Musicians Who Became Actors: Jennifer Lopez, Lady Gaga and More

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Musicians Who Became Actors: Jennifer Lopez, Lady Gaga and More

Double threats! Musicians can top the charts and dominate their industry, but their artistry is taken to another level when they break into acting. For Jennifer Lopez, her music and acting career went hand in hand after she landed the title role in the 1997 biopic Selena. While she soon became known for her hit songs, her passion was always acting. The Hustlers star told Vanity Fair in 2020 that she never considered giving up on her dream. “Once I started, no,” she said. “I always felt like this is what I wanted to do. It was this or nothing. There was not really an option for me. It’s just what I love.” Lopez learned to balance acting, singing and a slew of other opportunities as she skyrocketed to fame, but she kept coming back to her true calling. “I would say dancing and music are my first loves, but acting is the love of my life. You have your first love and the love of your life, and acting is the love of my life,” she told the outlet. “I feel like every time I take on a role, it is only about becoming somebody that I’m not. When they go in and see me, they don’t see J. Lo — they see the maid, they see the stripper, they see who they’re supposed to see because I’m able to still give you the suspension of disbelief. That is the challenge of it for me, but also the thrill of it for me.” [jwplayer mIYtlSph-zhNYySv2] Lady Gaga had a similar trajectory. Although she first became known as a pop superstar, being an actress was her initial goal. “I always wanted to be an actress — much more than I wanted to be a singer,” she noted during a January 2022 appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live! “I just always wanted to be an actress, but I really was terrible at auditioning.” Despite Gaga’s immense success as an actress, she explained in January 2022 why she will never stop trying to be better. “Even if the title is leading role [or] lead actress, I still will find a way to follow because I ultimately think that if you are done learning, you’re done performing,” she told Deadline at the time. “There’s no synthesis then. You’re not taking anything in and putting anything out. You just think that you have it, and that’s not what I believe in. I believe that you die a student.” Scroll through the gallery below for more musicians turned actors:

Credit: Shutterstock (3)

Musicians Who Became Actors: Jennifer Lopez, Lady Gaga and More

Double threats! Musicians can top the charts and dominate their industry, but their artistry is taken to another level when they break into acting. For Jennifer Lopez, her music and acting career went hand in hand after she landed the title role in the 1997 biopic Selena. While she soon became known for her hit songs, her passion was always acting. The Hustlers star told Vanity Fair in 2020 that she never considered giving up on her dream. “Once I started, no,” she said. “I always felt like this is what I wanted to do. It was this or nothing. There was not really an option for me. It’s just what I love.” Lopez learned to balance acting, singing and a slew of other opportunities as she skyrocketed to fame, but she kept coming back to her true calling. “I would say dancing and music are my first loves, but acting is the love of my life. You have your first love and the love of your life, and acting is the love of my life,” she told the outlet. “I feel like every time I take on a role, it is only about becoming somebody that I’m not. When they go in and see me, they don’t see J. Lo — they see the maid, they see the stripper, they see who they’re supposed to see because I’m able to still give you the suspension of disbelief. That is the challenge of it for me, but also the thrill of it for me.” [jwplayer mIYtlSph-zhNYySv2] Lady Gaga had a similar trajectory. Although she first became known as a pop superstar, being an actress was her initial goal. “I always wanted to be an actress — much more than I wanted to be a singer,” she noted during a January 2022 appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live! “I just always wanted to be an actress, but I really was terrible at auditioning.” Despite Gaga’s immense success as an actress, she explained in January 2022 why she will never stop trying to be better. “Even if the title is leading role [or] lead actress, I still will find a way to follow because I ultimately think that if you are done learning, you’re done performing,” she told Deadline at the time. “There’s no synthesis then. You’re not taking anything in and putting anything out. You just think that you have it, and that’s not what I believe in. I believe that you die a student.” Scroll through the gallery below for more musicians turned actors:

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Jennifer Lopez

Lopez technically got her start as an actress, landing the leading role in 1997’s Selena before launching her music career in 1999. She has since starred in fan favorites such as The Wedding Planner, Maid in Manhattan, Monster-in-Law, Hustlers and Marry Me. 

