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9:49 pm - 11/20/2012

Amber Riley breaks down in tears as she opens up about body image.

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Glee star Amber Riley, who plays the confident Mercedes on the Fox hit, broke down in tears as she admitted her struggles with her body image as a Hollywood actress.

In an honest and moving interview for the MTV series This Is How I Made It, the actress, who is currently making her Broadway debut in Cotton Club Parade revealed how the pressure to be thin has taken its toll.

The 26-year-old, size 16, actress said: 'Hollywood is a very hard place to be in. It really is. Being the person I am, you know, the size I am, being a woman, being a black woman, there's not a lot of roles for us.

'After I did St Sass, I kept on auditioning. I was being offered the girl who sits in the corner and eats all day, the girl who committed suicide because she was fat,' she continued.


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sadisticsidhe 20th-Nov-2012 10:00 pm (UTC)
My parents always instilled knowing that your beautiful, that your fearfully and wonderfully made, and that you know who you are.'

Can the dailymail do ANYTHING right?!
treebraids 20th-Nov-2012 10:03 pm (UTC)
LOL...obviously not.
sadisticsidhe 20th-Nov-2012 10:05 pm (UTC)
Bit of a stupid question in retrospect.
kwikimart 20th-Nov-2012 10:06 pm (UTC)
NOPE.
I've seen them get people's names wrong three times in the same article, not recognise pretty famous people, list irrelevant information, list the wrong film, write entire articles using pictures of someone else...
Imo their celeb office is just a bunch of chimps typing and one depressed guy that sticks photos on after the chimps are done.
smasherette 20th-Nov-2012 10:12 pm (UTC)
They did loose instead of lose too. wtf.
nbyevu 21st-Nov-2012 12:49 am (UTC)
They said "loose weight" too. It hurts me.
fabouluz 20th-Nov-2012 10:00 pm (UTC)
I cry when I gain a pound ;(
hewontgo 20th-Nov-2012 10:06 pm (UTC)
ikr
ugly_jacket 20th-Nov-2012 10:26 pm (UTC)
i don't keep a scale in my house idec, your weight is gonna fluctuate like 3-4 pounds a day
kurtvonnegut 20th-Nov-2012 10:33 pm (UTC)
lol tell me about it, weighing yourself every day does not work bc losing weight is so gradual that you'll drive yourself insane comparing how much you weight at 9 AM to how much you weigh at 9 PM.

even though i still do it ngl
headswillroll88 21st-Nov-2012 02:19 am (UTC)
buying a scale was like the worst thing i've ever done to myself.
kyosh 21st-Nov-2012 02:27 pm (UTC)
Tell me about it, my sister is on a perma-diet and loses 4 pounds one week, gains it back the next so she's basically maintaining her weight.

So one week I'll get a delighted phone call about how HAPPY she is, the next week she's slamming doors and screaming at everyone because she feels fat. Repeat for infinity.
kwikimart 20th-Nov-2012 10:05 pm (UTC)
I'm worried about what will happen to her carer after Glee.

I think she needs to start looking at a high profile TV show, maybe a drama (but would probs do better on a comedy) after that. UNLESS ofc she's going into singing which will probs make it easier for her to get more roles.

