Leanni Lei was born in the Philippines but was raised in the United States. During high school, she was a cheerleader and member of the honor society. Leanni's father is a military officer while her mother works as a restaurant manager. She spent a year in the University of California then went into exotic dancing. In 1993, Leanni Lei moved to Connecticut to become a pornographic actress. She made her porn debut in 1997 and had the chance to work with notable director Ed Powers. Leanni returned to college and took finance with a minor in accounting. She dropped her porn career to continue her studies but went back by 1999. Leanni Lei was given the Model of the Year award in 1998 by Oriental Dolls.