Keke Palmer's Real Name: Lauren Keyana Palmer

Quick answer: Keke Palmer's real name is Lauren Keyana Palmer. She was born on August 26, 1993, in Harvey, Illinois.

Real name and early life

Her official biography states that Lauren Keyana "Keke" Palmer was born August 26, 1993, in Harvey, Illinois, and raised in Robbins, Illinois, to former actors Sharon and Larry Palmer. The Library of Congress name authority records Palmer, Keke. The nickname Keke came from a sister. She sang in church as a child and moved with her family to California after early film interest so she could audition full time.

Quick facts

• Real name: Lauren Keyana Palmer
• Known as: Keke Palmer
• Born: August 26, 1993, in Harvey, Illinois
• Known for: Actor, singer, host
• Notable work: Akeelah and the Bee, True Jackson, VP, Nope
• Sources checked: Official biography (kekepalmer.com), Library of Congress Name Authority

Career highlights

Palmer made her film debut in Barbershop 2: Back in Business (2004) and earned a Screen Actors Guild nomination as a child for TNT's The Wool Cap (2004). Starring as Akeelah Anderson in Akeelah and the Bee (2006) brought an NAACP Image Award for outstanding lead actress. She led Nickelodeon's True Jackson, VP (2008–2011), appeared in Jump In! and later films including Joyful Noise (2012), and voiced Peaches in Ice Age: Continental Drift.

Adult career peaks include Jordan Peele's Nope (2022), hosting and producing work, music releases beginning with So Uncool, and continued film and television leads that made her a multihyphenate star of her generation.

Name notes

Lauren Keyana Palmer is her birth name; Keke is a family nickname used professionally. Searchers often ask whether "Keke" is legal—major profiles treat it as the professional byname for Lauren Keyana Palmer. Fan sites often copy names from one another, so we checked this page against her official site and the Library of Congress.