Image: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer / Live Nation Productions / Gerber Pictures / Peters Entertainment / Joint Effort
About This Quiz
Making it in Hollywood is hard. So is dominating the charts as a successful singer or musician. Performers who can do both deserve an extra round of applause from all of us, as it's a feat that's extremely tricky to pull off (successfully, at least). A select number of songstresses have even scored Academy Awards for their big-screen efforts, including genre-defying icons like Cher and Barbra Streisand. And recently, pop-singing sensation Lady Gaga wowed us all with her stunning performance in the 2018 remake of "A Star Is Born," for which she earned an Oscar nomination for Best Actress. You go, Gaga.
Of course, there have also been some high-profile failures in the realm of music-to-movie crossovers. Remember Mariah Carey in "Glitter"? Or Kelly Clarkson in "From Justin to Kelly"? Those films both earned Golden Raspberry Award nominations for being among the worst that cinema has to offer. Still, these performers deserve credit for being brave — if you've ever switched careers or learned an instrument as an adult, you know what we're talking about.
This quiz is filled with images of musicians who have starred in movies, from the most well-known to the most obscure. How many crossover artists can you identify? Bonus points if you know the flicks (and in some cases, TV shows) that they've been in!
Method Man
Common
Will Smith
Smith started his career as one half of the popular rap duo DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince. He has appeared in movies such as "Independence Day" (2006), "Men in Black" (1997) and "I Am Legend" (2007), and was nominated for an Oscar for playing boxer Muhammad Ali in the 2001 film "Ali."
Eminem
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Madonna
Céline Dion
Cher
Cher won a Best Actress Oscar for her turn in the hit 1987 "Moonstruck." She's appeared in close to two dozen movies total, including "Silkwood" (1983), "The Witches of Eastwick" (1987), "Mermaids" (1990) and "Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again" (2018).
Tina Turner
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Eminem
Vanilla Ice
Mark Wahlberg
Before breaking out onto the big screen in critically acclaimed movies such as "Boogie Nights" and "The Departed," Mark Wahlberg was a rapper who went by the name of Marky Mark. Along with his crew, the Funky Bunch, he had two hit songs in the early '90s — "Good Vibrations" and "Wildside."
Jared Leto
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Madonna
Taylor Swift
Lady Gaga
Lady Gaga made Academy Award history in 2018 when she became the first person to earn nominations for Best Actress and Best Original Song in the same year. She won the Best Original Song Oscar for "Shallow."
Gwen Stefani
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Nick Carter
Justin Timberlake
Before becoming a pop star with the band NSYNC, Timberlake was a cast member on The Disney Channel's "The All-New Mickey Mouse Club." He's also starred in movies such as "Alpha Dog," "The Social Network" and "Friends with Benefits."
Aaron Carter
JC Chasez
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Slash
Seal
Lenny Kravitz
Kravitz's made his big-screen debut as a voice actor in the 1998 film "The Rugrats Movie." Since then, he's become known for his role as Cinna, Katniss’s talented stylist, in two films from the "Hunger Games" franchise.
Eagle-Eye Cherry
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Mariah Carey
Lizzo
Beyoncé
This former Destiny's Child singer turned iconic pop star also had roles in "The Pink Panther (2006), "Dreamgirls" (2006) and "Obsessed." (2009). In 2008, she played legendary singer Etta James in "Cadillac Records."
Adele
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Monie Love
MC Lyte
Missy Elliot
Queen Latifah
Queen Latifah made her mark in hip hop when she released her debut album, "All Hail the Queen," in 1989. From 1993 to 1998, she starred in the hit Fox TV show "Living Single," and has appeared in numerous blockbuster films, including "Chicago," "Bringing Down the House" and "Girls Trip."
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Mos Def
LL Cool J
In addition to appearing in movies, LL Cool J has had a successful television career. Since 2009, he's played Special Agent Sam Hanna in the CBS hit "NCIS: Los Angeles. He also hosts the show "Lip Sync Battle."
Ice Cube
Common
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Rihanna
When she's not recording albums or starring in movies like "Battleship" and "Ocean's 8," Rihanna is busy overseeing her fashion brand, Fenty, and best-selling cosmetics line, Fenty Beauty. She's also launched four fragrances and is co-owner of the music streaming service Tidal.
Eve
Beyoncé
M.I.A.
