Aubrey Peeples

Aubrey Shea Peeples was born and raised in Lake Mary, Florida, by parents Wendy and Ashley,^[1][3] and has a younger sister named Ally.^[3] Growing up, Peeples performed with the Orlando Repertory Theatre (now Orlando Family Stage) for ten years.^[4][5] They graduated from Lake Mary Preparatory School,^[6] where they were valedictorian of the class of 2012.^[4][5] Peeples was accepted to Harvard University but deferred entry twice, the second time to accept their role on Nashville.^[4]

Peeples has guest-starred in Drop Dead Diva, Burn Notice, Austin & Ally, Grey's Anatomy and had a recurring role on Necessary Roughness.^[7] They also appeared in the made-for-television movies Ace Ventura Jr.: Pet Detective, The Good Mother and Sharknado.

They were cast in a major recurring role, playing Layla Grant, a runner-up in a reality singing competition and rising country star, in the second season of the ABC drama series Nashville.^{[7][8][9][10]} They were later promoted to regular status for Nashville's fourth season.^[11] However, Peeples did not return for the show's fifth season when Nashville moved to CMT.^[12][13]

In 2014, Peeples was cast as Jerrica "Jem" Benton, in the romantic musical fantasy comedy-drama film Jem and the Holograms, based on the 1980s television show of the same name.^[14] The same year Peeples co-starred in the crime thriller Rage opposite Nicolas Cage.^[15] In September 2014, Peeples was named one of the best actors under the age of twenty by Indiewire.^[16]

In 2019, Peeples opened up about having bipolar disorder in an interview with NKD Magazine.^[17] In November 2021, they came out as queer and non-binary.^[18] Peeples uses they/them pronouns.^[19]