Kayden Kross

Born and raised in Sacramento, California, Kayden Kross has described herself as a book nerd during her time in high school and reserved person in general. She surprised her family and friends when she began stripping at Rick's Showgirls in Rancho Cordova, California-in order to earn extra money to rescue a pony from a slaughter house-at the age of 18. It was during her brief stint as a stripper that she began to examine her sexuality fully, and was later contacted by an agent, whose business relationship provided Kayden with the opportunity to model in adult magazines.

Early Career: The Sexy Bookworm

In 2006, as a college senior at Sacramento State College, she signed an exclusive contract with Vivid; saying, "I was finding it harder and harder to see how my studies could work into a career that would get me motivated. I still intend to get my degree, but I am more excited about launching my life with Vivid. I'm definitely ready for my next adventure which includes having multiple partners. I know I'm going with the top company and I'm really excited about it"-a few of her movies with this studio include Kayden's First Time, Hard Time, and Be Here Now. However, she became a free agent after one year with Vivid, when she did not renew her contract (though she followed this experience by signing an exclusive contract with Adam & Eve). This proved to be a busy time for Kayden as, after signing a new contract, she was then named the September 2008 Penthouse Pet of the Month and her official website, ClubKayden.com, was launched that same month. She also began hosting a blog at UnKrossed.com, writing regular updates, as well as opinion columns for MikeSouth.com-an adult industry gossip blog; her writing flourished and expanded to several other sites during this time.

Flourishing: Opportunities and Accolades

After her contract with Adam & Eve ended in 2010, Kross decided to sign a multi-year contract with Digital Playground and her first movie with the company-The Smiths-topped sales charts immediately and continued to be a best seller. After this success, she was given the lead in their big budget feature Body Heat, in her third month in contract. In 2010, she was offered the opportunity to host the AVN Awards show and was Penthouse magazine's cover girl; followed in 2011, by CNBC's naming her as one of the "12 Most Popular Stars In Porn." In 2012, she hosted the XBIZ Awards for the second time; fitting as by that time she had received several awards herself.

Appearances in Other Media

Along with her XXX career, Kayden has been featured regularly on G4 as a host, a reality TV guest star, and as a guest on Attack of the Show. She has performed a recurring role as Delilah in season two of Cinemax's Life on Top, as well as making appearances in the FX's comedy series The League, the G4 reality series The Block, and Family Jewels; in 2011, she was cast as Tara in Gregory Hatanaka's drama The Obsession. Other mainstream credits include: a briefly co-hosted regular videocast, Kayden's Review, for Triggla TV alongside the comedian Dane Hanson; a weekly call-in show titled Krossfire on Playboy Radio; the featurette "Chicks 'N Guns" in the Breaking Bad fifth season DVD (as a stripper)-which takes place during the episode "Gliding Over All;" a starring role in the feature film Blue Dream; and in 2014, she appeared in the movie The Hungover Games.

Quirky Facts

She has stated that she enjoys riding horses, and in early career interviews that she was looking for a man who enjoys horseback riding as well.

Awards