Karyn Mercedeze rose to prominence with her alter ego on the hit Netflix original, The Circle. During her time on the show, she catfished the other contestants as a tactic to win the $100K prize.
Karyn Blanco coined the persona “Mercedeze” (her middle name) and used pictures from an actress who is fourteen years younger than her. She made it to episode six before getting eliminated by the other players. But she quickly became a fan-favorite for her likable personality, earning her 155K followers on Instagram. When she was asked why she chose to catfish, she confessed that she wanted to express that you can’t judge a book by its cover.
Since the conclusion of The Circle, Mercedeze has been working on upcoming film projects and joined the app Cameo, where her videos have earned 4.9 stars. Additionally, she’s working on her sophomore EP under the stage name “The Silent Celeb,” to follow up her award-winning 2016 debut, The Silent Celebrity Project. This EP was called the “Compilation/Album of the Year” by the Voiceless Music Awards.
With a sound fusing elements of hip-hop, jazz, and R&B, she won the Faces in the Crowd Competition, and major indie contests like They Got Skills and Empire State of Grind. She was even nominated for the title of “Most Original Female Artist” from the Under Ground Music Awards.
Other musical accolades include serving as the R&B Ambassador for New York City’s first Hip-Hop Retreat Week (which would go on to become an annual event), and earning features in magazines such as Industry 21, Lavish Life, and We Are Jersey.