Keke Palmer refers to herself as a “millennial diva”, but she’s also one of the most popular and gifted actors and singers of her generation. Since making her acting debut in Barbershop 2 when she was just 11 years old, Palmer has gone from strength to strength and is currently enjoying her biggest successes to date. After gaining many new fans co-starring with Jennifer Lopez and Constance Wu in the 2019 box-office hit Hustlers, she was invited to host the 2020 MTV Video Music Awards, becoming the first black female to present the awards alone. She also gained a Daytime Emmy nomination for her work co-presenting Strahan, Sara, and Keke, an ABC talk show.

Palmer was born in 1993. As a child growing up in Illinois she developed a reputation as a promising singer in her local church and local amateur theatre productions. In 2004, she got her first national break when she was cast as Queen Latifah’s niece in the comedy movie Barbershop 2. Two years later, she took centre-stage as the star of Akeelah and the Bee, a film also starring Angela Bennett and Laurence Fishburne. Palmer won an NAACP Image Award, Black Movie Award, and Black Reel Award for her role.

Palmer released her debut album, So Uncool in 2007 and has continued to release well-received EPs and mixtapes ever since, the most recent being 2020’s Virgo Tendencies, Pt.1. In 2014, she made her Broadway debut, making history as the first African-American to play the lead role in Cinderella on the Great White Way. With many contemporary series to her name, including Berlin Station and Scream, Palmer has established herself as a major force of American acting.