List of Famous people born in New York, United States of America

Haywood Knowles Nelson, Jr. is an American actor. He is best known for having portrayed Dwayne Nelson on the television series What's Happening!! from 1976–1979, and its spin-off series What's Happening Now!! 1985–1988.

Shawn Mathis Wayans is an American actor, comedian, writer, producer, and DJ. Along with his brother Marlon Wayans, he wrote and starred in The WB sitcom The Wayans Bros.(1995–1999), and in the comedy films Don’t Be a Menace (1996), Scary Movie (2000), Scary Movie 2 (2001), White Chicks (2004), Little Man (2006), and Dance Flick (2009).

Atul Gawande is an American surgeon, writer, and public health researcher. He practices general and endocrine surgery at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts. He is a professor in the Department of Health Policy and Management at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and the Samuel O. Thier Professor of Surgery at Harvard Medical School. In public health, he is executive director of Ariadne Labs, a joint center for health systems innovation, and chairman of Lifebox, a nonprofit that works on reducing deaths in surgery globally. On June 20, 2018, Gawande was named the CEO of healthcare venture Haven, owned by Amazon, Berkshire Hathaway, and JP Morgan Chase and stepped down as CEO in May 2020.

Christopher McDonald is an American actor and voice actor. He played Darryl Dickinson in Thelma & Louise (1991), Shooter McGavin in Happy Gilmore (1996), Ward Cleaver in the film adaptation of Leave It to Beaver (1997), Kent Mansley in The Iron Giant (1999), Tappy Tibbons in Requiem for a Dream (2000), and Mel Allen in the HBO film 61* (2001).

Benjamin Brafman is an American criminal defense attorney and founder of the Manhattan-based firm Brafman & Associates, P.C. Brafman is known for representing many high-profile defendants, including celebrities, accused Mafia members, and political figures.

Rebecca Victoria Hardy is an American model, actress, television personality, dancer, and professional wrestler. She is best known for her recurring appearances with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling from 2014 to 2017.

Jo-Vaughn Virginie Scott, better known by his stage name Joey Badass, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer and actor. A native of Brooklyn, New York, he is a founding member of the hip-hop collective Pro Era, with whom he has released three mixtapes, as well as his numerous solo projects.

David Lawrence Brewster Jr., better known by his stage name Dave East, is an American rapper, songwriter and actor from Harlem, New York. East began his career in 2010, and gained attention in 2014 from his eighth mixtape, Black Rose. Its release garnered the attention of fellow New York rapper Nas, who later signed East to his record label, Mass Appeal Records, and later in conjunction with Def Jam Recordings.

Sholom Mordechai Rubashkin is an American businessman and the former CEO of Agriprocessors, a now-bankrupt kosher slaughterhouse and meat packing plant in Postville, Iowa, formerly owned by his father, Aaron Rubashkin. During his time as CEO of the plant, Agriprocessors grew into the nation's largest kosher meat producer, but was also cited for issues involving animal cruelty, food safety, environmental safety, child labor, and hiring undocumented immigrants.

Deirdre Coleman Imus is an American author, health advocate and radio personality and the founder and president of the Deirdre Imus Environmental Health Center, part of Hackensack University Medical Center (HUMC) in New Jersey, United States. She is also a co-founder and co-director of the Imus Cattle Ranch for Kids with Cancer, and the author of two books, Greening Your Cleaning and The Imus Ranch: Cooking for Kids and Cowboys.