Growing up on camera wasn't always easy for Keke Palmer. She wrote in her book, I Don't Belong to You: Quiet the Noise and Find Your Voice (via Cosmopolitan), that she felt "so alone" after moving to Hollywood. Contrary to her mother's early expectations that Palmer would be a small-time star, Palmer followed up her role in Barbershop 2 with a string of gigs. Roles over the next couple years included spots on TV shows like Strong Medicine and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. She also starred in the made-for-TV movies The Wool Cap, Knights of the South Bronx, and Keke & Jamal.
In 2006, she landed her big break in Akeelah and the Bee as the titular character who makes her way to the National Spelling Bee. The film was a turning point in Palmer's career. She also experienced her first kiss in the movie, which she described as "funny" to NPR.
Palmer said that auditioning for Akeelah and the Bee was the first time she was truly nervous, because so many girls were auditioning for the role. As she kept getting callbacks, though, her confidence in her acting skills grew. "I thought, well, hey, I'm good if I'm getting this far," she said.
