Janaya Stephens was born and raised in Mt. Brydges, Ontario. In high school, Stephens excelled in sports and she went on to play varsity basketball at Laurentian University where she also studied English and Drama. While at Laurentian, she starred as "Juliet" in the school's production of "Romeo & Juliet". Acting became Stephen's passion, and she went on to study at George Brown Theatre School in Toronto. Stephens landed her first lead role in 2000, in the film Left Behind (2000).