Ultimately altho I strongly disagree with it, she may have to lose a bit of weight to get more roles.
IF that's what she chooses to do then no judgement but I really respect the fact that she's sticking to her guns on this.
She's a pretty girl with great comic timing and a fantastic singer, she deserves continued success.
oh7 20th-Nov-2012 11:39 pm (UTC)
I think she lost a few pounds during the year, so I could see her slimming down while she's out of the public eye.
nicolaroberts 22nd-Nov-2012 02:12 pm (UTC)
she's concentrating on singing (and word is that darkchild and claude kelly are producing her album)
kurtvonnegut 20th-Nov-2012 10:05 pm (UTC)
i'm one of those people who was a skinny minny all through high school, never worrying about my weight, and then i went to college and my body started changing. i actually work out more often than i did when i was skinny and i'm more educated about what i eat because i'm older. and it's so hard to listen to people say you're a lazy cow when you're struggling to understand yourself why you're gaining weight even though you have a better lifestyle. i spent hs eating at sonic every day and didn't gain a pound, i turn 18, quit soda, and start eating balanced meals and i gain weight and have to listen to people saying it's my lifestyle. personally i believe my genetics just caught up to me.
alienclit 20th-Nov-2012 10:13 pm (UTC)
The opposite happened to me but people still kept telling me I was living unhealthily and I needed to change my habits like they did to you and that was so annoying because it wasn't true at all. Weight is not always an indicator of health, people need to mind their own business, etc.
kurtvonnegut 20th-Nov-2012 10:16 pm (UTC)
totally. i don't know why it's so hard to understand that some people are just predisposed to certain weights. certainly food/lack of exercise is a huge factor, but i know so many people who have lost a ton of weight and still plateau'd around 150. some people's bodies are just meant to be a little bigger.
kissoffools 20th-Nov-2012 10:26 pm (UTC)
i hear you. granted, the last time i was skinny was back before puberty (puberty + my first job at a grocery store hit within a year or so of each other, and it's just been downhill ever since), but i've really started working out and eating healthier in the last two years, and i've dropped about half the weight i need to lose. i'm at the gym 4-5 times a week, doing a lot of really great workouts, and i always pack my lunch/try to eat well. but at work last week a bunch of my coworkers were standing around talking about the gym (they're all smaller than me), and i added something about being there at least 4 days a week, and everyone was like "....you do? really?!" like wow, thanks. just because i'm bigger than you doesn't mean i'm a lazy cow.
kyosh 21st-Nov-2012 02:41 pm (UTC)
I hear ya. When I was in school/college I could eat whatever I wanted with reckless abandon (and what I wanted was chocolate and pasta, all the damn time) and did zero exercise.

Now I'm 26, I work out/exercise every day, cycle/walk everywhere, I'm pretty darn fit compared to what I used to be, and all my food is unprocessed veggies, lean protein etc. And I'm overweight (though down from where I used to be) which basically means people just assume I never exercise so I get useless advice like "take a half hour walk"- people are always so shocked to hear I get up at 6am to go to the gym (though this is mostly because I feel self conscious working out in front of other people at peak hours) and cycle 10km each way to work.

I dunno, people roll their eyes at the genetics argument, but there's no denying I am shaped like the women on my mother's side and not one of those ladies is thin, regardless of their dietary habits or exercise. I do what I can and I feel better for it but I will never be thin and some days I feel like total crap because of it!
baglady25 20th-Nov-2012 10:06 pm (UTC)
I know how that feels :( But the difference is I didn't have the supportive parents behind me.

Last night, I was looking at my body while wearing just my underthings and realized I didn't want to cry. That was a huge step up for me :)
kissoffools 20th-Nov-2012 10:28 pm (UTC)
that's amazing. good for you. :)
lovedforaday 20th-Nov-2012 10:08 pm (UTC)
not feeling the "normal girls" thing, but i do feel for her and understand where she's coming from.

Edited at 2012-11-20 10:09 pm (UTC)
alienclit 20th-Nov-2012 10:10 pm (UTC)
After I did St Sass, I kept on auditioning. I was being offered the girl who sits in the corner and eats all day, the girl who committed suicide because she was fat

Dude wtf. That's so shitty. Not all big people wallow in self pity all the time. Writers need to get on some new shit.
vulpineways 20th-Nov-2012 10:43 pm (UTC)
And get their inflated heads out of their asses for sure! Who are they to imply that everyone who is fat must hate themselves? Ridiculous!


