Halle Bailey’s name was unknown to many when Disney announced she was to star as Ariel in the live action reimagining of The Little Mermaid.
However, the 19-year-old R&B star, who performs in a duo with her sister, 21-year-old Chloe, has already built up an impressive CV and counts Beyonce and Halle Berry among her fans.
The Little Mermaid star Halle Bailey, left, and Chloe Bailey, who perform together as Chloe X Halle (Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP)
Halle began her career performing covers of pop songs on YouTube alongside Chloe.
She caught the eye of Beyonce after a cover of her hit Pretty Hurts went viral in 2013, earning the sisters, performing as Chloe X Halle, a record deal.
Their debut EP, Sugar Symphony, was released in April 2016 and that year they opened for Beyonce on the European leg of her Formation World Tour.
Both sisters are actors and star together in US sitcom Grown-ish. They worked with Beyonce again last year, opening on the US portion of her and Jay Z’s On The Run II tour.
In February this year, Chloe X Halle, who were born in Atlanta, Georgia but raised in Los Angeles, California, sang America The Beautiful at the Super Bowl, a highly sought after gig.
At the Grammys, the sisters earned two nominations, for best new artist and best urban contemporary album for their The Kids Are Alright.
Halle said being cast as Ariel was a “dream come true”, with The Little Mermaid director Rob Marshall saying she “possesses that rare combination of spirit, heart, youth, innocence, and substance – plus a glorious singing voice”.
John Wick 3 star Berry, 52, was among those to send their congratulations.
She tweeted: “In case you needed a reminder… Halles get it DONE. Congratulations @chloexhalle on this amazing opportunity, we can’t wait to see what you do!”
The Little Mermaid will feature songs from the 1989 animated classic by Alan Menken and Howard Ashman, as well as new songs by Menken (music) and Lin-Manuel Miranda (lyrics).
Marshall will also produce with John DeLuca, Marc Platt and Miranda.
Production on The Little Mermaid is expected to begin in early 2020.