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Celine Dion
Barbra Streisand
Barbra Streisand is as well-known for her acting as she is for her singing. Over the past four decades, she's starred in popular films such as "Funny Girl," "The Way We Were," "Yentl" and "The Prince of Tides."
Bette Midler
Olivia Newton-John
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Madonna
Madonna won a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Motion Picture Musical or Comedy for her portrayal of Argentinian First Lady Eva Perón in the 1996 movie adaption of the Broadway musical "Evita."
Lady Gaga
Kylie Minogue
Cher
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Dolly Parton
Parton made her film debut in the 1980 hit comedy "9 to 5," for which she also wrote the theme song. While she remains a country singer at heart, she has appeared in a number of films over the past few decades, including "Rhinestone," "Straight Talk" and "Steel Magnolias."
Bonnie Raitt
Reba McEntire
Loretta Lynn
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Jerry Lee Lewis
Roy Orbison
Elvis Presley
Presley made his acting debut in the 1956 film "Love Me Tender," which was named for his hit song. The last film he appeared in as an actor was the 1969 movie called "Change of Habit," which also starred Mary Tyler Moore.
Buddy Holly
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Britney Spears
Produced by MTV Films, this fun coming-of-age movie follows the adventures of three best friends on a cross-country road trip. Though widely panned by critics when it was released, the movie features a number of notable actors, including Dan Aykroyd, Kim Cattrall and Taryn Manning.
Christina Aguilera
Mandy Moore
Pink
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Ice Cube
Ice-T
Ice-T also found major success on the small screen. Since 2000, he's starred as former undercover police officer Odafin "Fin" Tutuola on NBC's long-running show "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit."
Snoop Dogg
Puff Daddy
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Ludacris
Ludacris has appeared in six of the eight main "Fast & Furious" movies, beginning with "2 Fast 2 Furious" in 2003. He's also set to star in the upcoming installment "The Fate of the Furious," which wrapped filming in November of 2019.
Mos Def
Ja Rule
Busta Rhymes
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Tina Turner
Janet Jackson
Jackson starred with Tupac Shakur in the 1993 John Singleton film "Poetic Justice." She's also appeared in "Nutty Professor II: The Klumps," "Why Did I Get Married?" and "Why Did I Get Married Too?"
Toni Braxton
Mary J. Blige
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Ice-T
Ice Cube
Ice Cube earned critical praise for playing Darin "Doughboy" Baker in John Singleton's 1991 film "Boyz n the Hood." He has since appeared in hits such as "Friday," "Barbershop" and "21 Jump Street."
Dr. Dre
Snopp Dogg
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Tom Petty
David Bowie
Released in 1986, "Labyrinth" is a fun, mind-bending fantasy flick directed by Muppets creator Jim Henson. Alongside a young Jennifer Connelly and a cast of puppets, David Bowie stars as Jareth, the powerful ruler of a kingdom full of goblins.
Bob Dylan
Elton John
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Eminem
In addition to starring in the 2002 film "8 Mile," Eminem made Oscar Award history by becoming the first hip-hop artists to win the Academy Award for Best Original Song. The song he won for was "Lose Yourself."
Vanilla Ice
Slim Shady
Logic
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Shawn Carter
Sean Combs
Sean "Puffy" Combs made his film debut in the 2001 Jon Favreau film "Made." He also appeared in "Monster's Ball" (also 2001), "A Raisin in the Sun" (2008), "Get Him to the Greek" (2010) and "Draft Day" (2014).
Warren Griffin
Andre Young
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Courtney Love
Along with a Golden Globe nomination for Best Actress, Love received critical praise for her role as Althea in "The People vs. Larry Flynt." She also starred in the 1999 Andy Kauffman biopic "Man on the Moon" with Jim Carrey.
Debbie Harry
Joan Jett
PJ Harvey
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Mariah Carey
Whitney Houston
In addition to starring in "The Bodyguard," Houston recorded six songs for the film's soundtrack, including the mega-hit "I Will Always Love You." She also appeared popular films such as "Waiting to Exhale" and "The Preacher's Wife."
Dionne Warwick
Diana Ross
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Kelly Clarkson
Carrie Underwood
Jennifer Hudson
Jennifer Hudson first came to fame as a popular seventh-place contestant on "American Idol." She made her film debut alongside Beyoncé in the 2006 musical film "Dreamgirls," and also played Winnie Mandela in the 2011 biopic "Winnie Mandela."
