Kandi Burruss was born on May 17, 1976 in Atlanta, Georgia to a single mother, Joyce Jones[citation needed]. Kandi has stated she was definitely a daddy's girl before her father left the family when she was 4. Kandi was very close to her brother Patrick, who was older by 7 1/2 years and later died in a car accident when Kandi was a young teenager. Her first major appearance, on BET's Teen Summit, introduced her to the public. Kandi attended Tri- Cities High School in East Point, Georgia.