It’s no uncommon for stars to ditch their birth names for a fresh new moniker. But do you know the real names of Frank Ocean, Miley Cyrus, Bruno Mars and more?
What is in a name? For these stars, a whole lot.
Because if you ever wondered how their monikers seemed too good to be true is because, well, they are. Indeed, many of your favorite celebrities switched up their names before they skyrocketed to superstardom. Why? Well, for some, their fans had a hard time remembering their names. And, for others, it’s simply a childhood nickname they didn’t want to shake. (Yes, we’re looking at you Miley Cyrus, who legally changed her name from Destiny Hope Cyrus in 2008.
But regardless the reason, plenty of famous faces have decided to reinvent themselves.
For Frank Ocean (born: Christopher Edwin Breaux), changing his name “was the most empowering shit I did in 2010, for sure,” he admitted. “It just felt cool. None of us are our names. If you don’t like your name, then change your name…I’ll be boarding planes as Christopher Francis Ocean.”
He’s not alone in that belief.
Jamie Foxx, Jennifer Aniston, Ricky Martin and Lady Gaga all remade themselves by making a tweak years ago, and we can’t even imagine thinking that they could go by anything other than their well-known stage names.
But can you guess the names they ditched from their birth certificates?
Keep reading to learn what all your favorite stars were originally called…
Daniel Sudeikis
Jason Sudeikis confirmed on Today that he was named Daniel after his father, but following some confusion, his mom started using his middle name Jason to avoid confusion.
Eilleen Regina Edwards
Shania Twain shared the origin story of her stage name during an appearance on Apple Music’s Home Now Radio: “In short, I was born, Eilleen Regina Edwards, and then I was adopted and I became Eilleen Regina Twain. Then I became a professional singer and I needed a stage name that sounded a little less like my grandmother’s name, because I’m named after my grandmother, both my grandmothers, Eilleen and Regina. I think, in my mind, I was just not really wanting to be called my grandmother’s name onstage, so I decided to change it to Shania Twain. I met somebody with the name Shania, thought it was beautiful, and Shania Twain was born.””
Belcalis Almanzar
Cardi B took on the name Bacardi after family and friends started calling her sister Hennessy. Later on she shortened the name to something that suited her quite a bit more.
Jelena Noura Hadid
Oddly enough, Gigi Hadid got her stage name in school when the teacher would confuse her and a girl named Helena. Since her mom called her “gigi” as a term of endearment at home, she told the teacher to just call her Gigi and it simply stuck.
Eric Bishop
True, Jamie Foxx just seems more fitting for an Oscar-winning Hollywood party guy.
Shawn Carter
Jay-Z is definitely a more fitting name for a hip-hop impressario.
