Amber Riley Urges ‘Glee’ Fans to Stop Calling Her Mercedes Jones: I ‘Despise’ That
19.01.2022 - 23:45
/ usmagazine.com
Say her name. Although Amber Riley rose to stardom as Mercedes Jones on Glee, the actress is looking to step out of the fictional character’s shadow.
“I despise when ppl call me Mercedes. Put some respect on my name. Call me AMBER or RILEY. It’s wild that I even have to say that,” Riley, 35, tweeted on January 15. “No shade to the show/character that gave me a career, but please stop this s–t. I don’t answer to it, and if you do it facetiously I’ll block you.”
The Grammy Award nominee pointed out that she appeared in many projects since Glee, writing, “I’ve done too much in my career to be reduced to one role. Whether you respect the work I’ve done or not, I don’t really care, BUT basic human decency is to recognize me as a person and use my actual name. Boundaries.”
Riley later clapped back when a follower questioned whether the singer misunderstood that her character’s name was mentioned out of respect.
“I’m emotionally intelligent enough to know the difference between someone being genuinely excited, and someone being an A–hole,” the California native noted. “This was mainly for the a–holes. BUT, there is nothing wrong with telling people how you want to be addressed.”
The Dancing With the Stars alum clarified that she will “never say goodbye” to the fan favorite character — but she still wants space from the role.
“As a black woman I’ve learned I have to advocate for myself and set clear boundaries because no one else will do it for me!” Riley concluded. “(Well my fiancé will but he just be wantin to beat ppl up, I’m the safer option).”
Since appearing on Glee from 2009 to 2015, Riley played Effie White in Dreamgirls, for which she won the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Musical. The performer later appeared in