Music Industry Fails These 16 Celebs' Attempt To Sing Gave Us Second Hand Embarrassment

There are plenty of celebrities out there who manage to successfully transition from one side of the entertainment industry to another. Perhaps they started as a musician, and ended up trying their hand at acting and finding that they were skilled at that too (talk about a triple threat!). There are some who pursue acting, but always had a dream of being a singing sensation, so they veer into that lane.

Now, the one thing celebrities have going for them that most people don't is name recognition. If a celebrity puts out an album, plenty of people will check it out simply to see what they've done. The problem is, that makes it even more embarrassing when they fall flat on their faces because they just aren't talented enough to make it in the music industry.

The 16 celebrities on this list are varying degrees of awful when it comes to their musical talents, but they have one thing in common - their music careers were kind of cringeworthy and make us totally embarrassed for them. Perhaps they ought to just stick to their day jobs, where they're raking in the dough, and leave the singing to the professionals who have dedicated their lives to honing that craft.

16 Heidi Montag, who dropped an album during her downward spiral

There are some reality television stars who try to move beyond their reality television days as soon as their show wraps, and step away from the spotlight to pursue other goals. Then, there are the ones who try to do anything possible to extend their 15 minutes of fame - guess which camp Heidi Montag falls into. She became known for her willingness to do anything to get a little spotlight, and that includes attempting to become a pop star. She put together an album entitled, aptly, Superficial, and released a single called "Body Language." It was wildly unsuccessful - it cost more to make it than it pulled in in sales, which is a pretty big flop - and when she performed it live on stage at the Miss Universe pageant, literally everyone watching cringed.

15 David Hasselhoff, who made a staggering 18 cringeworthy albums

I mean, when you think of how cheesy David Hasselhoff is in general, chances are you assumed his music career would have that cringeworthy element - and you'd be totally right. However, you may want to prepare yourself for this little stat - over the years, the Hoff has released a staggering 18 studio albums. That's right - he's released more than many of the chart-toppers making it big in the industry today. Now, just because he released them obviously doesn't mean they were successful, and thanks to all the dough from his Baywatch days, he can likely afford to fund a passion project. Most audiences around the world find him cringeworthy, but he's weirdly popular in Germany, so… if he ever wants to completely stop acting, he can just move to Deutschland and become a huge pop star, we guess?

14 Naomi Campbell, who should probably just stick to modelling

Most pop stars, in addition to having a decent set of pipes, are absolutely gorgeous. I mean, that's part of their image - they always have perfect hair, perfect make-up, and stage outfits that showcase their perfect physique. So, appearance wise, it makes sense that a model could transition to being a pop star. However, Naomi Campbell seems to have forgotten the small fact that, you know, you still need to have at least a somewhat decent voice. We bet she looked phenomenal on stage, but her album Babywoman (we know, we know, even the title is cringeworthy) was a huge flop. It just goes to prove that sometimes it's better to just stick with what you do well than to try to venture into other spheres of the entertainment industry.

13 Lindsay Lohan, who tried to turn her teen success into a career as a pop star - and fizzled out almost immediately

To say Lindsay Lohan's career took a bit of a detour over the years is an understatement. The actress was on the rise, starring in successful teen flicks and climbing her way to the top with her signature red locks - and she decided that the world of acting just wasn't enough. She wanted to be a pop star as well. So, at the height of her fame, she decided to put out an album. The biggest hit, "Rumours," was pretty much a direct reference to all the gossip blogs and tabloids' interest in her, and not long after her music career started, she took a step back from the entertainment industry entirely to work on her personal issues. She hasn't indicated that she's interested in returning to the music industry, but hey - never say never.

12 Paris Hilton, whose single proves that you can pretend to be anything if you have enough money, even a pop star

Today, we have the pack of Kardashian-Jenner women to take over the category of reality television stars and individuals who are basically famous only for being famous. Back in the day, though, that title went to one blonde heiress - Paris Hilton. Hilton rose to the top thanks to her party girl socialite status, and managed to somehow take that fame and snag multiple reality television shows. And, as if that wasn't enough, she decided she wanted to become a pop star as well. So, she released a single, "Stars Are Blind," which was shockingly bad, complete with a totally cheesy music video. She didn't become the next pop sensation, but she hasn't had quite enough of the music industry yet - her new plan is to become a DJ, which… okay, we'll see how that goes.