Fantasia Barrino
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Pink
Mandy Moore
Moore has also appeared in movies like "The Princess Diaries" and "Chasing Liberty," and was the voice of Princess Rapunzel in the 2010 Disney film "Tangled." Since 2016, she's played family matriarch Rebecca Pearson on the hit show "This Is Us."
Katy Perry
Taylor Swift
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Ice Cube
Snoop Dogg
Snoop Dogg has had both starring roles and cameos in more than two dozen movies since 1994, including "Half Baked," "Old School," "Scary Movie 5" and "Mac & Devin Go to High School."
Dr. Dre
Warren G.
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Madonna
Cher
Cyndi Lauper
Debbie Harry
Over the past three decades, the Blondie frontwoman has appeared in a number of quirky independent films, including "Heavy" in 1995, "Cop Land" in 1997 and "Deuces Wild" in 2002.
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Brandy
Toni Braxton
Mariah Carey
In addition to her starring role in the 2001 musical-drama film "Glitter," Mariah Carey has appeared in "WiseGirls" (2002), "Precious" (2009), "The Lego Batman Movie" and "Girls Trip."
Leona Lewis
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Björk
"Dancer in the Dark" starred Icelandic singer Björk, who wrote most of the songs for the film's soundtrack. The song "I've Seen It All," co-written by Thom Yorke, was nominated for an Oscar in 2001.
Siouxsie Sioux
Debbie Harry
Tori Amos
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Ashanti
Eve
Janet Jackson
Alicia Keys
Keys made her film debut in the 2007 movie "Smokin' Aces." She also starred alongside Scarlett Johansson and Laura Linney in "The Nanny Diaries" (also 2007), and made a cameo appearance in the 2015 movie "Jem and the Holograms."
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Nick Lowe
Harry Connick Jr.
Harry Connick Jr.'s first movie role was in the 1990 war drama "Memphis Belle." Since then, he's appeared in more than a dozen films and guest-starred on hit sitcoms like "Will & Grace" and "Kevin Can Wait."
Michael Bublé
Bruce Hornsby
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Marc Bolan
Meat Loaf
In addition to his iconic role in "The Rocky Horror Picture Show," Meat Loaf has appeared movies such as "Wayne's World," "The Mighty," "Fight Club" and "Tenacious D in The Pick of Destiny."
Elton John
Dennis DeYoung
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Dr. Dre
Mos Def
Mos Def appeared as himself in the movies "Dave Chappelle's Block Party" and "Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby." He also starred alongside Bruce Willis in the 2006 action-thriller "16 Blocks."
Will.i.am
Common
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Phil Collins
Axl Rose
Jon Bon Jovi
In addition to acting in movies such as "Moonlight and Valentino" (1995), "Homegrown" (1998), "Pay It Forward" (2000) and "New Year's Eve" (2011), Jon Bon Jovi has guest-starred on popular TV shows like "Sex and the City" and "Ally McBeal."
Kid Rock
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50 Cent
Xzibit
Busta Rhymes
DMX
DMX's film debut was in the 1998 crime drama "Belly." He's also appeared in "Romeo Must Die" (2000), "Never Die Alone" (2004), "Lords of the Street" (2008) and "The Bleeding" (2009).
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David Lynch
Kyle MacLachlan
Chris Isaak
In 2001, Isaak starred in his own sitcom, appropriately called "The Chris Isaak Show," on the premium cable channel Showtime, The show, which ran until 2004, followed the trials and tribulations of a fictionalized version the singer/songwriter.
Bryan Ferry
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Kenny Chesney
Keith Urban
Blake Shelton
Tim McGraw
In 2004, McGraw earned critical praise for his role as domineering dad Charles Billingsley in the popular high school football drama "Friday Night Lights." He also appeared in 2009 movie "The Blind Side" with Sandra Bullock.
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Dwight Yoakam
As an actor, Yoakam is perhaps best known for his role as a mean, abusive boyfriend in the 1996 Billy Bob Thorton drama "Slingblade," and as a scary, mentally unstable burglar in the 2002 Jodie Foster thriller "Panic Room."
Clint Black
Lyle Lovett
Clay Walker
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Nice Cave
Neil Young
Lyle Lovett
Tom Waits
Waits had small roles in a number of popular '80s films, including "The Outsiders" and "The Cotton Club." Most recently, he appeared in Jim Jarmusch's 2019 zombie-comedy movie "The Dead Don't Die."
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