40 Celebrities So Iconic They Go By a Single Name

While John, Paul, and George's names might be a bit more common, there's no mistaking Ringo. His real name is Sir Richard Starkey. His famous moniker was a nickname given to him for the many rings he wore on his hands.

Anyone who's ever watched Degrassi knows that the rapper's full name is Aubrey Drake Graham. His father gave him his middle name, and he's gone by it most of his life.

Queen Bey needs no introduction. Her mother's maiden name is Beyoncé, but only because of a typo on her birth certificate (the rest of the family spells it Beyince).

The U2 singer, whose real name is Paul David Hewson, got his moniker from the Latin word bonavox—which translates to "good voice." Can't argue with that.

There's a reason you can hear the "BRRRUUUCCCEEE" chants just from reading The Boss's name. Simply put, it's iconic.

The Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist, Michael Peter Balzary, got his now-iconic name after childhood friends noticed his jumpy, fidgety personality.

The late artist said it best in his 1992 hit song: "My name is Prince, and I am funky/ My name is Prince, the one and only." As it turns out, his name really was Prince Rogers Nelson.

Melissa Viviane Jefferson has Jay-Z to thank for her epic stage name. When she was a teen, she took on the nickname Lissa, before switching it to Lizzo after the rapper's song "Izzo (H.O.V.A.)."

Speaking of Jay-Z, or should we say Shawn Corey Carter, he chose his stage name as a nod to the J/Z subway station near his Brooklyn home.

Today, there's only one Leo in Hollywood—but there almost wasn't one at all. When he first got his start, agents tried to push the young actor to change his name to Lenny Williams. Luckily, he didn't take their advice.

Usher Raymond IV is a mouthful, but just Usher is hard to forget. The singer often puts his name in his hit songs. We dare you not to start humming "Yeah!" right now.

Born Marshall Bruce Mathers III, the rapper took on the stage name M&M, after his initials—before swapping it to Eminem. Much better on paper than the candy.

The rocker—Saul Hudson—told Metal Hammer he was nicknamed Slash by a friend's dad, because, "I was hustling at the time and never had time to sit and chat."

No big backstory here: The singer's real name is Madonna Louise Ciccone. Not many new parents have dared to name their kid after the Queen of Pop since—the most babies to be named Madonna in a single year was way back in 1955, with just 212.

Born Cherilyn Sarkisian, the star legally changed her name to just Cher—without any last name. Yes, it's even written on her passport that way.

RiRi is another star that goes by her middle name. Around close friends and family, however, she's Robyn Fenty. "I get kind of numb to hearing Rihanna, Rihanna, Rihanna," she told Rolling Stone. "When I hear Robyn, I pay attention."

The actress's full name is Zendaya Maree Stoermer Coleman, which most fans don't know, because she was inspired by the greats that came before her, telling Allure: "I [dropped my last name because I] just thought it was cool, like Cher or Prince."

Alecia Beth Moore's stage name wasn't just a nod to her once-neon hair color. She told Good Morning America there were "lots and lots and lots of reasons" behind it, including the character Mr. Pink in the Quentin Tarantino movie Reservoir Dogs.

The singer shortened his full name, Sealhenry Olusegun Olumide Adeola Samuel, once he began performing. Going from five names to one? Iconic.

The King of Rock and Roll was named after his father, Vernon, whose middle name was Elvis.