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).
Elijah Kelley

Romina Espinosa · Cropped from Original · CC BY-SA 3.0
- Name
- Elijah Kelley
- Born
- 1 August 1986
- Birthplace
- LaGrange, Georgia, U.S.
- Occupation
- * Actor
- Nationality
- United States
- Education
- Troup County High School
- Languages
- English
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Documentary summary
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).
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Note VALÉORINE
Elijah Kelley (born 1986) is an American actor, dancer and singer. The actor was born in LaGrange. Elijah Kelley studied at Troup County High School. Languages used include English.
Composed from admitted, traceable facts · 26 September 2026
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wikidata · Q1319836 · wikipedia · Elijah Kelley
In this article
Key facts
Key facts
• Name — Elijah Kelley • Born — 1 August 1986 • Birthplace — LaGrange, Georgia, U.S. • Occupation — * Actor • singer • dancer • Years Active — 1998–present
Early life
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
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 also played a role as Sunny the elf from the animated George Lucas film Strange Magic from 2015. 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.
Television
Television
• Year — Title — Role — Notes • 1998 — Mama Flora's Family — Young Willie — Television film • 1999 — A Lesson Before Dying — Clarence • 2005 — The Shield — Jaymon — Episode: "Grave" • 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”
Soundtracks
Soundtracks
• 2007: Hairspray Soundtrack • 2008: DisneyMania 6 • 2008: Sex and the City: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack Vol. 2
Hairspray singles
Hairspray singles
• "Run and Tell That" • "Come So Far" • "Without Love" • "You Can't Stop the Beat"
DisneyMania 6 singles
DisneyMania 6 singles
• "He Lives in You"
Semi-Pro
Semi-Pro
• "Shining Star"
Identity
Identity
Elijah Kelley is recorded as actor, singer and dancer.
Film
• Year — Title — Role — Notes • 2000 — 28 Days — Darnell • 2006 — Take the Lead — Danjou • Heavens Fall — Leroy Wright • 2007 — Hairspray — Seaweed J. Stubbs • 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
Literature
Scholarly footprint
A count of publications is evidence of attention, not of standing, and is given here only as a measure.
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.Barnes, Brad. LaGrange to honor local 'Hairspray' star. Ledger-Enquirer. July 20, 2007.
- 2.Eisner, Ken. Hairspray's Kelley energized by cast. Straight.com. July 19, 2007.
- 3.Elijah Kelley: Whoa, Who's That Kid?. Time. July 19, 2007.
- 4.Philadelphia, Desa. Elijah Kelley has the total package. USA Weekend. December 2015.
- 5."Elijah Kelley to Play Seaweed in Hairspray Film". BroadwayWorld.com. July 3, 2006. Retrieved July 2, 2007.
- 6.VH1.com
- 7.Prudom, Laura. 'The Wiz': Common, Ne-Yo, Elijah Kelley Join NBC Live Musical. Variety. August 13, 2015.
- 8.Wendy Williams. New Edition Story. 2017-01-17.
References
Citations
References
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reference work
Secondary witnessreference work
Secondary witness
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 16 August 2026.
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