Some singers have turned out to be surprisingly competent actors. There's Justin Timberlake, Lady Gaga, and Mandy Moore, among others. Then there are the actors who turn out to be surprisingly successful singers. In this category, we'll put in basically everyone on Broadway, along with Kristen Bell (she killed it in Frozen and Frozen 2) and Hugh Jackman (from Wolverine to The Greatest Showman is some range, baby!) for good measure. Then there is the category of famous folks who aren't singers but gave it a try anyway, with sometimes cringeworthy results.
Now, it's important to clarify what qualifies someone to be on this list of singing attempts that were basically fails. First, they have to be famous enough at whatever their day job is that it was surprising to hear they were trying to make music, too. Second, this list isn't about vocal quality alone. There are some celebs on this list who have some surprisingly good voices (um, we're not talking about you, Kim Kardashian) but whose music careers just never took off or who were one-hit wonders.
There are also some folks here who just frankly can't really carry a tune (now we're talking about you, Kim Kardashian) but who gave it a try at least once. We're also not going to count the celebrities who actually have fully established music success in other countries, like Baywatch star David Hasselhoff, who has released a whopping 18 albums to much success in Germany.
This is a list celebrating the celebs for whom a singing attempt will ultimately just be a weird footnote on their Wikipedia page. Consider this proof that even the famous and talented have fails sometimes!
Kim Kardashian
In 2011, Kim Kardashian released a dance song called "Jam (Turn It Up)" that is, frankly, an autotuned nightmare. It was a total flop, and Kim herself has said that she regrets recording it, noting that she's not a singer and never really wanted to be. She had intended for half of the proceeds to be donated to St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital, which is a nice gesture but probably ended up being a really small check.
Tyra Banks
Model and reality TV host Tyra Banks spent six years trying to make the transition from Sports Illustrated swimsuit cover model to pop princess. While she had dreams of being the next J.Lo, she only released one single. Shake Ya Body gave several models from America's Next Top Model a chance to star in a music video, but it was otherwise a big flop.
Robert Downey Jr.
Iron Man star Robert Downey Jr. has actually done a bit better than some of the other celebs on this list. Not only has he appeared on a few soundtracks, he actually released an album in 2004. But he still landed on this list because it only sold about 16,000 copies and never managed to crack the top 100 in the US.
Brie Larson
Another star from the Marvel universe who tried to make a go of it in music was Captain Marvel's Brie Larson. Before she made it big in acting, she released the embarrassingly named album Finally Out of P.E., which sold a whopping 4,000 copies. Stick to saving the universe, Brie.
Hulk & Brooke Hogan
Here's a special two-for-one celebrity musical fail: Hulk and Brooke Hogan. There was a period of time when the Hogan family was determined to get more famous. Hulk had his wrestling career, but they also launched two reality TV shows, tried to make it in the restaurant business, and both father and daughter tried their hands at singing careers. Neither hit it big, though Brooke did record two albums.
Kobe Bryant
The late, great NBA star Kobe Bryant is one of the many professional athletes who've tried to make a second career in the rap game. He signed a record contract in 1999 and released the single "K.O.B.E.," which flopped so badly that his contract was canceled and the rest of his music was buried until some of it leaked following his tragic death in 2020.
Naomi Campbell
Naomi Campbell is an undisputed queen of the runway, but she might not be anyone's first choice as a karaoke duet partner. In 1994, she released an album called Babywoman that peaked at No. 21 on the charts in Belgium but failed to produce any hit singles.
Steven Seagal
Anyone who has ever watched aging action star Steven Seagal in one of his many, many direct-to-video movies and thought, "Man, I wish I could I hear that guy sing some country and reggae music," well … good news! A copy of his 2005 album Songs From the Crystal Cave is probably on the internet somewhere for streaming.
Paris Hilton
With songs as deep and profound as "My Best Friend's Ass," it's surprising that Paris Hilton hasn't become the musical voice of her generation. To give her credit, her 2006 song "Stars Are Blind" did briefly make it the top of the US dance music charts.
Shaquille O'Neal
Another basketball great who also wanted to make it as a rapper was Shaq, who actually released four albums from 1993 to 1998. While he enjoyed some moderate success with his first one, the popularity waned quickly. His last album sold only around 100,000 copies in total and barely made a dent on the Top 100 charts.
Heidi Montag
The best part of professionally fame hungry reality TV star Heidi Montag's attempt at a music career is that she named her album Superficial. The title is a funny little nod to her history with plastic surgery, but the album was a major flop, selling only a few thousand copies when it came out.
Scott Baio
Back when he was a young and charming TV star on shows such as Happy Days and Charles in Charge, and before he became politically problematic, Scott Baio released two pop albums in 1982 and 1983. While the albums had some minor popularity, he was much more successful as a sitcom actor.
Bruce Willis
Bruce Willis was at the peak of his Moonlighting popularity when he released his two R&B-inspired albums, the inexplicably named The Return of Bruno and If It Don't Kill You, It Just Makes You Stronger. Neither were huge hits, but he did go on to have a few songs on movie soundtracks.
Scarlett Johansson
She's a major movie star, and although some critics described her first album as having "surprising allure," her music career has never been as successful as her movie career. Her debut album, Anywhere I Lay My Head, sold less than 20,000 copies in the US.
David Duchovny
The truth is out there. And the truth is that X-Files star David Duchovny has released three albums of folk and indie rock music. While the albums haven't been commercial successes, David does get some credit for writing many of the songs himself.
