MC Hammer
With his string of hits like “U Can’t Touch This” and flashy wardrobe, MC Hammer reached his peak of fame in the early 1990s. However, challenges with his record label, family tragedies, and the pressure of wealth caused him to have a spiritual crisis. In 1994, he declared bankruptcy with over $13 million in debt. During these struggles, Hammer experienced a religious awakening and considered going into ministry. In the late 1990s, he reinvented himself with the album “Family Affari,” which had more spiritual, positive lyrics reflecting his newfound devotion to Christ. His star power may have faded, but he continues to use his status to fulfill his calling from God to spread the Gospel.
Michelle Williams
While the Destiny’s Child singer didn’t abandon the music industry entirely, gospel is now her focus, moving back to her church roots. She said in an interview that while some people will do gospel when their career fails, she chose to do it at the height of the popularity of Destiny’s Child. “I didn’t want to do it because it was a fad. I wanted to do it because it’s in me. It’s in my heart,” she said.
Stephen Baldwin
Stephen Baldwin is the youngest of the Baldwin brothers and isn’t shy about speaking about his faith. Throughout the years, he’s done several interviews with various media outlets and has discussed his eternal struggle with being a Christian in Hollywood. At one point, on an episode of “Nightline,” Baldwin shared the life-changing impact that the September 11th attacks had on him and his worldview in general, tracing his finding God back to that point. In 2008, he started working with conservative radio host Kevin McCullough to create and start “Baldwin/McCullough Live.” The show airs every Saturday and became his new passion. His brothers didn’t necessarily follow in his footsteps, but he hasn’t allowed that, or the battles of Hollywood, to deter his faith.
Chris Tucker
This popular actor and comedian was on a roll in the mid-’90s through the early 2000s, starring in the popular "Friday" and "Rush Hour" franchises. However, after doing the film "Money Talks," he became a born-again Christian in an effort to grow closer in his relationship with God and chose to stop appearing in such vulgar roles. In recent years, he has let go of foul language, with his stand-up tours being free of profanity. He even declared he wouldn’t sign on for any Friday sequels as Smokey because he had become born again. Though he didn’t completely disappear from the world of acting, appearing most recently in "Air,” he is seen very little compared to what we saw at the height of his acting career.
Montell Jordan
The singer, popularly known for the ’90s anthem “This Is How We Do It,” put his music career on pause and began trying to reconnect with his faith with his family after the Lord spoke to him and said he needed to lay that life down. They became members of Victory World Church in Atlanta, and his experience transformed him. Since joining the church, he became a Worship Minister and released the gospel album “Shake Heaven.”
Angus T. Jones
Recognized by most as the little boy from “Two and a Half Men,” the child star grew distant from the show once his faith began to transform. In a YouTube clip in 2012, he called the show “filth” and abandoned the show to work with the World Harvest Outreach Church in Houston. He said later in an interview that while working on the show, he felt like a paid hypocrite, and it was difficult to be part of something that was making light of topics in the world that were problems for many people. Today, he wants to continue to come to light because he knows that’s where the healing is.
