Some of the most recognizable names in show business are not the celebrities’ birth names, and stories about how stars got their stage names are sometimes nearly as fascinating as their careers.
Lady Gaga
Real name: Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta
The pop singer was born with a fairly standard Italian-American name. She was inspired to use Lady Gaga from Queen’s song Radio Ga Ga when she started her music career. She has since become known for her outlandish outfits and theatrical performances, as well as chart-topping tracks like Poker Face and Bad Romance.
Bruno Mars
Real name: Peter Gene Hernandez
Musician Bruno Mars got his nickname from his father, who thought he looked like professional wrestler Bruno Sammartino as a child. He later added the name Mars to develop the stage name we know today. Born in Honolulu, Hawaii, Mars went on to perform hits including Just the Way You Are and Uptown Funk.
Marilyn Monroe
Birth name: Norma Jeane Mortenson
The platinum blonde bombshell wasn’t always known as Marilyn Monroe. When she first started acting, the Hollywood icon went by Norma Jeane Mortenson. Eventually, her mentor at the studio suggested Marilyn as a first name, and she combined it with her mother’s maiden name, Monroe. Monroe soon became world-famous for her glamorized and stylized look.
Elton John
Birth name: Reginald Kenneth Dwight
The legendary British singer Elton John was born Reginald Kenneth Dwight. He later decided to change his name to pay homage to musicians he worked with: Elton Dean and Long John Baldry. This was long before he became a worldwide sensation with songs like, such as Rocket Man and Your Song.
Whoopi Goldberg
Birth name: Caryn Elaine Johnson
Before becoming an Academy Award-winning comedian and actress, Whoopi Goldberg was known as Caryn Elaine Johnson. Her unique first name came from the whoopee cushion, while Goldberg was added later. Hollywood fans know her from movies like Ghost and Sister Act.
Vin Diesel
Birth name: Mark Sinclair
Fast & Furious star Vin Diesel was born with a very common name. As a young man, he became Vin Diesel thanks to his job as a nightclub bouncer. Diesel took his stepfather’s last name, Vincent, for Vin, and Diesel represented his boundless energy. Today, Diesel has one of the biggest names in movies.
Katy Perry
Birth name: Katheryn Elizabeth Hudson
Katy Perry used her birth name when she released a Christian music album (her first work) in 2001. She later changed her stage name to her mother’s maiden name to avoid confusion with actress Kate Hudson. This was before her biggest hits like I Kissed a Girl and Firework took the world by storm.
Jamie Foxx
Birth name: Eric Marlon Bishop
Jamie Foxx first changed his name when he was starting out doing stand-up comedy. He selected the unisex name Jamie because in those days female comedians often got the call to go on stage first. Foxx was chosen in homage to Redd Foxx. The name eventually took him from comedy clubs to an Academy Award-winning acting career.
Emma Stone
Birth name: Emily Jean Stone
Actress Emma Stone was actually born Emily Jean Stone. However, she found that another actor with the name Emily Stone had already registered in the Screen Actors Guild. She tried another stage name briefly, but eventually settled on Emma Stone. Stone has said the change was merely practical and not created as a new identity.
Snoop Dogg
Birth name: Calvin Cordozar Broadus Jr.
Long before Snoop Dogg was a household name, his mother nicknamed him Snoopy as a child because he was like the cartoon character. Born Calvin Cordozar Broadus Jr., he later decided on a professional name by flipping Snoopy into Snoop Dogg. Snoop made a name for himself in the 1990s working alongside Dr. Dre.
Miley Cyrus
Birth name: Destiny Hope Cyrus
Destiny Hope Cyrus was born with a name her parents intentionally picked out with her future in mind. She was a happy kid who went by the nickname Smiley. As she grew older, Smiley became shortened to Miley. Today she goes by her legally changed name Miley Ray Cyrus. These days you’ll hear almost no one refer to her as anything besides her childhood nickname.
Natalie Portman
Birth name: Neta-Lee Hershlag
Neta-lee Hershlag was born in Jerusalem and then moved to the United States with her family not too long after. She went by Portman, her paternal grandmother’s maiden name. The actress says she began using it professionally as a way to separate herself from her personal life when she started acting as a child.
Michael Keaton
Birth name: Michael John Douglas
The Batman/Beetlejuice actor was born Michael John Douglas. When he started his career in entertainment, there was already another actor by that name. He decided to use Keaton, his mother’s maiden name, as his professional surname. This helped him have a different identity in Hollywood.
Lana Del Rey
Birth name: Elizabeth Woolridge Grant
Before she was Lana Del Ray, she was known to use her given name Elizabeth. After a few years of performing under her name and variations of it, she decided to change it. Shortly after adopting Lana Del Ray as her stage name, she gained major recognition for her hit Video Games in 2011.
Rihanna
Full name: Robyn Rihanna Fenty
You might be surprised to know that Rihanna is actually the singer’s middle name. She was born Robyn Rihanna Fenty on the island of Barbados, but opted to go by Rihanna when she pursued her music career. Her last name later became familiar to many when she started her hit Fenty beauty and apparel companies.
Nicki Minaj
Birth name: Onika Tanya Maraj
Nicki Minaj was born Onika Tanya Maraj in Trinidad and Tobago and raised in New York. She decided to rap under the name Nicki Minaj when she began her musical career. The quirky name would soon become known for colorful outfits, theatrical characters, and rapid-fire performances. Nicki would go on to become one of the best-selling female rap artists of all time.
Freddie Mercury
Birth name: Farrokh Bulsara
Queen frontman Freddie Mercury was born Farrokh Bulsara in Zanzibar in 1946. He started using Freddie at a young age while attending school in India. He later changed his last name to Mercury when he began his singing career. Mercury is known for his booming voice and larger-than-life stage persona while performing with Queen.
Sources: Please see here for a complete listing of all sources that were consulted in the preparation of this article.
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12 celebrities who hid their true identity to make it in Hollywood
Hollywood has no shortage of reinventions, but for some stars, their makeovers went much further than a new haircut or stage name.
12 celebrities who hid their true identity to make it in Hollywood
