Singers Cee Lo Green and Idina Menzel are celebrating their birthdays today.
Cee Lo Green, 40
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Singer-songwriter, rapper, record producer and actor Cee Lo Green turns 40 today. Born Thomas DeCarlo Callaway, Green started his career as a member of the southern hip hop group Goodie Mob, and as part of the soul duo Gnarls Barkley, with record producer Danger Mouse. His song "Crazy," with Gnarls Barkley, was ranked as the No.1 song of the decade by Rolling Stone.
Green's first solo album, Cee-Lo Green and His Perfect Imperfections, was released in April 2002. The album wasn't well received, but he did receive airplay with the track "Closet Freak." His second album, Cee-Lo Green... Is the Soul Machine, featured collaborations with many artists including Ludacris, Pharrell, T.I., Timbaland, The Neptunes and Jazze Pha. In 2010, Green released the track "F*** You," earning him five Grammy Nominations, and was certified Gold in the United States. His third studio album, The Lady Killer, reached No. 9 on the Billboard 200 chart.
Green also transitioned into acting, appearing in the films Mystery Men and Hotel Transylvania. He also made numerous television appearances in the Brak Show, Boondocks, American Dad! and Anger Management. Green served as a judge on the NBC singing competition The Voice, but will not return to future seasons in order to focus on his career. Green is currently working on his fifth studio album.
Idina Menzel, 43
Photo Courtesy of ACE/INFphoto.com
Film and theater actress and singer-songwriter Idina Menzel turns 43 today. She rose to fame with her role as Maureen Johnson in the hit Broadway musical Rent, reprising the role for the 2005 feature film adaptation of the musical. In 1996, she received a Tony Award nomination for her performance in Rent. In 2004, she won the Tony Award for Best Leading Actress in a Musical for her role in the blockbuster Broadway musical Wicked. She made her return to Broadway in the 2014 musical If/Then, and is currently a nominee for the 2014 Tony Award for Best Leading Actress in a Musical for her performance.
Menzel is also known for her recurring role of Shelby Corcoran in the television series Glee. She also starred in the Disney movie Enchanted, and as the voice of Elsa the Snow Queen in Frozen, in which she sang the Academy Award-winning song "Let It Go." The song peaked at No. 5 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, making Menzel the only competitive Tony Award-winning actress to ever reach the top 10.
Menzel has a son, Walker Nathaniel Diggs, with husband Taye Diggs. The two separated in 2013 after 10 years of marriage.