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Even when they have won many prestigious awards as music artists, musicians are not limiting their talent just to the world of music, they are entering the entertainment industry in roles of actors. However, the trend of musicians and singers becoming actors is not something new, many famous musicians have tried their luck as actors and probably the biggest example of this would be the King of Rock and Roll, Elvis Presley.
Cut to the present, the number of actors turned actors is only increasing and viewers cannot contain their thrill when they see their favorite musicians on the big screen, playing a different character. So let’s see 8 established actors who started their careers in the entertainment industry as a musician.
1. Lady Gaga
Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta, or Lady Gaga has always been a popular name anywhere she went. Starting from her unique fashion sense, incredible voice, and songwriting talent, to iconic discography and music videos, Gaga is a successful name in the global music industry. After more than a decade of topping the charts, Gaga finally made her official debut at the box office with the 2018 release ‘A Star Is Born’ alongside Bradley Cooper. However, this was not her first role on the big screen. At 15, Gaga appeared on an episode of The Sopranos in 2001 as a classmate of A. J. Soprano. Years later, she achieved her global stardom as a pop star, she appeared in Sin City: A Dame to Kill For as a waitress named Bertha in 2014. Then two years later, she appeared in two seasons of Ryan Murphy’s American Horror Story anthology series. For her portrayal as the Countess in American Horror Story: Hotel, Gaga also won a Golden Globe. Then in 2018, she starred in A Star is Born, and in ‘House of Gucci’ as PatriziaReggiani in 2021. What is next for her? Well, she is soon going to appear in the role of Harley Quinn in ‘Joker: Folie à Deux‘, set to release in 2024.
2. Idris Elba
Did you know this handsome face also has a beautiful musical talent!! Yes, that’s true. Before Idris was massively successful as a star in the world of film and television, he was “Big Driis”. He was a DJ playing in nightclubs in London. But like everyone with a big dream and passion, even after being successful in his acting career, he kept his love for music alive. He even released his first EP, High-Class Problems Vol. 1, in 2010, and after months he debuted in BBC’s Luther. In 2019, Big Driss made a comeback, and what better stage than Coachella! He performed a two-hour set at the music festival.
3. Beyoncé
Queen Bey continues to rule the music world even in 2014. Her recent ‘Cowboy Crater’ made huge waves and made the biggest debut of this year. But at the same time, she is also a respected actor in the world of film and entertainment. Her musical band, Destiny’s Child was already a big name in the industry when the singer booked her first role in a major motion picture, Goldmember in 2002. She played the parody of a blaxploitation character in the comedy/sci-fi film which helped her establish herself as a serious movie actor. She continued her film journey by starring in ‘The Fighting Temptations’ in 2003, and in ‘The Pink Panther’ in 2006. Her hustle and hard work as an actor led her to star in a leading role in the Academy Award-winning ‘Dreamgirls’ in 2006. But her journey did not stop there. She continued to star in ‘Cadillac Records’ (2008), and ‘Obsessed’ (2009). What is her most recent role as an actor? Well, she landed her voice for the role of Nala in Jon Favreau’s reboot of The Lion King in 2019.
4. Justin Timberlake
Justin Timberlake started his career by starring in Disney’s children’s television series ‘The Mickey Mouse Club’. He starred in the show alongside Timberlake’s future NSYNC bandmate JC Chasez, Britney Spears, Ryan Gosling, and Christina Aguilera. However, his acting career did not take off that well before his career as a music artist and as a band member of NSYNC began to wane. Then he went on to be a solo artist after the band got dismembered and began his acting career again. He won two Emmys by being on guest spots on Saturday Night Live. he also starred in some really acclaimed movies like ‘The Social Network,’ ‘Bad Teacher,’ ‘Friends With Benefits,’ ‘Alpha Dog,’ and ‘Inside Llewyn Davis’. He did all this while maintaining his music career as a solo music artist, releasing five studio albums, 39 singles, and two compilation albums. Talk about a versatile and busy career!