11 Tyra Banks, whose sole single "Shake Ya Body" is legendary (and not for good reasons)

Oh, Tyra. As a businesswoman, Tyra Banks has actually been shockingly savvy. She went from being a model strutting her stuff on the runway to creating a wildly successful reality television show, America's Next Top Model. She even did a stint as a talk show host, because why not? She's Tyra! However, true fans of ANTM will remember the cringeworthy episode where she tried to launch her music career by getting all the aspiring models to appear in the music video for her hit-to-be, "Shake Ya Body." It was the worst kind of cheesy club music, and though the world kept watching the show, they didn't exactly rush to pick up her music. Banks was smart enough to realize that perhaps the pop world wasn't for her, and take a step back from her aspiring musician dreams.

10 Jennifer Love Hewitt, who spent almost a decade trying to make it as a pop star

We hope you're ready to be a little shook by this one - Jennifer Love Hewitt pursued her dream of being a pop star for a literal decade. That's right - between 1992 and 2002, she released a whopping four albums, which is a pretty serious commitment - way more than the average actress who releases an album, or even just a single, before realizing the whole singing thing isn't for them. You may vaguely remember the most famous of her albums, BareNaked, but… saying it's the most famous doesn't necessarily mean it hit the top of the charts. However, her acting career stayed pretty steady through the years, so perhaps pop music was just a fun side project for her - there's nothing wrong with having hobbies! She's gorgeous enough to be a pop star, but she just didn't quite have the pipes.

9 Kim Kardashian, who proved that she should just stick to reality television

To be perfectly honest, we're a little bit surprised that more of the Kardashian-Jenner women haven't attempted a music career - although our ears are probably grateful. At this point, it's only Kim who gave it a shot - and to her credit, she's savvy enough to realize that she made a huge mistake. Back in 2011, before the Kardashians were quite as huge as they are today, Kim tried to use her fame to launch a pop career and released a single called "Jam (Turn It Up)." It was… not great. As you may have expected, that test single ended up being just an embarrassing memory for Kim, and not the song that launched the next pop sensation. Well, not everyone can be good at everything - there aren't many reality television stars who have been on a show as long as Kim, so she's succeeding in other arenas.

8 Tough guy Bruce Willis, who tried to kick off an R&B singing career in the '80s

Sometimes, it's the ones you would least expect, right? Bruce Willis so frequently plays the tough guy in movies, so we just can't picture him crooning into a microphone. However, that's exactly what he did in the '80s. His acting career was heating up, and he decided that he wanted to try his hand at the music industry as well - in the R&B genre, no less. He released a few albums, including some cover songs, and even the name of the first one makes us cringe - The Return of Bruno, released in 1987. How embarrassing. Luckily, he didn't pursue it for decades to come - after a few years he realized that perhaps he'd better just stick to the whole acting thing, and given that he still has a pretty solid career today, that was obviously the right choice. Sorry, Bruno - it seems that the public prefers Bruce.

7 Alyssa Milano, who followed up her child star years by being a pop star - but pretty much only in Japan

It seems that an inordinately large number of female actresses have a secret desire to be a pop star - and child star turned regular actress Alyssa Milano was one of them! She became a household name at a young age, and in the late '80s/early '90s she decided she wanted to try out the music industry. So, she released a few albums, which basically no one remembers today because they were only released in Japan. Yeah - we're not exactly sure what the reasoning behind that is, either. Milano's acting career has stretched across decades, so perhaps it was a wise move on her part to focus on that rather than nurturing her dreams of becoming a pop star. Although, who knows - perhaps she could make it big in Japan if she headed over there.

