Pick a Day

Music History Events: Births

May 20, 1981 Alice Cooper and his wife Sheryl have their first child, a daughter named Calico. Their next two kids also have creative names: Dash and Sonora.

January 31, 1981 Justin Timberlake is born in Memphis, Tennessee. After doing time in The All-New Mickey Mouse Club, he makes his mark in the boy band 'N Sync before launching his solo career.

December 18, 1980 Christina Aguilera is born in Staten Island, New York. She's raised in the suburbs of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and eventually lands a record deal thanks to a powerhouse performance of "Reflection," the theme song to the Disney movie Mulan.

January 25, 1980 Alicia Keys is born Alicia Augello Cook in Hell's Kitchen, Manhattan, New York. Her background as a classically trained pianist influences her stage name. "It's like the piano keys," she explains, "And it can open so many doors." Her first album, Songs In A Minor, featuring her own compositions, goes to #1 in 2001.

June 8, 1977 Kanye West is born in Atlanta, Georgia. He produces tracks for Jay-Z before starting his solo career in 2004 with his album The College Dropout.

February 2, 1977 Shakira is born Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll in Barranquilla, Colombia. At 13, she gets a record deal with Sony Music – the first step on her path to becoming a worldwide superstar. More

July 9, 1975 Jack White (lead singer, guitarist for The White Stripes) is born John Anthony Gillis in Detroit, Michigan. He takes the name "White" when he marries his bandmate, Meg White.

July 6, 1975 50 Cent is born Curtis Jackson III in Queens, New York. Dropped from Columbia Records in 2000, he makes a name on the New York City rap scene and lands a deal with Dr. Dre's Shady/Aftermath Records. His label debut, Get Rich or Die Tryin', is released in 2003 in blows up, with the hit "In Da Club" going to #1.

May 18, 1975 Surfer/musician Jack Johnson is born on the North Shore of Oahu, Hawaii. When his mellow, feel-good songs catch on in the '00s, he switches his focus from surfing to music and starts his own label, Brushfire Records.

May 23, 1974 Jewel Kilcher is born in Payson, Utah. Raised in Homer, Alaska, she rises to fame using just the name Jewel. Her debut album, Pieces Of You, released in 1995 when she's 20, catches on a year later thanks to the hits "Who Will Save Your Soul" and "You Were Meant For Me." It sells over 12 million copies and moves Jewel into the upper echelon of singer-songwriters.

July 22, 1973 Rufus Wainwright is born to folk singers Kate McGarrigle and Loudon Wainwright III in Rhinebeck, New York. He'll spend much of his childhood raised by his mother in Quebec.

October 29, 1972 Diana Ross and her husband Robert Ellis Silberstein have their second child, Tracee Ellis Ross. She becomes an actress, starring in the TV series Girlfriends and Black-ish.More

October 28, 1972 Brad Paisley is born in Glen Dale, West Virginia. His first hit is as a songwriter, penning David Kersh's Top 5 country ballad "Another You."

October 17, 1972 Eminem is born Marshall Bruce Mathers III in St. Joseph, Missouri. He eventually settles in Warren, Michigan.More

February 17, 1972 Green Day frontman Billie Joe Armstrong is born in Oakland, California. He is raised in nearby Rodeo, where he records his first song at age 5.

February 14, 1972 Rob Thomas of Matchbox Twenty is born to American parents in West Germany.More

December 24, 1971 Ricky Martin is born Enrique Martin Morales in San Juan, Puerto Rico.More

October 20, 1971 Snoop Dogg is born Cordozar Calvin Broadus, Jr. in Long Beach, California. His parents call him "Snoopy" because of his resemblance to Charlie Brown's pet beagle.

July 23, 1971 Bluegrass-country performer Alison Krauss is born in Decatur, Illinois. She meets Union Station bandmate Dan Tyminski at a 1984 festival held by the Society for the Preservation of Bluegrass in America.

July 1, 1971 Missy Elliott is born in Portsmouth, Virginia. She releases six Platinum-selling albums, writes and produces hits for Aaliyah, Ciara and Fantasia, and in 2023 becomes the first female rapper inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame.

January 25, 1971 Grace Slick and Paul Kantner of Jefferson Airplane welcome a baby girl they name "God." Her name is later changed to "China," and as "China Kantner" she becomes a VJ on MTV.

January 11, 1971 Mary J. Blige is born in New York City. The "J." stands for Jane.

June 13, 1970 Weezer frontman Rivers Cuomo is born in New York City. He is raised on an ashram (spiritual hermitage) in Pomfret, Connecticut before moving to Los Angeles and forming the band in 1992. Weezer quickly gain a local following and earn a record deal just a year later.

March 27, 1970 Mariah Carey is born in Huntington, Long Island, New York. She becomes the best-selling female singer of the '90s and the self-proclaimed "Queen of Christmas," thanks to her perennial favorite "All I Want For Christmas Is You."

December 9, 1969 Jakob Dylan (lead singer for The Wallflowers) is born in New York City, New York. He is the fifth and youngest child of Bob Dylan and his first wife, Sara Lownds.

December 4, 1969 Jay-Z (Shawn Corey Carter) is born in housing projects in Brooklyn - something he will remind us of many times in his early songs. Known for his lyrical dexterity, he becomes one of the top rappers in the game and also one of the most profitable, amassing over $1 billion with interests in liquor, apparel and record labels.

July 24, 1969 Jennifer Lopez is born to Puerto Rican parents in The Bronx in New York City.More

January 5, 1969 Marilyn Manson is born Brian Hugh Warner in Canton, Ohio. Contrary to the urban myth, Warner does not start his entertainment career playing Paul on The Wonder Years (that would be Josh Saviano). After a stint as a music journalist, he teams up with guitarist Scott "Daisy Berkowitz" Putesky and reinvents himself as Marilyn Manson in 1989.

September 25, 1968 Will Smith is born and raised in West Philadelphia. On the playground is where he spends most of his days.

March 30, 1968 Celine Dion is born in Charlemagne, Quebec, the youngest of 14. She releases music in her native French throughout the '80s, building a huge following in Canada and France. In 1990, she sets her sights on America with her first English album, Unison, and she quickly becomes a star there as well.