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Justin Timberlake

During the height of ‘NSync’s fame, Timberlake made his film debut in 2000’s Model Behavior. He soon began juggling his solo music career and movie commitments with roles in The Social Network, Friends With Benefits, Trolls and Palmer.  

The Grammy winner fired back in 2013 when an op-ed suggested that he should stop acting after his film Runner Runner failed to rake in. “The movie didn’t do well at the box office, so I should quit?” he said in a GQ interview. “Hold on a second. If I was somebody else, you wouldn’t have said that.”

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Beyonce

The singer is best known for her iconic solo music and her former girl group, Destiny’s Child, but she has also tried her hand at acting in Austin Powers in Goldmember, The Pink Panther, Dreamgirls, Cadillac Records, Obsessed and The Lion King. 

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Lady Gaga

Gaga initially wanted to become an actress, but her rise to stardom came following the 2008 release of her debut album, The Fame. While she starred on American Horror Story from 2015 to 2016, she did not truly break into films until 2018’s A Star Is Born, for which she earned an Oscar nomination for Best Actress. She continued to receive critical acclaim for 2021’s House of Gucci. 

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Will Smith

Smith started out as a member of the hip-hop duo DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince, racking up hits such as “Summertime” and “Parents Just Don’t Understand.” In 1990, he began starring in The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air and eventually became more well-known for his acting than his music. His credits include Bad Boys, Independence Day, Men in Black, Ali, Hitch, The Pursuit of Happyness, I Am Legend, Aladdin and King Richard.

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Mandy Moore

The Emmy nominee rose to fame with the release of her debut single, “Candy,” in 1999. Two years later, she kicked off her acting career, and she went on to star in The Princess Diaries, A Walk to Remember, Saved!, Because I Said So, Tangled and This Is Us.  

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Queen Latifah

The rapper released her debut album, All Hail the Queen, in 1989. She subsequently starred on Living Single from 1993 to 1998 and appeared in Chicago, Bringing Down the House, Taxi, Beauty Shop, Last Holiday, Hairspray, Just Wright, Girls Trip, Star and The Equalizer.

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Mark Wahlberg

Wahlberg was known as Marky Mark in the ‘90s before shifting to acting later in the decade. His credits include Fear, Boogie Nights, The Perfect Storm, The Italian Job, The Departed, Shooter, The Fighter, Ted, Daddy’s Home, Patriots Day and Uncharted.

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Jennifer Hudson

The Illinois native blew people away with her powerhouse vocals on American Idol in 2004. While her early elimination from the competition caused backlash, she made a comeback in 2006 when she starred in Dreamgirls, earning an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. Since her stellar film debut, Hudson has appeared in Sex and the City, Smash, Empire, Cats and Respect.

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Ludacris

The rapper broke into the music industry in 2000 and went on to act in the Fast and Furious franchise, Crash, Hustle & Flow, No Strings Attached and New Year’s Eve.

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Tim McGraw

McGraw became a country music superstar in 1994 with the release of his second album, Not a Moment Too Soon. He ventured into acting in Friday Night Lights, Flicka, The Blind Side, Country Strong and 1883.

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Barbra Streisand

The EGOT winner established herself as a singer before making her film debut in 1968’s Funny Girl, for which she received an Academy Award for Best Actress. She later starred in Hello, Dolly!, The Way We Were, A Star Is Born, Yentl, Meet the Fockers and The Guilt Trip.

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LL Cool J

The rapper was already a success in the hip-hop realm when he appeared on In the House, In Too Deep, Any Given Sunday, Last Holiday and NCIS: Los Angeles. 

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Harry Styles

Styles got his start as a member of One Direction. In conjunction with the launch of his solo career, he made his acting debut in 2017’s Dunkirk. He has since made a cameo in Eternals and will next be seen in Don’t Worry Darling and My Policeman.

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Jack Harlow

The "Industry Baby" rapper made his acting debut in White Men Can't Jump, which hit theaters in May 2023.

"It was grueling. It was a hot summer," Harlow told Variety at the film's Los Angeles premiere of his experience making the movie. 

The Kentucky native's costar Sinqua Walls told the outlet of the musician: "He was one of my first castmates to ever call me before shooting to work on lines together. I have a lot of love for him. I’m telling you right now, this is just the beginning because the sky is the limit for my brother.”