Top 10 Stars You Never Knew Were on Reality Shows

Long before she filled the airwaves with her powerhouse voice, Nicole Scherzinger was an aspiring performer looking for her big break. After leaving college to pursue music, Scherzinger auditioned for the reality series "Popstars USA," as did actress Taryn Manning. The American version of the reality franchise hoped to find new musical talent. Blowing everyone away with her stellar vocals, Scherzinger was plucked from a large pool of contestants. Together with four other hopefuls, the future "X Factor" judge formed the band "Eden's Crush." They produced a successful album but disbanded when their label went under. Afterward Scherzinger joined The Pussycat Dolls, which scored a major hit with its first album.

She’s known for playing Andy on the "Grey's Anatomy" spin-off "Station 19," but before that actress Jaina Lee Ortiz was cutting her teeth on reality TV. In the late 2000s, she joined the cast of the competitive series "Scream Queens." The VH1 show saw aspiring actresses striving against each other to win a part in the horror flick "Saw 3D." Ortiz was part of the second season, and although she came in second place, she still took advantage of her newfound fame. She went on to star in "Rosewood” before “Station 19.” Sometimes, being the runner-up has its perks!

OK, so The Miz’s early career on reality TV isn’t exactly unknown, but it does pale next to his career as a wrestler. Initially, Michael Gregory Mizanin was a college student heading for a business career. That changed when he landed a spot on season ten of "The Real World," a show which has helped launch a slew of future TV personalities, including Karamo Brown. Miz caught a taste for fame and decided to pursue a career in wrestling. He joined the WWE, racking up several titles and championships. When he's not in the ring, Miz has often returned to his reality roots, appearing in series like "Total Divas" and "Fear Factor."

When pop star Kesha was only a teenager, her mother volunteered her family to appear on an episode of Fox's "The Simple Life" starring Paris Hilton and Nicole Richie. The former BFFs stayed with the fam while visiting Nashville and bonded with the teen. She even helped the dynamic duo plan a Tennessee bride's bachelorette party. At the time of her appearance, no one knew the future "TiK ToK '' singer would become a big musical sensation, but it would only be a few years later that she took the world by storm.

Laverne Cox made her reality television debut on season one of VH1's "I Want to Work for Diddy." Competing for an opportunity to work alongside music mogul Sean Combs, the future "Orange Is the New Black" actress made a great impression on both the audience and the crew behind the scenes. After the show wrapped, she collaborated with the network to make her own reality show: "TRANSform Me." The show earned praise for giving the trans community a voice, and Cox became the first African-American transgender individual to appear in a series she created.

Best known for playing Don Draper on "Mad Men," Jon Hamm wasn't always as smooth and dapper as his TV persona. In the 90s, the future Emmy winner was a contestant on the dating show "The Big Date." Competing to go on a date with a lady named Mary, a floppy-haired Hamm proved that his flirtation still needed a bit of work. After pitching a date idea that included food and a foot massage, Mary opted to go with another suitor. Clips of the episode were even edited into an episode of "Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt," showing that Hamm has a good sense of humor about the whole thing.

Marvel fans know him as Hawkeye, but did you know Jeremy Renner was once part of the Bravo Universe? When he was an aspiring actor, Renner appeared on the network's series "The It Factor." Over two seasons, the show followed struggling actors' lives in New York City and Los Angeles. Other notable actors who appeared on "Factor" include Michaela Conlin and Godfrey. Years later, when asked about the show, Renner admitted that the experience was more personally helpful than it was professionally. But something tells us that he's doing just fine as he is.

As one of the biggest music stars of the 21st century, it's hard to remember a time when Beyoncé wasn't at the forefront of pop culture royalty. However, like most artists, she began working on creating a name for herself by seizing every opportunity that came her way. Working with an all-girl group known as "Girl's Tyme," Beyoncé performed on the national talent show "Star Search." In the end, the band did not win, but that didn't stop the future "Single Ladies" singer from continuing to pursue her passion. She joined a long list of other superstars like Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera, who also lost the competition but went on to achieve bigger and better things.

Before her music videos played on MTV, Lady Gaga, aka Stefani Germanotta, appeared on the network as herself. In the mid-2000s, she was on the reality prank show "Boiling Points." The hidden camera style series took credulous people and set them up in frustrating scenarios to test how upset they would get. If they stayed calm, they won a monetary prize. During Germanotta's prank, her meal disappears after she steps away from her table at a restaurant. She ended up losing her cool and not winning the money, but luckily, this was not the last we saw of the megastar.

Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions.

David Giuntoli
Before Solving Supernatural Crimes On “Grimm,” He Was on “Road Rules”

Heather Morris
This Triple Threat Two-Stepped From “So You Think You Can Dance?” to “Glee”

Lucy Hale
She’s a “Pretty Little Liar,” But Before That Sang on “American Juniors”

Melissa Villaseñor
Future “SNL” Star Made an Impression on “America’s Got Talent”

Chase Rice
Now a Country Crooner, But Once a Runner-Up on “Survivor”

An Academy Award winner and movie star extraordinaire, Emma Stone has become one of Hollywood's finest actresses since she burst onto the scene in 2007's "Superbad." While hustling from audition to audition as a teen, Stone earned her first tv credit as a contestant on VH1's "In Search of the New Partridge Family." The premise for this unsold pilot was to assemble a brand new cast for a remake of the beloved 70s comedy. The future "La La Land" actress competed for the role of Laurie and showed off her vocal chops. In the end, the remake did not go ahead, and Stone continued to audition for project after project until she finally hit her stride and became the household name she is today.

Which one of these entries shocked you the most? Let us know in the comments!