List of Famous people born in Mississippi, United States of America
Britney Spears
Britney Jean Spears is an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and actress. She is credited with influencing the revival of teen pop during the late 1990s and early 2000s, for which she is referred to as the "Princess of Pop". After appearing in stage productions and television series, Spears signed with Jive Records in 1997 at age 15. Her first two studio albums, certified diamond in the US, ...Baby One More Time (1999) and Oops!... I Did It Again (2000), were global successes and became two of the best-selling albums of all time, along with making her the best-selling teenage artist of all time. The former's title track was named the greatest debut single of all time by Rolling Stone in 2020 and the latter held a 15-year record for fastest-selling album by a female artist in the United States with first-week sales of over 1.3 million copies.
Larry Hoover
Larry Hoover is an American gang leader, a founder of the Chicago street gang called the Gangster Disciples. Hoover is currently serving six life sentences at the ADX Florence prison in Florence, Colorado. His sentences include a 150–200 year sentence for a 1973 murder; and in 1997, after a 17–year investigation of conspiracy, extortion, money laundering, and running a continuing criminal enterprise for leading the gang from state prison, he received a life sentence.
James Michael Tyler
James Michael Tyler is an American actor best known for his role as Gunther on the NBC sitcom Friends.
Gardner Minshew
Gardner Flint Minshew II is an American football quarterback for the Jacksonville Jaguars of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at East Carolina before transferring to Washington State, and was drafted by the Jaguars in the sixth round of the 2019 NFL Draft. Following an injury to starter Nick Foles in the opening game of 2019, Minshew took over starting duties until Foles returned later in the year. He took over starting duties again after Foles was benched following poor performance.
Lacey Chabert
Lacey Nicole Chabert is an American actress, voice actress and singer. One of her first roles was playing Erica Kane's daughter on All My Children. She was the third actress to play Bianca Montgomery, playing the part from 1992 until 1993. She then gained prominence as a child actress on television for her role as Claudia Salinger in the television drama Party of Five (1994–2000).
Oprah Winfrey
Oprah Gail Winfrey is an American talk show host, television producer, actress, author, and philanthropist. She is best known for her talk show, The Oprah Winfrey Show, broadcast from Chicago, which was the highest-rated television program of its kind in history and ran in national syndication for 25 years from 1986 to 2011. Dubbed the "Queen of All Media", she was the richest African American of the 20th century and North America's first black multi-billionaire, and she has been ranked the greatest black philanthropist in American history. By 2007, she was sometimes ranked as the most influential woman in the world.
Brett Favre
Brett Lorenzo Favre is an American former professional football player who was a quarterback in the National Football League (NFL), spending the majority of his career with the Green Bay Packers. He was a 20-year veteran of the NFL, having played quarterback for the Atlanta Falcons in 1991, the Packers from 1992 to 2007, the New York Jets in 2008, and the Minnesota Vikings from 2009 to 2010. Favre was the first NFL quarterback to pass for 500 touchdowns, throw for 70,000 yards, complete 6,000 passes, and attempt 10,000 passes.
DK Metcalf
DeKaylin Zecharius "DK" Metcalf is an American football wide receiver for the Seattle Seahawks of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Ole Miss. He is the son of former NFL guard Terrence Metcalf.
Jamie Lynn Spears
Jamie Lynn Marie Spears is an American actress and singer. She played the role of Zoey Brooks on the Nickelodeon teen sitcom Zoey 101 (2005–2008) and Noreen Fitzgibbons in the Netflix romantic drama series Sweet Magnolias (2020). In 2013, Spears launched a career in country music. She released her debut single, "How Could I Want More", along with her debut EP, The Journey.
James Earl Jones
James Earl Jones is an American actor whose career spans more than seven decades. He has been described as "one of America's most distinguished and versatile" actors for his performances in film, theater and television, and "one of the greatest actors in American history".
Marcus Dupree
Marcus L. Dupree is a former American football player. He was born and grew up in Philadelphia, Mississippi, where his playing in high school attracted national attention. A highly touted and sought-after college football recruit, he played at Oklahoma, where he was named Football News Freshman of the Year, second team All-American and Big Eight Conference Newcomer of the Year. He left in the middle of his sophomore season and briefly attended the University of Southern Mississippi. Marcus played spring football for the Golden Eagles and finished college at the university.
