Whoopi Goldberg Fiercely Defends Malia Obama’s Stage Name

Whoopi Goldberg Defends Malia Obama’s New Stage Name

Whoopi Goldberg is showing her support for Malia Obama.

Barack Obama and Michelle Obama’s oldest daughter raised some eyebrows when it was noted that she is choosing to drop her famous last name and professionally go by Malia Ann on her latest project The Heart.

“Apparently some folks online are criticizing her for it,” the View host said during the Feb. 21 episode, “claiming everyone knows she’s an Obama, so it’s pointless to hide it.”

But, as Whoopi noted, Malia is hardly the first person to change her name Hollywood. In fact, Whoopi herself changed her name from Caryn Elaine Johnson as her career took off.

“If she knows she’s an Obama, why do you care? Why do you care what she calls herself?” she continued. “If she wanted to call herself Jeanette MacDonald, she has the right to! If I can be Whoopi Goldberg, she can be whoever the hell she wants to be!”

And the Sister Act star certainly doesn’t understand why it’s such a BFD to some.

“I mean why are people triggered by this kind of stuff?” she said. “Why are people wasting their time?”

“Leave this child alone,” Whoopi added. “Leave her alone.”

And her cohosts agree. While Sara Haines noted that with the last name Obama, everything “probably harkens her parents,” Alyssa Farah Griffin pointed out, the Harvard grad was truly in a “damned if you do, damned if you don’t” situation. 

Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images; Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images

Not that the 25-year-old is fazed. After all, her career is skyrocketing after her directorial debut The Heart premiered at Sundance and she added a staff writer credit on the Amazon Prime show Swarm to her resume.

And, according to show creator Donald Glover, parents didn’t play a role in how she was treated on set. 

“I feel like she’s just somebody who’s gonna have really good things coming soon. Her writing style is great,” Donald told Vanity Fair in March 2022. With his brother Stephen Glover adding, “We can’t be easy on her just because she’s the [former] President’s daughter.”

Keep reading for more stars who have opted to change their names.

Mike Coppola/Getty Images for iHeartMedia

Belcalis Almanzar

Cardi B took on the name Bacardi after family and friends started calling her sister Hennessy. Later on she shortened the name to something that suited her quite a bit more.

Tim Rooke/Shutterstock

Rachel Meghan Markle

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

Kevin Winter/Getty Images for Stagecoach

Eilleen Regina Edwards

Shania Twain shared the origin story of her stage name during an appearance on Apple Music’s Home Now Radio: “In short, I was born, Eilleen Regina Edwards, and then I was adopted and I became Eilleen Regina Twain. Then I became a professional singer and I needed a stage name that sounded a little less like my grandmother’s name, because I’m named after my grandmother, both my grandmothers, Eilleen and Regina. I think, in my mind, I was just not really wanting to be called my grandmother’s name onstage, so I decided to change it to Shania Twain. I met somebody with the name Shania, thought it was beautiful, and Shania Twain was born.”

Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images

Jelena Noura Hadid

Oddly enough, Gigi Hadid got her stage name in school when the teacher would confuse her and a girl named Helena. Since her mom called her “gigi” as a term of endearment at home, she told the teacher to just call her Gigi and it simply stuck. 

Monica Schipper/Getty Images

Mark Vincent

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

Chelsea Lauren/REX/Shutterstock

Destiny Hope Cyrus

Miley Cyrus’ bright smile is what inspired her childhood nickname, Smiley. Eventually the name was shortened to Miley and it stuck. 

Kevin Mazur/WireImage

Peter Gene Hernandez

Apparently the singer looked more like a Bruno than a Peter, so one day his dad started calling him Bruno. Ever since, he has been known as Bruno Mars.

Jeff Kravitz/Getty Images for Live Nation

Stefani Germanotta

Before the meat dresses and chart-topping music, Lady Gaga was just an everyday girl from New York.

Rich Fury/Getty Images

Daniel Sudeikis

Jason Sudeikis confirmed on Today that he was named Daniel after his father, but following some confusion, his mom started using his middle name Jason to avoid confusion. 

Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for Academy Museum of Motion Pictures

Emily Stone

Emma Stone ended adopting this stage name after finding out that the Screen Actors Guild already had a member registered under her birthname. 

Jim Smeal/REX/Shutterstock

Laura Jeanne Reese Witherspoon

Turns out Reese isn’t even Reese Witherspoon’s middle name. The actress chose the moniker in honor of her mother, whose maiden name is Reese.

Jon Kopaloff/FilmMagic

Elizabeth Woolridge Grant

Every artist has an alter ego, and Lana Del Rey just happens to be the persona of choice for the singer. 

Jason Merritt/Getty Images

Christopher Edwin Breaux

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

Theo Wargo/Getty Images for Tribeca Festival

Elizabeth Stamatina Fey

A little known fact about 30 Rock’s Tina Fey is that she is actually named Elizabeth. The comedian made a not so subtle tribute to her birth name by naming her character Liz Lemon.

Jason Merritt/Getty Images

Calvin Broadus

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

Lester Cohen/Getty Images for NARAS

Ella Marija Lani Yelich-O’Connor

Turns out the “Royals” singer is really into learning about the aristocracy, hence the reason why she chose the name Lorde, but with a feminine ‘e.’

Laura Cavanaugh/Getty Images

Enrique Morales

Before he started shaking his bonbon for the masses, music superstar Ricky Martin went by this everyday name.

Frazer Harrison/Getty Images

Amethyst Kelly

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

Matt Baron/REX/Shutterstock

Adam Richard Wiles

Fans were confused when Taylor Swift thanked then-boyfriend Adam in an acceptance speech, which lead people to the discovery that Calvin Harris is simply a stage name. The DJ told Shortlist magazine he chose the name because his first single was more soulful and wanted something a bit more “racially ambiguous.”

Tim P. Whitby/Getty Images

Jennifer Anastassakis

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

Jason Merritt/Getty Images

Alicia Augello Cook

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

Mike Coppola/WireImage

Thomas Mapother IV

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

Kevin Lee/Getty Images

Natalie Hershlag

Back when she was born in 1980, this was how the future bigtime actress Natalie Portman greeted the world.

Jason Merritt/Getty Images

Amanda Lee Rogers

Before she became a big-time TV star and married Ellen DeGeneres, this was the name Portia de Rossi answered to.

Jim Dyson/Redferns

Reginald Dwight

Guess music superstar Elton John didn’t think his original name would be a hit with audiences.

Jeff Vespa/WireImage

Nicole Camilla Escovedo

Check former Paris Hilton BFF Nicole Richie’s birth certificate and this is the name you’ll see.

Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic

Paul Hewson

All it took was a nickname from some high school friends, and U2 frontman Bono’s famous moniker was born.

Jason Merritt/Getty Images

Tara Patrick

We agree. Carmen Electra is much more effective when it comes to selling a sexy Baywatch persona.

Paul A. Hebert/WireImage

Eric Bishop

True, Jamie Foxx just seems more fitting for an Oscar-winning Hollywood party guy.

Gilbert Flores/WWD via Getty Images

Demetria Gene Guynes

Before she’d starred in dozens of huge Hollywood movies and married two Tinseltown A-listers, this was the name Demi Moore went by.

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