5. Will Smith
Can you imagine Will Smith as nothing other than a talented actor? Well, Smith launched a highly successful rap career with Jeff Townes before he made it to the industry as an actor. He started his rap career under the moniker DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince when he was still just a teenager. In 1986, the pair released their first single “Girls Ain’t Nothing But Trouble” which went on to become a hit. The following year, the duo also released their first album, ‘Rock the House’ which even hit the Billboard Hot 200. Then in 1991, NBC developed a sitcom with Smith ‘The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air’. He starred in the sitcom for six successful seasons before breaking through the A-list club of Hollywood. Later in his acting career, Smith went on to star in several high-grossing and critically acclaimed movies like ‘Bad Boys’ (1995), ‘Independence Day’ (1996), ‘Men in Black’ (1997), etc. he even went on to score himself prestigious Oscar nominations in 2001’s Ali and 2006’s The Pursuit of Happiness, before finally winning an Academy Award for ‘King Richard’ in 2022.
6. Mark Wahlberg
The life of Mark Wahlberg did not start smoothly. The now famous actor once went to prison at the age of 16 years for participating in a 1988 race-motivated beating in Boston. After being released from prison, the actor followed his brother into music who was a member of seminal boy band New Kids on the Block. Mark performed under the name Marky Mark and soon became famous for his chiseled physique and for showing it off too frequently. Calvin Klein, the famous clothing brand quickly caught up and starred him in a campaign along with Kate Moss. Marky Mark also released his debut album, just like any other serious musician, ‘Music for the People’ which had a few hits as well. The album included several hits like ‘Wildside’, and ‘Good Vibrations’ that went platinum. Then he focused on his career as an actor and his first breakthrough role in 1995’s The Basketball Diaries. In the movie, he appeared alongside Leonardo DiCaprio. However, it was his role in Paul Thomas Anderson’s 1997 film ‘Boogie Nights’ that marked his name in the industry prominently. Then Wahlberg went on to star in some incredible, Academy Award-winning films like ‘The Departed’, and ‘The Fighter’. He also churned out starring roles in several features like ‘Planet of the Apes’, ‘Transformers: Age of Extinction’, ‘Ted’, ‘The Italian Job’, ‘All the Money in the World’, and ‘Daddy’s Home’.
7.Cher
Everyone knew they were witnessing the breakthrough of a megastar when Cher appeared in the folk-rock scene as one-half of Sonny & Cher in the mid-1960s. Her first acting role was in the TV series The Man from U.N.C.L.E. where she played a model. Not long after, the iconic singer and actress made her Broadway debut in Robert Altman’s Come Back to the Five and Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean. She then reprised her role in the 1982 film version for which she gained a Golden Globe nomination as well! She then appeared in the 1983 film Silkwood alongside Meryl Streep and Kurt Russell. Two years later for her role in Peter Bogdanovich’s 1985 film Mask, Cher won the Best Actress prize at the Cannes Film Festival. In her long career as a successful actress and musician, Cher went on to star in feature movies including ‘The Witches of Eastwick’, ‘Mermaids’, and ‘Moonstruck’. Her most recent feature was in 2018’s ‘Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again’. After she won her first Academy Award in 1988 for ‘Moonstruck’, she wrote in The New York Times that she “performs the function for women moviegoers that Jack Nicholson has always fulfilled for men. Free of the burden of ever having been America’s sweetheart, she is the one who represents us [women] in our revenge fantasies, telling all the fatheads . . . exactly where they can go. You need to be more than beautiful to get away with this. You need to have been Cher for 40 years.”
8. Steve Van Zandt
It would be hard to believe, but before playing his famous character Silvio Dante on The Sopranos, Steve Van Zandt did not have any formal acting experience! But in reality, he was a skilled musician. Besides being a famous actor now, he is also a singer, songwriter, guitarist, and mandolin player. He was also best known as a member of Bruce Springsteen’s E Street Band until 1999, with which he performed on and off since 1975.
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