Before Moesha, Finney-Johnson and Spears had been a long-term writing team, the first African-American female writing team in the television industry.[1] Her other credits as a writer include The Jeffersons, 227, and The Parent 'Hood. Along with Spears, she served as a writer and story editor on The Facts of Life and Family Matters, where they also later served as producers.[2]
Born in Mobile, Alabama and raised in Los Angeles, California, Finney-Johnson is a graduate of the University of Southern California.[3] In addition to her work in television, Finney-Johnson also works in theater as a playwright and producer. With Erwin Washington, she founded the Los Angeles Black Playwrights group in 1986.[3]
Finney was married to Robert Lee Johnson, Jr., a financial broker and artist; he died in 2014.[4]