Background and career
Amber Patrice Riley (born February 15, 1986), sometimes known mononymously as Riley (stylized in all caps), is an American actress, singer and songwriter. She is best known for her portrayal of Mercedes Jones on the Fox comedy-drama series Glee (2009–2015), for which she was nominated for three NAACP Image Awards, and won a shared Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series. As a member of the Glee cast, Riley charted over 200 entries on the Billboard Hot 100, and was nominated for a Grammy Award. In 2016, Riley originated the lead role of Effie White in the West End debut of Dreamgirls. For her work, she won the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Musical and Evening Standard Theatre Award for Best Musical Performance in 2017. Riley won the 17th season of Dancing with the Stars (2013). In 2017, Riley formed a musical theatre supergroup with Beverley Knight and Cassidy Janson, known collectively as Leading Ladies and signed to East West Records/Warner. Their album, Songs from the Stage, was released on November 17, 2017 and debuted within the top 20 of the UK Albums Chart. She also participated on the American and British versions of The Masked Singer, winning the 8th season of the American version, and being a finalist in the 4th season of the British version. She voices the character Ursula in the Disney Jr. animated series Ariel, for which she received a nomination for the Children's and Family Emmy Awards for Outstanding Voice Performer in a Preschool Program.
Riley was born in Los Angeles County, California. Her parents, Tiny Riley (née Hightower) and Elwin Riley, divorced when she was a child. She was raised primarily by her mother, along with her two older sisters, Toiya and Ashley. She graduated from La Mirada High School in La Mirada, California in 2004.
Riley auditioned for American Idol when she was 17 years old, during the show's second season, but was turned down by the producers. She was cast for her first role on TV in 2002, in a Ryan Murphy project (creator of Glee) called St. Sass, but the pilot was not picked up. She later worked as a customer service representative at Ikea for two years.
In 2008, Riley was cast in the role of Mercedes Jones on the comedy-drama television series Glee, and appeared as a main cast member for all but one of the six seasons—she received guest star credit during season 5. Riley performed numerous solos throughout the series' run, including "Respect", "Bust Your Windows", "Hate on Me", "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going", "Beautiful", "Bridge over Troubled Water", "I Look to You", "Ain't No Way", "Try a Little Tenderness", "Spotlight", "All I Want for Christmas Is You" and, three days after Whitney Houston's death, performed a tribute version of "I Will Always Love You". She also played Dr. Frank-N-Furter in the episode "The Rocky Horror Glee Show", singing the lead on the song "Sweet Transvestite" to generally positive reviews from critics.
For her role as Mercedes Jones, Riley won a Screen Actors Guild Award and received nominations for a Grammy Award, three NAACP Image Awards and three Teen Choice Awards. In 2010, Riley sang the national anthem at the White House and at the 2012 Democratic National Convention. She co-wrote a track titled "Leave a Light On" for British girl group The Saturdays, which is featured on their album Living for the Weekend. Riley's debut single, "Colorblind", premiered live on April 3, 2014, on The Queen Latifah Show. The song was written by Emeli Sandé, Claude Kelly and Steve Mac and was expected to be a single of her debut album. The song was performed by Riley in the fifth season episode Bash of Glee and was released on the episode's EP on April 8, 2014. In 2015, it was reported that Riley would star in a Christmas television film, her first movie role, and her first acting role, since Glee. In December 2015, she portrayed Addaperle, the Good Witch of the North, in NBC's live performance of The Wiz. In 2016 Riley recorded two tracks for Todrick Hall's visual album Straight Outta Oz. Also in 2016 she performed the national anthem at the second game of the 2016 NHL Stadium Series featuring the Detroit Red Wings and Colorado Avalanche at Coors Field. Riley sings the opening theme song of the animated children's series Doc McStuffins for seasons 4 and 5. In 2019, she took on the role of Audrey II, the carnivorous singing plant, in Little Shop of Horrors at Pasadena Playhouse.
In 2013, Riley won the seventeenth season of ABC's dancing competition Dancing with the Stars. She was partnered with the show's six-time champion, Derek Hough. Riley and Hough tied the record for highest first-week score of 27, received 5 perfect scores of 30, and only received a score lower than 8 one time. Riley is the first and only African-American woman to win Dancing with the Stars.
Sources
Net-worth figure: Celebrity Net Worth (October 2026), in USD. Biography and career facts: the person's Wikipedia article and linked reporting. Snapshot date for all StarWorth figures: 28 October 2026.
