The Character Everyone Forgets Keke Palmer Played On Grey's Anatomy

At only 28 years old, actress and singer Keke Palmer has appeared in a wide variety of television and film productions over the course of her relatively short career, although she is perhaps most well-known for her titular role in the Nickelodeon comedy series "True Jackson, VP," which aired from 2008 to 2011. Palmer later appeared in both seasons of the 2015 Fox series "Scream Queens" as Zayday Williams and in the third season of the 2015 MTV series "Scream" as Kym. To date, the actress has made more than 30 different appearances in television programs (via IMDb).

In addition to her numerous roles on the small screen, Palmer has appeared in a number of movies, including as part of the star-studded cast of the 2019 film "Hustlers." She will next appear in Jordan Peele's 2022 horror film "Nope" alongside Daniel Kaluuya and Steven Yeun. From her roles on the small screen and the big screen to her time in the recording studio, the young performer has made a name for herself in show business as a skillful and multifaceted talent. In fact, Time named Palmer in its 2019 "100 Next" list, an issue of the magazine intended to identify 100 rising stars in various industries.

However, many fans seem to forget that during the course of her rise to become an internationally recognized star, Palmer made a small appearance in a 2014 episode of ABC's "Grey's Anatomy."

Keke Palmer plays Sheryll Jeffries, a teenage girl in dire need of a heart transplant who becomes pregnant shortly after running away from home, in Season 10, Episode 16 of "Grey's Anatomy," titled "We Gotta Get Out of This Place." Sheryll first appears as a patient at Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital when she seeks out help from Dr. Shane Ross (Gaius Charles) in an effort to join a clinical trial for heart transplants in prepubescent children. 

Though she is too old for the trial, she makes an emotional appeal, insisting that she wants to live long enough to raise her soon-to-be-born daughter. She begs Ross to "bend the rules" and he eventually relents, promising to relay her request to Dr. Christina Yang (Sandra Oh), the doctor in charge of the trial. Though Ross is swayed by her efforts, Yang remains unflinching in the hospital's initial rejection and Sheryll's application is once again denied.

In the middle of her meeting with Ross, however, Sheryll goes into labor a whole six weeks early. After delivering a healthy baby girl she laments that, without a heart transplant, her daughter will likely grow up without her as a mother. Ross apologizes and suggests that she call her own mother, adding "I bet she's worried about you." While the role in "Grey's Anatomy" may not have exactly been her vehicle to stardom, it was a notable step in Palmer's career.