Sterling K. Brown’s Heartfelt Return to His Birth Name Revealed!

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Sterling K. Brown is known by more names than just Randall Pearson.

Sterling K. Brown, a former star of “This Is Us”, has explained the reason behind using only his middle name until he turned 16 years old.

The award-winning individual stated on the April 5th episode of ‘The Kelly Clarkson Show’ that their father is named Sterling Brown Jr., while their grandfather is Sterling Brown Sr. They mentioned that they preferred a unique name for themselves and found Sterling to be more fitting for an elderly gentleman.

Later in life, the actor known as Kelby during his childhood – he’s now married to Ryan Michelle Bathé and they have two boys, Andrew, 13, and Amaré, 9 – decided to change his name as a tribute to his father who passed away due to a heart attack when he was a teenager.

Since he had already passed away when I was ten, by the time I reached 16, it had been over five years since I heard his name. At that point, I found myself longing to hear it again. So, I requested for people to start calling me Sterling, which was his name.

Besides his nickname, the profound effect of his father’s demise on Sterling’s life is evident in many ways. He has shared openly about the assorted memories he holds of his dad, ranging from challenging times to tender moments that still resonate with warmth.

He shared with Sunday Today in 2019 that he has vivid memories of the day his father passed away. “I can still recall waking up that morning, stepping into the kitchen, and finding my mother on a phone call with paramedics,” he said. “She asked me to dress my father because he was lying bare in the bed, and his body had stiffened.

Sterling remarked, “Dad looked at me from over the railing and gave a wink, just a wink. Then they took him out of the room, the last time I saw him.

And though he admitted his time with his father “was short,” he cherishes the memories. 

Sterling Brown, Jr. left me overflowing with love, as he put it. For ten years, this is exactly what I had wished for.

Read on for more stars who have opened up about their real names. 

Sterling Brown, Jr. conveyed to me an abundance of love, and it surpassed all my expectations for the past ten years, as he put it.

Read on for more stars who have opened up about their real names. 

The This Is Us alum explained why he went by his middle name Kelby until he was a teenager.

In his interview on The Kelly Clarkson Show in April 2025, he mentioned that his father is named Sterling Brown Jr., while his grandfather goes by Sterling Brown Sr. He explained during the same conversation that he chose a different name for himself because Sterling seemed more fitting for an older gentleman.

After several years had passed since his father’s heart attack-related death, Sterling opted to return to using his original name as a tribute to his deceased dad.

Since he had passed away when I was ten, by the time I turned sixteen and it had been over five and a half years since I’d heard his name, he said, “I just felt like I wanted to hear that name again. So I decided to be called Sterling instead.

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On the March 13, 2025 episode of her podcast “Not Gonna Lie with Kylie Kelce,” the former star of “2 Broke Girls” expressed to Kylie Kelce that she felt uncomfortable about her real name being publicly displayed, such as on a poster.

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For over three decades, it was thought that Cher went by Cherilyn as her legal first name. However, it wasn’t until the late 70s when she obtained her birth certificate to legally change her full name to simply ‘Cher’, that she found out she had actually been registered as “Cheryl” at birth.

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She replied, “Let me take a look at that,” and as she did so, she reminisced about her own difficult delivery at the age of 19, saying, “I was just a teenager, and it was incredibly painful for me. So, cut me some slack.

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Kudos to Post Malone, whose stage name includes his last name. Interestingly, this hip-hop artist prefers to be called by his birth name among his circle of friends instead.

At the 2024 MTV Video Music Awards, Taylor Swift called him “Austin” when they received the award for Best Collaboration for their song “Fortnight.

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Cardi B adopted the nickname Bacardi following relatives and acquaintances referring to her as her sister’s moniker, Hennessy. Over time, she abbreviated the name into something that better fit her personality.

Before she became the Duchess of Sussex, Meghan Markle was briefly known as Rachel. 

As a devoted fan, I’d like to share how Shania Twain revealed the tale behind her stage name during her appearance on Apple Music’s Home Now Radio. Essentially, she was originally named Eilleen Regina Edwards at birth, but after being adopted, she became Eilleen Regina Twain. Later on, as a professional singer, she desired a stage name that wasn’t too reminiscent of her grandmothers’, who were both named Eilleen and Regina. To avoid being called my grandmothers’ names onstage, I opted to change it to Shania Twain. I came across someone with the name Shania, found it enchanting, and thus, Shania Twain was born.

The performer behind “Good Luck, Babe!” has consistently portrayed a character named Chappell Roan during her stage performances. This drag persona serves as a protective barrier, helping her establish limits and maintain a distinction between her private life and her career in the entertainment industry.

It’s interesting to note that Gigi Hadid‘s stage name originated in school when her teacher often confused her with a classmate named Helena. Since ‘gigi’ was a term of affection her mom used at home, she requested the teacher to address her as Gigi instead, and it just became her nickname over time.

If you’re looking for an explosive action-star name, how about Vin Diesel instead?

Miley Cyrus got her childhood nickname, “Smiley”, due to her consistently cheerful grin. Over time, this nickname became abbreviated as just “Miley,” a name that has since become synonymous with her.

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It was revealed on Today that Jason Sudeikis was actually named Daniel after his father, but due to a mix-up, his mother began referring to him by his middle name, Jason, to prevent misunderstandings.

Emma Stone chose to use a stage name instead of her birth name, as she discovered that the Screen Actors Guild already had someone registered by that name.

It seems that “Reese Witherspoon” isn’t actually named after her mother’s maiden name. Instead, she picked the name to honor her mom, as that was her mother’s maiden name.

Every artist often has a secondary identity, and Lana Del Rey is the chosen persona of this particular singer.

In 2014, Frank Ocean legally changed his name because, why not? 

An intriguing detail about Tina Fey from the show 30 Rock is that her real name is Elizabeth. The comedian subtly paid homage to her given name by naming her character Liz Lemon.

This pioneer of West Coast rap would later go on to be known as Snoop Dogg.

It turns out that the artist known as “The Royals” singer has a keen interest in studying the nobility. This is likely why she selected the name Lorde, but with a feminine ‘e’ to reflect her gender.

Prior to becoming a music sensation known as Ricky Martin, he was commonly recognized by this ordinary name.

It’s hard to believe that Iggy Azalea was born Amethyst Kelly!

Fans were puzzled when Taylor Swift acknowledged Adam, her then-boyfriend, during an award acceptance speech, which eventually revealed that Calvin Harris is just a stage name. The DJ explained to Shortlist magazine that he picked this name as his debut single had a soulful vibe and he wanted something slightly more “multiracial-sounding.

Before she became a household name, this was what erstwhile Friend Jennifer Aniston answered to.

Alicia Keys didn’t always have such a musical name.

Before he became arguably the biggest movie star in the world, Tom Cruise went by this name.

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2025-04-08 04:20