Did You Know These Stars Were All Teen Parents?

By Michael Avery in Entertainment On 4th November 2016

Celebrities. They’re just like us. And in that vein, some of them had babies as teenagers, probably long before they’d planned on becoming parents. Teenage parents, mothers in particular, have become something of a fascination in our culture with the advent of Teen Mom and all of its subsequent seasons. The teen mothers on the show have become something of celebrities themselves but let’s not forget the original celebrity teen parents who went on to have successful careers despite having had their first children at a very young age:

Sofia Vergara

It is shocking when you see Sofia now and know that she is only 42 to hear that she has a 22-year old son. She had him at the age of 19 after marrying her high school sweetheart whom she later divorced. Sofia is now engaged to True Blood hunk Joe Manganiello, so hopefully, they will have another child together who will be more beautiful than any baby that's ever existed!

Keisha Castle-Hughes

Keisha Castle-Hughes, one of the stars of "Game of Thrones," had a daughter right after she turned 17 after starring in, ironically, The Nativity Story in the role of the Virgin Mary. She has gone on to act in a few other projects while raising her daughter but seems to have largely avoided the spotlight since becoming a mom.

Whoopi Goldberg

Actress, Comedian, and "The View" co-host Whoopi Goldberg became a mother at age 18.

Aretha Franklin

By far the youngest parent on this list Aretha Franklin had a child at age 14. Yes, you read that right. The Queen of Soul had her first child when she was just 14 years old!

Emily Maynard

Emily Maynard was a contestant on The Bachelor and later went on to star as The Bachelorette. The audience was frequently reminded throughout the shows that she had a young daughter, Ricki, but what they might not have known is that Emily was quite young herself when she gave birth at age 18. Sadly, she found out she was pregnant only days after the untimely death of the little girl's father, Ricky Hendrick. It must have been tough for Emily to become a teen mother amid such tragedy but it looks like she's made a wonderful life for her little girl.

Maya Angelou

Famed poet and writer Maya Angelou became a mother at 17.

Fantasia Barrino

The former American Idol contestant gave birth to her daughter when she was 16.

Bristol Palin

Sarah Palin's daughter Bristol became a mother at 17 with the birth of her son Tripp.

Solange Knowles

The lesser-known younger sister of powerhouse pop star (and Queen of the World) Beyonce Knowles, Solange had her first child at age 17. She married her son's father but they later divorced. She remarried in 2014 and has had some success as an artist since then as well as releasing a line of hip-hop themed children's clothing, inspired by her son.

Niki Taylor

Niki has twin sons that she gave birth to at only 18 years old. She divorced their father just a few years later and has since remarried and had two more children. Being a young mom didn't seem to hinder her with her career and her sons are now 21 years old.

Jamie-Lynn Spears

Jamie-Lynn's teen motherhood is probably pretty common knowledge to most but I included her because she's such a great example of a young mom doing her best to raise her daughter despite being a kid herself when having her child at only 16. As a TV star and also, Britney Spears' younger sister, she definitely had resources beyond most teen moms but the way Jamie-Lynn has largely stayed out of the spotlight to raise her little girl is admirable and worthy of note.

LeBron James

Some celebrity dads were teen parents as well and one of the best known is NBA player LeBron James, who became a father to his son at age 19 with high school sweetheart Savannah Brinson. They have gone on to have two more kids together.

Lil Wayne

Lil Wayne is the second youngest celebrity teen parent on this list having fathered his first child at only 15 years old. He has since had three other children, each with a different mother, for a total of four children by age 26. Yikes!

Naomi Judd

Naomi has two daughters who both grew up to be as famous as she is and the first was born when she was only 18. She had Wynonna Judd and then, Ashley four years later. It obviously didn't slow her down as she went on to become one of the most successful country artists of all time, alongside her oldest daughter. We all know Ashley is a prolific actress having appeared in countless movies.

Roseanne Barr

Roseanne had a daughter at the age of 17 and gave her up for adoption. She has since reunited with her and they have a relationship now. She has since had three other children.

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