Chene Lawson

Chené Lawson-Peissig is an American writer, podcaster, and actor.

Lawson was born in Chicago, Illinois. She later moved to Los Angeles, where she trained at The Groundlings theater. In 2020, she wrote and hosted the speculative fiction podcast All Things Undone, which debuted at #7 on the Apple Podcasts Sci-Fi chart, and later reached #1. In 2023 the podcast won the Webby for Best Scripted Fiction Podcast. In 2025 Audible released the title as an audiobook, and then contracted Lawson to adapt two of N.K. Jemisin's short stories into an audiodrama, released in 2025 as Amorph. On television, she is best known for the role of Yolanda Hamilton, the derelict mother of Devon Hamilton (Bryton James) on The Young and the Restless.

Podcasts

How to Destroy Everything (Episodes 1 and 2, 2023) How to Destroy Everything is a documentary podcast hosted by Danny Jacobs and Darren Grodsky about Danny’s father, Richard Jacobs—a man whose relentless manipulation and schemes left a trail of lawsuits, scams, and shattered lives. Through interviews and investigation, the series uncovers how one person’s destructive behavior devastated families, communities, and ultimately his own son, who describes the podcast as follows:

Awards and recognition

Nominated for the iHeartRadio Podcast Award for best emerging podcast. Webby Award Honoree for Best Documentary Podcast award.

Credits Source:

Awards and recognition

Winner of the 2023 Webby award for Best Scripted Fiction Podcast. Awarded the Micheaux Film Festival Best Podcast award. Presented at the Film Life Foundation’s inaugural Social Justice Now Film Festival (SJNFF).

Credits Source: Narrated by Chené Lawson and full cast Written by Chené Lawson Executive producers: Joel Peissig and Chené Lawson Amorph (Audible, 2025) Written by N.K. Jemisin and Chené Lawson Narrated by full cast (including Chené Lawson)

Filmography Film

Television