25 celebrities you didn’t know had music careers

Penn Badgley

Not only is he THE Gossip Girl (spoiler, sorry), but Penn Badgley is also a musician!

After starting his acting career at the ripe young age of 11, it wasn’t until the film John Tucker Must Die that Penn started getting some attention. But it was the CW hit Gossip Girl that really put him on the map. As the funny, brooding Dan Humphrey, Penn became known around the world and went on to appear in films such as The Stepfather and Easy A.

It wasn’t until 2014 that Penn started making moves in the music industry. With his band, then named Mother (stylized as M O T H E R), he released the single “Easy” on SoundCloud. The band had to change their name because of another band named Mother that threatened legal action, so they went with MOTHXR instead.

The band was signed to a label in 2015 and released their debut album Centerfold in February 2016. They haven’t had a huge impact on the music industry, but have toured with acts like San Cisco, Sir Sly, Har Mar Superstar, The Neighbourhood, and Miami Horror.

Like many actors, Penn’s music career seems to be more of a side project to his acting. Even though he hasn’t been very present on-screen these days either, he is still known for his acting career far more than he is for the role of the lead singer of MOTHXR (that name is really irritating to both write and read). Next up for Penn is a role in the upcoming Lifetime television series, You.