Happy birthday, Naya Rivera!

Naya Rivera turns 25 today!

Born in Valencia, California, the half Puerto Rican, quarter African American, and quarter German actress and songwriter garnered the most attention for her role on the comedy musical TV series Glee.

She began her career as an infant, appearing in K-mart commercials. Her acting career, however, gained traction when she played Hillary Winston in Eddie Murphy's The Royal Family in 1991. She received Young Artist Awards for her performance in the film.

The daughter of Yolanda and George Rivera then got small roles in quite a number of movies and shows, such as The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, Even Stevens, Baywatch, and The Master of Disguise. In between these small roles and auditioning, she worked odd jobs as a telemarketer, nanny, and a greeter at Abercrombie & Fitch.

In 2009, Rivera was called to play Santana Lopez; the cold-hearted cheerleader in Glee. Although Santana is mean and insensitive, Rivera admitted to loving her character and the witty comebacks she always had.

Ever since her role in the series, her fame skyrocketed - she earned a place in Maxim's Hot 100 List at #61 and ranked first in AfterEllen's Hot 100 List in 2011. Columbia Records also signed her a contract to produce a solo album.

image: Fox