Celebrities who have revealed what their real name is after becoming famous
What's in a name?
When it comes to the most famous faces in showbiz it's quite often the case that the person we're all watching is going by a name other than the one they started out life with.
There are all sorts of reasons why a celebrity would change their name ranging from their current one already being taken by someone else to thinking it'd get them some sort of boost in the world of show business.
Of course, some of them have just decided to go by their stage name in the rest of their life as well and there are frigging loads of celebrities have had to tweak their name or decided to go the whole hog and change it altogether.
David Tennant - David McDonald
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Of course we're starting right at the tippy-top of the A-list, at least for fans of Doctor Who or any of the other various things David Tennant has been in.
Considering he really gained fame and prominence for his performance as the Tenth Doctor, 'Tennant' sounds like a rather fitting surname.
He changed his name when he was 16 and joining the actor's union Equity, having found out that 'David McDonald' was already taken.
"I was just sort of sitting there going, 'how do actors change their name?'," he said at a convention in 2018 as he remembered his name change.
"I thought, 'Well I don't want to change my first name because I'll be at work and people wouldn't know what to call me'.
"'So, I'll change my surname. How do you change your surname?' And my parents are going, 'Well, your granny's uncle's nephew is McChuckter' or whatever it was. Anything my parents said was like, 'Uh! You're so lame'."
In the end he was flicking through a copy of Smash Hits magazine when he saw Neil Tennant of the Pet Shop Boys and Curt Brandon of Spear of Destiny, but since 'David Brandon' was already taken 'David Tennant' it was.
Emma Stone - Emily Stone
While David Tennant didn't want to change his first name, Emily Stone decided to switch to one that was slightly different.
Yes, she's an Emily and not an Emma and once again this is because someone else had already been performing under the name of Emily Stone, in this case it was a contestant on Australia's Next Top Model.
Stone had acted under her actual name for an episode of The Suite Life of Zack and Cody in 2006, but beyond that she's had to act as 'Emma Stone'.
She said in the past she'd 'like to be Emily' and that people who get to know her end up calling her by her real name after a while.
Jamie Foxx - Eric Marlon Bishop
We might now have a very clear idea of the person the name 'Jamie Foxx' belongs to, but back when he was starting out in showbiz he decided to choose a new name.
He didn't have to pick a new moniker because there was another Eric Marlon Bishop, but after a girlfriend dared him to try stand-up comedy, the Django Unchained star chose a new stage name.
Foxx realised that female comedians would often get a slot in stand-up gigs and were often called on to go first during the performance, so he picked a name that was ambiguous enough.
He said on David Letterman: "So I went to the list and wrote down unisex names. Stacy Green, Tracy Brown…Jamie Foxx!"
Drake - Aubrey Drake Graham
Come on gang, do you think someone called Aubrey is going to make it further in the world of rap that somebody called Drake?
The singer was credited by his real name during his time on Degrassi; however, he began to use his middle name when he became a rapper.
It just makes sense, doesn't it? Do you want to listen to 'God's Plan' by Drake, or 'God's Plan' by Aubrey Graham.
Vin Diesel - Mark Sinclair
You didn't think Vin Diesel was his real name, did you? That would have been fitting for the lead of the Fast and Furious franchise, but alas not.
It's a cool sounding name, certainly, but the 'Vin' comes from his stepdad Irving Vincent's surname which his mother also took on.
The former bouncer said that the 'Diesel' part came from friends who said he was full of energy, so it made sense to take on a new name which contained a reference to fuel.
On the other hand, if someone was born Vin Diesel that's the kind of name you'd have to live up to.
Snoop Dogg - Calvin Cordozar Broadus Jr.
The rapper's stepfather was named Calvin Cordozar Broadus Sr, which is where he got his original name from.
Snoop Dogg comes partly from an early nickname he earned from his mother, who called him 'Snoopy' because he liked the cartoon character.
