When Riley turned three years old, her Mom and Dad bought her a pink toy microphone as one of her birthday presents. She remembers putting on a cheerleading dress-up outfit, grabbing that pink microphone, standing on the family’s  big red ottoman and belting out a song from the Disney movie, “Sleeping Beauty.” At the time, Riley thought she was rockin’ it! Now that she looks back, she realizes her dogs weren’t singing along. They were howling and begging her to stop.

Riley’s parents had no clue what to do with her. They eventually decided to put her into their church’s children’s choir. The second she arrived at practice, Riley felt at home. No one in her family had a musical background. So, at age 5, she wanted to be the first. The choir director, Peter Corneliussen, truly shaped her into the singer/actress she is today. Soon enough, Riley was auditioning for musicals and plays!

Riley grew up in Hickory, NC, but she’s currently living in Charlotte, NC and working with Tony Award Winning theatre educator, Corey Mitchell. For the 2024-2025 school year, Riley will be a part of the Theatre Gap Initiative,  where she will be working with industry professionals to prepare and audition for colleges.