Channing Tatum, Cardi B and More Celebrities Who Were Exotic Dancers

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Channing Tatum, Cardi B and More Celebrities Who Were Exotic Dancers

They’ve got the moves! Celebrities often talk about the jobs they worked while waiting for their big break — but did you know these famous faces once graced the world of exotic dancing? From Mark Consuelos’ stint in South Beach to Brad Pitt teaming up with his fraternity brothers, these celebs’ talents go beyond the Hollywood scene. Some stars, like Channing Tatum and Lady Gaga, have continued to use their dance skills to give their Hollywood careers some edge. Scroll below to find out who used to moonlight as an adult entertainer.

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Kendra Wilkinson

The former Playboy model started working as a stripper at the young age of 18. After six months on the job, she was discovered by Hugh Hefner and asked to perform at his 78th birthday party. She detailed her past during a 2014 episode of I'm a Celebrity. "I'm a free spirit," she told her castmates at the time. "I wanted to see how much I could earn. I like to party and I like to have fun."

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Javier Bardem

His stint was short. “[I was a stripper] for a day! It was a disaster. And you know who was there watching? My mum and my sister! It was kind of a thing – you go there and dance, they pay you some money. It wasn’t like a Full Monty thing,” the No Country for Old Men actor told Marie Claire Magazine in 2008.

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Courtney Love

The “Hole” rocker got her start in multiple Los Angeles strip clubs. In a 2013 interview with LA Weekly, Love said: “It's like in the Zagat guide, ‘Courtney worked at Jumbo's… ‘ I didn't just work at Jumbo's, I worked at Nude, Nude, Nude! Century Lounge near the airport. I worked at Seventh Veil. But Jumbo's did give me more consistency.”

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Carmen Electra

The Baywatch actress graced the stage as a stripper before breaking out in the entertainment world in the early ‘90s. She later released a collection of aerobic striptease fitness videos. 

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Brad Pitt

During his college days at the University of Missouri, the Fury actor was part of an all male Chippendales-esque club called the Dancing Bares. Pitt and his group specialized in performing for female students on their birthdays. During Newsweeks Oscar roundtable in 2007, he revealed that he also used to drive strippers to and from gigs. "Strippers changed my life," he added. 

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Azealia Banks

The “Chasing Time” singer admitted in a 2014 interview with The Daily Beast that she was not in her element while working as an exotic dancer. “I worked at this little strip club and it was a low point, but I wanted some fast money,” she told the outlet. “I was such a chicken in the strip club. It was not my thing at all. I was there for just two weekends, and then I quit because ‘212’ blew up.”

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Blac Chyna

The Lashed by Blac Chyna founder got her start at a strip club in Miami where she rubbed elbows with many celebrities during her time there. She opened up about her past in a 2016 interview with Elle. "My mom used to be a stripper," she told the mag. "So she was like, 'If this is what you want to do, be the best at it.'"

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Amber Rose

According to the New York Daily News, the model began a career in stripping when she was just 15 to help provide for her family after her parents divorced. She went by the stage name Paris. "When I was stripping it was the best time of my life," she told listeners of her online radio show Loveline in 2016. 

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Lady Gaga

The “Bad Romance” singer got her start as a stripper in her hometown of New York City. “I was working in strip clubs when I was 18. My act was pretty wild. I’d wear black leather and dance to Black Sabbath, Guns N’ Roses and Faith No More. Very rock ’n’ roll. I don’t like to talk about it too much but there were drugs, serious drugs. I wouldn’t want to inspire other people to do the same,” she said in The Performance Identities of Lady Gaga: Critical Essays. “I discovered a real personal freedom through it … I was drawing huge crowds, setting hairspray alight on stage and dancing madly … I have a strong sense of my own sexuality. I love the naked human body and I have huge body confidence.”

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NeNe Leaks

The Real Housewives of Atlanta star detailed her pole dancing past in a 2013 interview with E!’s Giuliana Rancic. “I remember going home and having something like $1,000 and thinking ‘I made $1,000 in one night. Baby we are doing this tomorrow night,’” she recalled. “It became an addiction. I thought I made pretty good money. It was a great hustle.”

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Cardi B

Prior to her success, the “Bodak Yellow” rapper pursued a career as a stripper at age 18. She addressed her job in one of her most viral Vine videos, which also helped her rise to fame. “You know people be asking me like, ‘What do you does?’ Like, ‘Are you a model? Are you like a comedian or something?’ Nah I ain’t none of that. I’m a hoe, I’m a stripper hoe. I’m about this shmoney,” she said.

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Channing Tatum

The real Magic Mike! Some lucky people were able to experience the Alabama native perform as a stripper before he hit the big screen. His experiences as a dancer helped him land multiple roles — including Step Up where he met his wife Jenna Dewan. "On a good night, [I made] 150 bucks. On a bad night, 70 bucks — even 50 at times," he told The Hollywood Reporter in November 2014 of his past work.

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Chris Pratt

The Parks and Recreation actor opened up about his not-so-successful, almost stripper past in an interview with Buzzfeed in November 2013. "I was always a very much naked person. I loved to always get naked," he said at the time. "I was very free, so I thought: I may as well get paid.” However, he confessed he was no Magic Mike and stuck with small gigs like bachelorette parties. "I did go one time and audition on a stage for a club, but I don't think I got the job. I don't think I'm a very good dancer."

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Mark Consuelos

The Riverdale actor’s exotic past was brought up by his wife, Kelly Ripa, in a 2012 interview with Vanity Fair. Noting that Consuelos is “unbelievably handsome,” she said:  “A lot of hot guys in Hollywood have done that. He was straight out of college, and he went to Notre Dame and finished his degree at the University of South Florida. So, there he was in South Florida, he’s gorgeous, looking to break into show business, so he started off as a roadie to a group of these guys, and then they talked him into stripping.”