Alejandro Villanueva
Alejandro Villanueva Martínez is an American football offensive tackle for the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League (NFL). Villanueva was a captain in the United States Army, who served in the 2nd Battalion, 87th Infantry Regiment, 10th Mountain Division and later as an Army Ranger in the 1st Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment. During his time in the U.S. Army, Villanueva was decorated with a Bronze Star for valor. He played college football for the Army Black Knights, being recruited at one position and playing three others during the course of his career. After serving three tours of duty in Afghanistan, he signed a contract with the Philadelphia Eagles on May 5, 2014, after working out in a regional showcase. After being waived by Philadelphia, he was signed by the Pittsburgh Steelers and is currently the team's starting left tackle.
Tig Notaro
Mathilde "Tig" O'Callaghan Notaro is an American stand-up comic, writer, radio contributor, and actress. She is known for her deadpan comedy. Her acclaimed album Live was nominated in 2014 for the Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album at the 56th Annual Grammy Awards. The special Tig Notaro: Boyish Girl Interrupted was nominated in 2016 at the 68th Primetime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Writing for a Variety Special. In 2017, the album Boyish Girl Interrupted was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album at the 59th Annual Grammy Awards.
Sam Cooke
Samuel Cook, known professionally as Sam Cooke, was an American singer, songwriter, and entrepreneur. He was also influential as a composer and producer, and is commonly known as the King of Soul for his distinctive vocals and significance in popular music.
Archie Manning
Elisha Archibald Manning III is a former American football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 13 seasons, primarily with the New Orleans Saints. He was a member of the Saints from 1971 to 1982 and also had brief stints with the Houston Oilers and Minnesota Vikings. In college, he played for the Ole Miss Rebels football team at the University of Mississippi and was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1989. Manning is the father of Cooper Manning, and former NFL quarterbacks Peyton Manning and Eli Manning.
Ruby Bridges
Ruby Nell Bridges Hall is an American civil rights activist. She was the first African-American child to desegregate the all-white William Frantz Elementary School in Louisiana during the New Orleans school desegregation crisis on November 14, 1960. She is the subject of a 1964 painting, The Problem We All Live With by Norman Rockwell.
Fred Armisen
Fereydun Robert "Fred" Armisen is an American actor, comedian, writer, producer, and musician best known as a cast member on Saturday Night Live from 2002 until 2013. Armisen has portrayed characters in comedy films, including EuroTrip, Anchorman, and Cop Out. With his comedy partner Carrie Brownstein, Armisen was the co-creator and co-star of the IFC sketch comedy series Portlandia. Armisen founded ThunderAnt.com, a website that features the comedy sketches created with Brownstein, and is the bandleader and frequent drummer for the Late Night with Seth Meyers house band, The 8G Band.
John Neely Kennedy
John Neely Kennedy is an American lawyer and politician who has served as the junior United States Senator from Louisiana since 2017. A Democrat turned Republican, he previously served as the Louisiana State Treasurer from 2000 to 2017.
Brandy Norwood
Brandy Rayana Norwood, better known by her mononym Brandy, is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, actress, and businesswoman. Born into a musical family in McComb, Mississippi, Norwood was raised in Carson, California, beginning her career as a backing vocalist for teen groups. After signing with Atlantic Records in 1993, she released her self-titled debut album the following year, which sold six million copies worldwide. In 1996, Norwood began starring in the UPN sitcom Moesha as the title character, which lasted six seasons and resulted in numerous other roles. She resumed her music career in 1998 with the wildly successful duet with fellow R&B contemporary Monica, "The Boy Is Mine", which went on to become one of the best selling female duets of all time. Her second album, Never Say Never, featured two number one singles, and earned Norwood her first Grammy Award.
LeAnn Rimes
Margaret LeAnn Rimes Cibrian is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and author. Rimes rose to stardom at age 13 following the release of her version of the Bill Mack song "Blue", becoming the youngest country music star since Tanya Tucker in 1972.