an episode of Project Runway: Under the Gunn. In the episode, the contestant designers were given the challenge of creating an outfit for Zendaya to wear in an upcoming concert performance.
  
  In February 2015, after a joke made by Giuliana Rancic concerning Zendaya, in reference to her hair smelling of " patchouli oil " and " weed " at the 87th Academy Awards, Zendaya promptly took to Instagram to address the remark and point out that many successful people have " locs," a hairstyle that has nothing to do with drugs. Mattel honored Zendaya with her own Barbie, replicating her Oscars look. The doll belongs to Mattel's Barbie "Sheroes" project, which honors inspirational living women. The following month, musician Timbaland confirmed that he was working with Zendaya on her second album, following her switching record labels from Disney to Republic. " Something New ", featuring Chris Brown was released on February 5 via Hollywood Records and Republic Records. The song also marks it as her first official release since signing to Republic Records. In December 2016, she appeared as a guest judge in the season finale of the 15th season of the reality television series Project Runway.
  
  Zendaya made her feature film debut as Michelle in the Marvel Cinematic Universe film Spider-Man: Homecoming, which was released in July 2017. Zendaya wore no makeup to her screen test, a decision that was carried through in production, and "add her own embellishments to the role, such as carrying around a mug of herbal tea". Zendaya described the character as "very dry, awkward, intellectual". She added that it was "refreshing" that Michelle was weird and different, feeling that "a lot of young people—especially young women—can relate to that." The film grossed $117 million in its first weekend, ranking number one at the box office. John DeFore of The Hollywood Reporter praised her as a "scene stealer", while David Ehrlich of IndieWire called her the film's " MVP ", despite her brief screen time. In August, Zendaya appeared in the music video for the song " Versace on the Floor " by Bruno Mars.
  
  In December 2017, Zendaya co-starred in the original musical film The Greatest Showman. She portrayed a trapeze artist who falls in love with Zac Efron 's character at a time when interracial romance was taboo. Owen Gleiberman of Variety praised her chemistry with Efron. The Hollywood Reporter praised Zendaya for " strongest, bringing touching sensitivity to her handful of scenes". She appeared on three tracks of the film's soundtrack, including " Rewrite the Stars ". The film met mixed reception but became the third-highest grossing live-action musical ever released. In September 2018, Warner Bros. released the animated film Smallfoot, in which Zendaya voiced the yeti Meechee. She also sang two songs for the soundtrack. The film received positive reviews.