Claim: Glee was a TV series.

Amber Patrice Riley -LRB- born February 15 , 1986 -RRB- is an American actress , singer and author . She is best known for her portrayal of Mercedes Jones on the Fox comedy-drama series Glee -LRB- 2009 -- 15 -RRB- . For her performance on the series , she won a Screen Actors Guild Award , and has been nominated for three Teen Choice Awards , three NAACP Image Awards , and three Grammy Awards .   In November 2016 , Riley led the West End debut of Dreamgirls. , playing the lead role of Effie White . In 2016 , Riley performed a song from ` Dreamgirls ' at the Royal Variety Performance in London in the presence of the Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall . She won the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Musical at the 2017 Olivier Awards for her role in Dreamgirls .   Riley won season 17 of Dancing with the Stars in 2013 and appeared as a judge on BBC One musical theatre talent show Let It Shine in 2017 .