7 Pretty Successful Music Career Of Stars That People Already Forgot

It's possible that actor-musicians are the hyphenates you run into most frequently out of all the many dual titles available in Hollywood. On the other hand, for every person who has demonstrated actual talent in both fields (such as Frank Sinatra, Barbra Streisand, Tom Waits, Zooey Deschanel, Mos Def, Liza Minnelli, and Jamie Foxx), there is a Steven Seagal. Here is a list of seven famous people who also had careers in music that have been largely forgotten.

1. Eddie Murphy

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Eddie Murphy had a banner decade in the 1980s. He was also one of the greatest names on Saturday Night Live, a headliner in some of Hollywood's biggest Movies, a critically acclaimed stand-up comic, and the host of two comedy specials (Delirious and Raw) became cultural touchstones.
Despite his busy schedule, he nevertheless found time to pursue a singing career, from which he ultimately released two Top 40 singles: "Party All the Time" in 1985 and "Put Your Mouth on Me" in 1989. It's no secret that the former song's producer, Rick James, is a devotee. Many people consider it the worst music ever, despite the fact that it's actually kind of catchy.

2. William Shatner

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Though not a full-fledged musician, Leonard Nimoy's Star Trek co-star also made a name for himself in the music industry with his 1968 spoken word album The Transformed Man, on which he gave popular songs like "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" and "Mr. Tambourine Man" a Shatner-esque spin. Since then, he has released several albums, the most recent being 2013's Ponder the Mystery.

3. Steven Seagal

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Aside from his time spent as one of Hollywood's most recognizable action stars in the '80s and '90s, Steven Seagal has also tried his hand at being an aromatherapist, an energy drink manufacturer, a law enforcer, and even a musician. Songs from the Crystal Cave, Seagal's debut album, was dubbed by Sputnik Music as "the Plan 9 From Outer Space of records" because of its inclusion in a handful of Seagal's films, including Fire Down Below.

4. Bruce Willis

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Although he is notable, Steven Seagal is hardly the only action star to dabble with music. At the height of Moonlighting's popularity in 1987, Bruce Willis produced an album called The Return of Bruno that fused pop and blues and featured a smashing track by The Pointer Sisters called "Respect Yourself." The above video, which accompanied the piece, was suitably dramatic. Follow-up album If It Don't Kill You, Makes You Stronger came out in 1989.

5. Jennifer Love Hewitt

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Jennifer Love Hewitt has been singing for as long as she has been acting, thanks to her time on the variety show Kids Incorporated; she sang backup on her former co-star Martika's smash hit from 1989, "Toy Soldiers." Although her debut album, Love Songs, was published in 1992, when she was just 12 years old, her music career didn't take off until she became a famous actress.
Her first charting single was the 1999 effort "How Do I Deal," which she had originally recorded for the soundtrack to I Still Know What You Did Last Summer. Unfortunately, the country record that was said to be in the works by Hewitt back in 2009 has yet to be released.

6. Burt Reynolds

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A year after his infamous nude Cosmopolitan cover shoot, Burt Reynolds took another chance by releasing an album and co-starring with Dolly Parton in the film The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, both of which featured Reynolds's singing talents. Listeners reportedly weren't enthusiastic.

7. Shaquille O'Neal

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That's right, Shaquille O'Neal is primarily recognized for his athletic prowess. You can't convince Kazaam users, people who have bought Icy Hot or Gold Bond over the years, or any of the other products Shaq has endorsed, that he isn't also a skilled actor. When Shaq released his platinum album Shaq Diesel in the early '90s, he added "rapper" to his resume.