Top 10 Fascinating Ways Artists Got Their Stage Names

To 10 Fascinating Stage Name Origin Stories

Welcome to MsMojo, and today were counting down our picks for the most surprising and fascinating origins behind some of musics most iconic stage names.

SZA is known for writing relatively personal songs, so it makes sense that her stage name holds deeper significance. Born Solána Imani Rowe, she explained that she connected with the Supreme Alphabet, a system from the Five-Percent Nation that gives each letter its own symbolic meaning. Like RZA from Wu-Tang Clan, she took inspiration from the system but made it her own. In the Supreme Alphabet, S usually stands for Savior, but that didnt really click for her. So, she switched it up and made it either Sovereign, reflecting freedom and self-rule, or Savior, which gives the sense of empowerment and owning your choices.

This Femininomenon made a splash in the early 2020s, standing out with everything from her empowering lyrics to her bold drag persona. But her stage name actually comes from a much more personal place. Roan, whose real name is Kayleigh Rose Amstutz, explained that her name is a tribute to her late grandfather, Dennis K. Chappell. Before he passed away in 2016, she told him about her plans to use his name in her stage persona. As for Roan, it came from a cowboy song called The Strawberry Ronan, which just happened to be her grandfathers favorite. Shes definitely making him proud!

Did you know that Halsey is an anagram for Ashley, the singers real name? While that definitely played a part in choosing it, theres certainly more to it. If youre familiar with Brooklyn, you might already be one step ahead. Yep, Halsey comes from Halsey Street Station in Brooklyn. The singer was involved with someone who lived near there around the time they decided to pursue music. They felt that while Ashley wasnt a star, Halsey had the potential to be, so it became their alter egofree from the limitations they felt that might have held them back as Ashley.

Amethyst Amelia Kelly already sounds like a great stage name, but thats actually this rappers real name. So, where did Iggy come from? The short answer: her dog, Iggy. The rapper was so in love with her pet that she had a nameplate made in his honor, which shed wear often. People started mistaking Iggy for her real name, so she just went with it. As for Azalea, that was inspired by her grandfather, who worked in showbiz and encouraged her not to just go with a mononym. She chose Azalea because its where her family livesand she just liked how it sounded.

Unlike everyone else on this list, this rapper kept her first name but replaced the rest with Thee Stallion. She explained that as a tall teenager and early developer, older men would often call her a stallion. Curious to find meaning in such a label, she decided to own it. She first used the name on her socials before recording under it. Youve probably also heard her referred to as the H-town Hottie, a nickname she chose for herself. Anyway, we love how she took this title from her youth and turned it into something empowering, go get it girl own your Body-ody-ody-ody-ody-ody-ody-ody.

Who doesnt love The Weeknd? Theres a reason Daniel Craig became a meme, right? Okay, none of that has anything to do with this origin story. Abel Tesfayehis real name and how hes now chosen to be knownsaid The Weeknd actually reflects the start of his career. In a Reddit AMA, he shared that at 17, he dropped out of high school, and one weekend, he and his friend Lamar grabbed [their] mattresses packed into a van and never looked back. Somewhere along the way, he mustve dropped the final ekidding, of course. He just wanted to avoid legal issues with the Canadian group The Weekend.

The Irish singer-songwriter, Paul David Hewson, didnt come up with Bono himselfit was actually a friend who suggested it. The name comes from the Latin Bona Vox, meaning good voice. Pretty standard, huh? But thats not the whole story. Apparently, as a teenager in Ireland, he was part of a surrealist street gang called Lypton Village. Near where they hung out was a hearing aid store called Bonavox, which ended up inspiring his name. Before settling on Bono, he reportedly tried out Huyseman, Houseman, Bon Murray, Bono Vox of OConnell Street, and one so long we wont even try to pronounce it. Safe to say, he made the right call!

Before The Beatles were even a thing, Richard Starkey had already rebranded. He left his factory job to join the skiffle band Rory Storm and the Hurricanes, and thats when Ringo Starr was born. He felt that the name just fit the groups style and also played into his love of American cowboy culture. As for Ringo, well, that came from the classic thing of where people latch onto something distinctive about youlike, say, in his case, wearing a lot of rings. Starr later joked about how funny it was hearing his flashy stage name alongside the more everyday-sounding John, Paul, and George.

Lady Gaga, born Stefani Germanottas, name started as a nickname when she was beginning her music career, representing everything she wanted to be as an artist. The story goes furtherher name was inspired by Queens Radio Ga Ga. Apparently, something about her just screams, Radio Ga Ga. Though shes never confirmed this part, her producer at the time said it came from an autocorrect mishap when he tried to text the Queen songs title. Gaga has shared that almost everyone calls her Gaga, but never Lady because that would be weird. We guess we cant be too ducking mad at autocorrect because, from that moment, a star was born.

Pink has shared a few different stories about her name, and some are definitely more NSFW than others. One version is that it came from a childhood nickname inspired by the outspoken Mr. Pink from Reservoir Dogs. As for the more colorful version? Well, apparently, Pink (real name Alecia Moore) had a friend who was curious about how a certain anatomical feature looked on a white woman, and lets just say she enlightened him, and the name stuck. Not everyone on her team was a fan of that version, though, so its a good thing they had the Reservoir Dogs narrative to fall back on.

Have you heard any other cool backstories of musicians stage names? Let us know in the comments