Amber Riley

Personal context

Summary

Amber Riley is an actor and singer known for playing Mercedes Jones on Glee and Effie White in the West End production of Dreamgirls. Her work is best known for musical performance, while interviews have also addressed body image and the limited roles available to plus-size black women. In 2020, she attended a George Floyd protest in Los Angeles, led the crowd in singing “Freedom,” and publicly used Black Lives Matter and police-accountability slogans. No public statements supporting a political party or campaign are on record.