He started performing under the name Snoop Doggy Dogg, which soon became just Snoop Dogg.
In 2012 he said he'd been rechristened Snoop Lion by a Rastafarian priest, but has since gone back to performing under the name Snoop Dogg.
Lady Gaga - Stefani Germanotta
While we could say that children are not named 'Lady Gaga' when they're born, a slew of celebrity babies has rather disproven that theory.
However, Lady Gaga was not named Lady Gaga when she grew up and instead got her singer's title from the Queen song 'Radio Ga Ga', though she has previously said that it came from the nickname 'Ga Ga' given by her friends.
In a lawsuit, her former producer and ex-boyfriend Robert Fusari claims he text her the name of the song 'Radio Ga Ga' and it autocorrected to 'Lady Gaga' - he said she loved it and adopted it as her stage name.
He claimed partial credit for her transformation into Lady Gaga, but later dropped the legal action.
Tom Cruise - Thomas Cruise Mapother IV
Tom Cruise Mapother IV is the son of Tom Cruise Mapother III, but the surname Mapother just doesn't have that same vim and vigour as Cruise.
The Mission: Impossible star said he started using his middle name due to a suggestion from his agent and considering how things have gone in his career since then, it seems like it was a worthwhile thing to do.
On the other hand, if you were the type of actor who could pull off a series of insane stunts and really put themselves in the line of danger, you might end up making the name Mapother into the sort of thing they carve into a Hollywood pavement.
Nicolas Cage - Nicolas Kim Coppola
The beloved actor who has been in all sorts of movies and pulled all manner of faces hails from a very famous family - the Coppolas, which also includes directors Francis Ford Coppola and Sofia Coppola.
However, when he was making it as an actor Nicolas wanted to avoid any sort of nepotism and thus the Leaving Las Vegas star took on the name Nicolas Cage.
He got the surname 'Cage' from the Marvel comics character Luke Cage.
Brad Pitt - William Bradley Pitt
Like Tom Cruise, Brad Pitt is another actor who decided to incorporate his middle name into his stage name.
Pitt's own father was William Alvin Pitt, and so the middle name was what could be used to tell them apart.
For some reason no other name seems quite as appropriate.
By the way, if you get a message from Brad Pitt saying he's in hospital and loves you, it's probably a hoax.
Tulisa Contostavlos - Tula Paulinea Contostavlos
The musician was actually named Tula after her grandmother, and has said in the past that Tulisa means 'tiny Tula' in Greek.
"That ended up being my nickname in Greek, growing up," she said, and it seems to have stuck to her in the world of showbiz.
By the way, apparently it's supposed to be pronounced 'Tul-ITZ-ah' instead of the 'Tuh-lees-a' pronunciation we keep using for her name.
Now you know, which children's cartoons will have already informed you is half the battle.
Calvin Harris - Adam Wiles
According to the DJ, the name 'Calvin Harris' sounded 'racially ambiguous' and he was rather stuck with it after experiencing success.
He changed it at the age of 22, saying: "My first single was more of a soul track, and I thought Calvin Harris sounded a bit more racially ambiguous.
"I thought people might not know if I was Black or not. After that, I was stuck with it."
Therein lies the danger in changing your name for something famous, afterwards everyone is going to remember you by that name and it's hard to wriggle out of it.
Aaron Paul - Aaron Paul Sturtevant
Here's an interesting one where an actor changed their name to fit their stage name instead of taking on a new moniker for performing.
He'd been performing as Aaron Paul for years when in 2022 the Breaking Bad star legally changed his surname to his stage name, with the rest of his family following suit.
Everyone basically already knew him by the name Aaron Paul anyway, so it might have helped with a bit of life admin.
Topics: Celebrity, David Tennant, Emma Stone, Tom Cruise, Drake, Tulisa, Jamie Foxx, Vin Diesel, Snoop Dogg, Lady Gaga, Brad Pitt, Aaron Paul
Joe Harker