Musicians' Real Names

Alright, to avoid the risk of dating myself, I've made up that example but think about it?
Haven't you ever been curious about who Ole' Dirty Bastard really is?  Perhaps you don't even know who he is but I do wonder whether or not his parents (who were no doubt at least a little religious) really looked at their newborn son and said, "I don't know... He's a little dirty"  Then as our proud new father was holding his son, Little Dirty endeavored to go number one for the first time, spraying Papa Dirty (?), "Dirty Bastard!"  Hence a popular rap star was born and christened Dirty Bastard.  Now while that's at least plausible, I can't figure out where his full name "Ole" Dirty Bastard came from and can only guess that as  Dirty Bastard grew older, he acquired Ole' as a nickname.  Seems logical.

I've started a quest, I find it amusing that famous people change their names and am determined to bring them out of the closet (so to speak)!  Georgios Panayoltis can no longer hide behind George Michael!  The next time I see George in a nightclub bathroom, I'll be sure to say, "Hello, Georgios"

I hope you enjoy what I've found:

Ole' Dirty Bastard (ODB) - Russell Tyrone Jones

Dr. Dre 

Notorious B.I.G. - Christopher Wallace

Eminem - Marshall Mathers

Elton John - Reginald White

George Michael - Georgios Panayoltis

Edge (U2) - David Evans

Axl Rose - William Bailey

Billy Idol - William Broad

Cat Stevens - Stephen Demetre Georgiou (now Yusuf Islam)

Chubby Checker - Ernest Evans

Meatloaf - Marvin Lee Aday

Stevie Wonder - Steveland Studkins

Madonna

Prince

Tina Turner - Ana Mae (Alcott?)

Tone Loc

LL Cool J

Wyclef

Kid Rock - Robert James Ritchie (Bob Ritchie)

Vanilla Ice

Ice T

MC Hammer

Ringo Starr - Richard Starkey

Steven Tyler - Steven Tailer

B. B. King - Riley B. King

Sting - Gordon Sumner

Jon Bon Jovi - John Bongiovi

Jay-Z - Shawn Corey Carter

Nelly - Cornell Haynes Jr.

Ludacris - Christopher Bridges

-P. O'Brien
Published -- 03/10/03