# Elijah Kelley

Elijah Kelley (born August 1, 1986) is an American actor, singer, and dancer. He appeared in films such as 28 Days (2000), Take the Lead (2006), Hairspray (2007), Red Tails (2012), Lee Daniels' The Butler (2013), NBC's live-musical event The Wiz Live! (2015), as Ricky Bell in The New Edition Story (2017), and Star (2017).

## Early life

Kelley was born and raised in LaGrange, Georgia. He attended Long Cane Middle School and Troup County High School, where he participated in the school's show choir for years. As a child, he starred in Coca-Cola commercials and played a role in the film Mama Flora's Family. He also performed in a church choir and gospel band with his family. His parents, determined to keep their son down to earth, went with him when he moved to Los Angeles after graduating from high school.

## Career

In 2007, Kelley starred in the film adaptation of Hairspray. Both his performance and the film received positive reviews. On December 2, 2011, Kelley sang "The Star-Spangled Banner" prior to the Pac-12 Conference Championship Game at Autzen Stadium in Eugene, Oregon.
In 2015, Kelley was cast in the role of the Scarecrow in NBC's production of The Wiz Live!
He was cast as singer Ricky Bell for the 2017 BET Biographical miniseries The New Edition Story. He was credited for his help in considering Luke James, who is a long-time musical associate of his to audition for the producers of the miniseries to be cast as the bandmate Johnny Gill.
In 2017, Kelley was cast alongside Luke James as a recurring role for the 2nd season of Lee Daniels musical drama Star on FOX.
Kelley also played a role as Sunny the elf from the animated George Lucas film “Strange Magic” from 2015

## Filmography
### Film

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2000 | 28 Days | Darnell | |
| 2006 | Take the Lead | Danjou | |
| 2006 | Heavens Fall | Leroy Wright | |
| 2007 | Hairspray | Seaweed J. Stubbs | Hollywood Film Award for Ensemble Of The Year Young Hollywood Award for One to Watch Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Acting Ensemble Nominated – Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture |
| 2008 | Rome & Jewel | Ben | Direct-to-video |
| 2012 | Red Tails | Samuel "Joker" George | |
| 2013 | The Butler | Charlie Gaines | |
| 2014 | Boys of Abu Ghraib | Tunde | |
| 2015 | Strange Magic | Sunny | Voice |

### Television

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1998 | Mama Flora's Family | Young Willie | Television film |
| 1999 | A Lesson Before Dying | Clarence | Television film |
| 2005 | The Shield | Jaymon | Episode: "Grave" |
| 2005 | Everybody Hates Chris | Waiter | Episode: "Everybody Hates the Babysitter" |
| 2006 | Numb3rs | Anthony | Episode: "The OG" |
| 2009 | Dirty Sexy Money | Elon Elder | Episode: "The Facts" |
| 2015 | The Wiz Live! | Scarecrow / Sticks The Farmhand Man #3 | NBC live TV musical |
| 2017 | The New Edition Story | Ricky Bell | BET 3-part Miniseries |
| 2017–2018 | Star | Andy | Recurring Role |
| 2018 | The Bobby Brown Story | Ricky Bell | BET 2-part Miniseries |
| 2019 | Tales | Paul | Episode: “Brothers” |

## Discography
### Soundtracks

* 2007: Hairspray Soundtrack
* 2008: DisneyMania 6
* 2008: Sex and the City: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack Vol. 2

### Hairspray singles

* "Run and Tell That"
* "Come So Far"
* "Without Love"
* "You Can't Stop the Beat"

### DisneyMania 6 singles

* "He Lives in You"

### Semi-Pro

* "Shining Star"