Who is Naya Rivera, former ‘Glee’ star?

MANILA, Philippines – Actress Naya Rivera first rose to fame as a cast member of the musical TV series Glee, which aired from 2009 to 2015.

Naya played cheerleader Santana Lopez, who joins their school’s glee club. While she starts out as a minor character, her role in the show grows and she becomes a beloved character when she comes to terms with her sexuality as she falls in love with her fellow cheerleader Brittany.

Naya was declared missing on Thursday, July 9 after her boat rental was found floating on Lake Piru in Ventura County, California. Her 4-year-old son was found alone on the boat, without her on board.

Authorities continue to search for Naya and fans continue to hope for her safe return.

Here are a few things to know about the actress: 

Naya started her acting career young

Naya, 33, had been appearing in commercials even as a baby, but she got her TV break at age 4 when she played Hillary Winston on the sitcom The Royal Family. Her perfomance on the show earned her a nomination for the Young Artist Foundation’s Young Artist Award.

She has won several awards for her Glee performance

Some of Naya’s performances on Glee are the show’s most memorable: her cover of The Zutons’ “Valerie,” Fleetwood Mac’s “Songbird,” and her mash-up of Adele’s “Rumor Has It” and “Someone Like You,” to name a few.

Both viewers and critics praised her turn as the show’s resident mean girl, and she’s earned a Screen Actors Guild Award along with the cast of Glee, as well as won several American Latino Media Arts (ALMA) Awards.

She is a published author

In 2016, Naya released a memoir called Sorry Not Sorry: Dreams, Mistakes, and Growing Up. In the book, she got candid about her experiences from the early days of her career, to her stint on Glee. She spoke about her battle with an eating disorder, squabbles on Glee’s set, and her relationship to her now-ex-husband Ryan Dorsey, who is the father of her son.

In the same book, she also opened up about her troubled relationship with Glee co-star Mark Salling, who committed suicide in 2018 after being found in possession of child pornography.

In April while in quarantine, she gave away 25 personalized signed copies of her book.

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A post shared by Naya Rivera (@nayarivera) on Apr 28, 2020 at 11:01am PDT

She had a short-lived recording contract

In 2011, Naya became one of the first Glee stars to get a solo record deal, signing with Columbia Records. She then released her debut single “Sorry,” along which featured rapper and then-boyfriend Big Sean.

In 2014, without a full-length release, it was reported that she had ended her relationship with her record label.

Following Glee, Naya turned to films

Naya continued to work in showbiz even after Glee, making her feature film debut in the film At The Devil’s Door, where her performance was praised despite the film getting mixed reviews.

She also dabbled in directing, working on a project for Immigrant Heritage Month. Naya’s film, called Love, America, shines the spotlight on immigrant lives in the US. – Rappler.com