6 Scarlett Johansson, who has a decent voice but whose debut album was a total snooze

Scarlett Johansson is solid proof that having a decent voice isn't all that it takes to become a successful musician - it's a lot more than that. Sure, some pop stars who don't write their own music basically just have to have a good voice and show up to record the songs and learn the choreography, but even then, they have to have a certain something about them, that star power. She tried her best, releasing an album that was mostly Tom Waits covers, for some reason. Even though she was a major celebrity, while fans were more than happy to come check out her latest movie, they weren't exactly lining up to buy her album. Who knows - she's still young, perhaps in a few years she'll try her hand at recording another album (although for her sake, we hope not!).

5 Gwyneth Paltrow, before she got into the wellness game, tried to make a music career happen

Gwyneth Paltrow is a bit of a polarizing celebrity, and has tried her hand at a lot of ventures, from health and wellness to publishing. She can add the music industry to the list of fields she's tried to break into, because Paltrow apparently tried to follow in her former hubby's footsteps. Way back in 2000, she released an album called Duets. She's taken on a role where she played a singer - Country Strong - and got a guest starring role on Glee, where she shook her stuff on the camera while belting out hits. However, there's just something about Gwyneth as a musician that people didn't connect with, so her music career never really went anywhere. It seems the wellness world is working out for her, so perhaps it's best to focus on Goop for now.

4 Superstar basketball player Kobe Bryant, who thought he could be a rapper and released just one single

Kobe Bryant is one of the most legendary basketball players to ever play the game - but that talent on the court doesn't necessarily translate to talent in the recording studio, as he quickly found out. While he was at the top of his game, Bryant decided he wanted to become a rap star - so he hit the studio and recorded his single, "K.O.B.E." You'd think he would have had a built in fan base thanks to his athletic career, but that wasn't the case - the single did shockingly poorly, and the album was actually dropped. The whole thing was embarrassing - luckily, most people still remember Bryant for his skills on the court rather than his failed attempt at launching a music career. You can't win them all, right? It's best to leave rapping to the pros.

3 Farrah Abraham, who it seems will do literally anything to seek more fame

Speaking of celebrities who would do literally anything to stay in the spotlight - Farrah Abraham most definitely falls into that camp. She got her taste of reality television fame when she was still a teenager, as a teenage mom on MTV's successful series, and has since done everything from working in the adult industry to writing a memoir to releasing an album. All her efforts to showcase her 'talent' are pretty cringeworthy, but the album was definitely one of the worst. She called it My Teenage Dream Ended, and her single "Blowin'" (which she wrote herself, which should tell you everything you need to know about it) was pretty much universally hated. Perhaps it's a better idea to just stick with bouncing from one reality television show to another rather than venturing into the music industry.

2 Kim Zolciak, whose single "Tardy for the Party" is one of the most cringeworthy songs ever

To be quite honest, we're surprised that more Housewives haven't attempted a music career - but when it comes to who did the most cringeworthy foray into the industry, Kim Zolciak takes the cake. At one point, she started working on a country album, which thankfully no one had to hear. When that fizzled out, she set her sights on the pop world, putting together a single that is truly cringeworthy - "Tardy For The Party." She followed that up with "Google Me" and "Love Me First," so… her songs clearly really dig deep into her emotions and dreams. We're hoping that she's decided to put a stop to her music industry attempts, but who knows - there could very well be another batch of singles that she's working on in the recording studio right now.

1 Mike "The Situation" Sorrentino, who proved that no one wants to fist pump to his song

Pauly D, who was Mike "The Situation" Sorrentino's fellow cast member on Jersey Shore, embarked on a music career and makes a decent living working as a DJ. Apparently, Sorrentino decided that if Pauly could make it in the music industry, so could he - as a rapper. Sorrentino released a song that was essentially a tribute to his nickname - "The Situation" - and the world cringed and avoided it completely. The public's reaction seems to have shown Sorrentino that the music industry just isn't for him, but who knows - perhaps after he finally runs out of reality television shows to appear on, he'll give it another whirl. We're betting he goes for R&B next time, since he's at least realized that his rapping skills leave a little something to be desired.