swissbeauty23 20th-Nov-2012 10:11 pm (UTC)
:(

just yesterday I was in a Nordstrom BP dressing room (the worst of the worst) and I saw myself from all angles and how gross I look in harsh lighting. it killed my confidence.
kurtvonnegut 20th-Nov-2012 10:12 pm (UTC)
dressing rooms are THE WORST, i really don't understand why they have such unflattering lighting in them because you think they'd want people to be happy with how they look in the mirror so they buy the clothes.
akscully 20th-Nov-2012 10:18 pm (UTC)
god, ikr? everytime I step into a dressing room, I'm ready to buy but by the time I leave, I'm like, NOPE.
swissbeauty23 20th-Nov-2012 10:55 pm (UTC)
ikr they should have some low lighting in that shit and angled mirrors
mercibeaucul 20th-Nov-2012 11:02 pm (UTC)
Seriously. I'm UNDERweight at the moment (5'9" and until the last couple of weeks was loitering around the 108lb mark), have never had any issues with weight/eating, and every time I leave a shop dressing room I feel like Free fuckin' Willy.

Edited at 2012-11-20 11:03 pm (UTC)
littleonelychee 21st-Nov-2012 01:49 am (UTC)
ikr, fucking logic - how does it work?!
I swear some in the CBD where I live have lighting that is almost blue and it makes EVERY vein and slight dimple jump right out at you
alienclit 20th-Nov-2012 10:13 pm (UTC)
The Nordstrom dressing room is the worst. It's like the mirrors have an "ugly" filter on them.
theuglycry 20th-Nov-2012 10:21 pm (UTC)
dressing room lighting makes me so fucking depressed
hershelwalker 20th-Nov-2012 10:21 pm (UTC)
ugh fucking dressing rooms. I always leave them in a bad mood.
roguewave3 20th-Nov-2012 10:29 pm (UTC)
The lighting in Victoria Secrets dressing room made me want to cry. I felt like shit. I feel your pain.
ashtraysoul 20th-Nov-2012 10:48 pm (UTC)
h&m for me. my body will look like some weird moon landscapeish blob. I really don't get why do they do that, like why would wanting to throw myself off a cliff make me want to buy stuff
mcwicca 20th-Nov-2012 10:51 pm (UTC)
I swear to god dressing room mirrors are specially designed to make you feel bad about yourself.
howlcosmiclove 20th-Nov-2012 10:55 pm (UTC)
ugh dressing rooms ;_;
I dread them sfm.
daijouboo 20th-Nov-2012 11:05 pm (UTC)
OMG I know how you feel! I was just at Goodwill a few hours ago and the overhead lighting exposed all my cellulite. I'm very thin and I bike at least 5 miles a day, but somehow I just can't get those pockets of fat to budge. Dressing rooms are the fucking WORST.
bananasnrum 21st-Nov-2012 12:13 am (UTC)
:( sorry bb. Go to Loft, their mirrors and lighting are magical. I go in there and thats how they get people like me to buy their somewhat unflattering tops, dammit.
silencelied2me 21st-Nov-2012 02:52 am (UTC)
omfg, i was in a abercrombie dressing room once and the lighting was so bad, i felt horrible for the rest of the day, it didn't help that i got stuck in one of their dresses and i just assumed i was going to die there trapped in the dress with no fucking zippers.
lovetake_over 21st-Nov-2012 10:20 am (UTC)
this happens to me all the time. i always walk out of dressing rooms feeling like shit.
francesbcobain 21st-Nov-2012 11:14 am (UTC)
Dressing rooms make me cry omg.
kiss_incolors 20th-Nov-2012 10:11 pm (UTC)
Just wanted to say that I love all of y'all. Fuck society's body image obsession.
ragdollia 20th-Nov-2012 10:11 pm (UTC)
she is NOT a size 16
zootycoonlady 20th-Nov-2012 10:17 pm (UTC)
i think it might be british sizing, so it'd be a size 12?
ncc_gqmf 20th-Nov-2012 11:01 pm (UTC)
Other way around -- British sizes are smaller than American. Which makes sense, because I was an 18 at my heaviest and she's bigger than I was.
duchello 21st-Nov-2012 12:17 am (UTC)
shes not at us 12 i can tell you that (bc I am lol)
actxappalledx 20th-Nov-2012 10:12 pm (UTC)
'My parents always instilled knowing that your beautiful, that your fearfully and wonderfully made, and that you know who you are.'


