Jessica Simpson

Jessica Simpson Debuting as an adorable, all-American-looking pop singer with a powerful vocal range and squeaky clean image, Jessica Simpson initially stood in the shadows of her equally young, equally blonde pop predecessors Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera in her early career. Routinely compared to the two divas sometimes unfairly Simpson has struggled to be nothing more than herself. Yearning to make her mark, Simpson found her true voice not in music, but on television.

Born on July 10, 1980 in Dallas, Texas, Jessica Simpson was raised in a strict Christian home. Her father, Joe Simpson, was a minister at her local parish, as well as being a professional psychologist (and later Simpson's manager). When she turned 12, Simpson received a purity ring as a gift from her dad and a silver band with a cross to be worn until her wedding day. According to Simpson, she indeed retained her virtue until she married Lachey.

Simpson's third album, In This Skin, released amid heavy cross-promotion with the show, did not fare particularly well on the charts at first, but eventually became something of a sleeper hit upon re-release as her star continued to rise (Lachey's simultaneously launched solo album did not fare as well). As the couple's popularity skyrocketed, ABC inked them to host their own variety special, The Nick and Jessica Variety Hour (2004), which aired on Easter Sunday and drew sky-high ratings with 11.5 million viewers--high enough to prompt the network to sign the couple for a Christmas follow-up, Nick and Jessica's Family Christmas (2004), and Nick and Jessica's Tour of Duty (2005), a special in which they entertained U.S. troops in Iraq. The couple's high profile proved to be a marketing bonanza (Simpson launched cosmetic and clothing lines, and garnered commercial endorsements for the likes of Pizza Hut's Buffalo wings) and also fueled the career of Jessica's younger sister, singer/actress Ashlee Simpson, who also earned her own MTV reality show and album deal.

The downside of the young couple's newfound fame was that they were suddenly fodder for a seemingly endless array of cover stories among the weekly celebrity gossip magazines, usually weighing in on the state of their marriage. Almost as soon as Jessica Simpson was cast as cutoff-clad Southern Belle Daisy Duke in the big screen remake of the fondly recalled '70s series The Dukes of Hazzard (2005) her star was shining even brighter than ever.