25 celebrities whose real names will surprise you

GLENDALE, AZ – JANUARY 19: Singer/songwriter Katy Perry performs during a stop of ‘Witness: The Tour’ at Gila River Arena on January 19, 2018 in Glendale, Arizona. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)

Katy Perry (Katheryn Hudson)

Even though she isn’t an actress and she didn’t need to change her name for SAG reasons as so many others on this list have had to do, Katy Perry’s real name is extremely close to another famous lady. Katy was born Katheryn Hudson.

That’s right, Katy Perry was almost Katy Hudson. Sound familiar?

To avoid confusion with the actress Kate Hudson, who was already well known, Katy decided to use her mother’s maiden name. Before making that decision, Katy actually released a Christian pop album under the name Katy Hudson — and of course, you can find all the lyrics and the songs online if you’re feeling curious and can handle the early-2000s sound.

When that road didn’t pan out, Katy swapped out Hudson for Perry, dropped the album One of the Boys under her new name, and now she’s the colorful pop star and American Idol judge we all know today.