What is this horrible journalism? YOU'RE beautiful, YOU'RE fearfully and wonderfully made. Jesus
alienclit 20th-Nov-2012 10:14 pm (UTC)
it's shameful.
inboots 20th-Nov-2012 10:16 pm (UTC)
i posted my comment before i read this one and yes, i never even got to that part. i stopped at "loose a little weight".
actxappalledx 20th-Nov-2012 10:24 pm (UTC)
ugh, i can't. i didn't even pay attention to that line, it would have been added to my post. it's just like.. really? you can't have someone check over the grammar and spelling in an article? it is not that hard
inboots 20th-Nov-2012 10:14 pm (UTC)
having the casting director say you need to loose a little weight

when even ESLers are spotting grammar mistakes, it's not good news, daily mail.
zootycoonlady 20th-Nov-2012 10:14 pm (UTC)
I don't watch very much of glee but I did catch that one ep where she was singing Whitney Houston, and DAMN she was SOOOOOOOO good! I was captivated. she has such a powerful, yet sweet and sincere voice.
cadaver11 20th-Nov-2012 10:49 pm (UTC)
Amen!
plugmebaby 20th-Nov-2012 11:28 pm (UTC)
yeah her voice is phenomenal. imo it's better than that rachel berry chick, idk, the main chick. they definitely underused amber riley in glee.. she shouldve gotten lead for a lotttt of their songs.
oh7 20th-Nov-2012 11:42 pm (UTC)
Her voice is very good.
jjro 21st-Nov-2012 12:24 am (UTC)
I love her voice too.
daddyissues 20th-Nov-2012 10:17 pm (UTC)
that episode of go on about grief-eating is actually my shitty life rn
ride_the_jitney 20th-Nov-2012 10:52 pm (UTC)
same! that ep was a litter too close to home as I was pigging out while watching
daddyissues 20th-Nov-2012 10:56 pm (UTC)
lol same but i need to stop tho. i might try the gorging till i can't gorge no more method they employed
julietislimited 20th-Nov-2012 10:18 pm (UTC)
my mom asked me when was the last time I looked at myself in the mirror. its been at least 2 weeks. don't need to see my weird face or body. blah. which is a shame because I have one of those awesomely huge mirrors in my bathroom.


body confidence. I have none.
kurtvonnegut 20th-Nov-2012 10:21 pm (UTC)
i avoid the mirror like a plague when i step out of the shower :-\
hershelwalker 20th-Nov-2012 10:23 pm (UTC)
I have bdd and still can't look in the mirror close up. I only use a little 5x2 mirror so I don't have to see too much of myself at once. it's horrible.

Edited at 2012-11-20 10:24 pm (UTC)
daddyissues 20th-Nov-2012 10:24 pm (UTC)
yeah i have more complexes about my face than my body, in general

and it's harder to hide an ugly face imo. you can't walk around in a ski-mask or with a paper bag over your head
dracopet 20th-Nov-2012 10:38 pm (UTC)
The other day I tried Skype for the first time. I could see my face moving in real time. I was horrified, lol. Idk if I have BDD or if I'm just extremely unphotogenic or what, but.....never again, lol
cadaver11 20th-Nov-2012 10:50 pm (UTC)
Same.
My family tells me how cute I am and I don't even believe them.
hjohnson 20th-Nov-2012 10:54 pm (UTC)
I love and hate my bathroom mirror. It has softer lighting so when I put on makeup in the morning, it looks fine and then I get into the car and catcha glimpse of myself and its like ACK, never saw those red spots
francesbcobain 21st-Nov-2012 11:30 am (UTC)
I have the opposite problem. I will stare at myself four like an hour picking out all my flaws.
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