Time to a Star - How long does it take to get a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame?

Many of us secretly dream of one day becoming a famous singer, releasing our own music, and acquiring superstar status. For the vast majority of us, this is little more than an idle fancy, but for the lucky few who reach these lofty heights, getting a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame is one of the greatest accolades achievable.

However, not every famous artist is guaranteed a star, and the time it takes to earn one can vary wildly from person to person. This made us at Giggster wonder how long it takes to get one of the sought-after stars, and which musicians earned their stars the fastest.

There are several different categories for which people gain earn a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, such as Television, Radio, and Motion Pictures, but we’ll be looking specifically at the Recording category, seeing how long it takes on average for recording artists to earn a star, as well as which musicians earnt theirs the quickest.

Recording stars since given since 2000

Here we can see which recording artists have received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame since 2000. We’ve found the release date of each artist’s first album and have compared it to the year in which they received their star. So, which artists earned theirs the fastest?

 1. Britney Spears | Years to star: 4

Britney Spears earned her star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame faster than any other recording artist who received one since 2000, taking just four years since the release of her 1999 debut album …Baby One More Time. Since then, Britney has had a tumultuous time due to going in and out of rehab, as well as her father’s controversial conservatorship.

Despite these unfortunate personal matters, Britney’s music continues to be loved all around the world, and the speed at which she earned her Hollywood star proves she is a top-quality artist who deserves the respect and adoration of her fans.

2. Jennifer Hudson | Years to star: 5

Jennifer Hudson initially rose to fame through the US talent show American Idol, getting as far as the “Top 7 Show” where she was eliminated, to the shock of many viewers. She then went on to star in the 2006 musical drama Dreamgirls, for which she earned the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress.

It wasn’t until 2008 that she released her debut album Jennifer Hudson which released at number 2 on the American Billboard 200 and was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America. Receiving her Hollywood star for recording just five years later, Jennifer Hudson has proven to be a multi-talented artist who is no stranger to the highest awards and accolades.

3. Destiny’s Child | Years to star: 8

Destiny’s Child began life under the name “Girl’s Tyme” in 1990, being rebranded to Destiny’s Child when they were signed to Columbia Records in 1997. Their first album was released in early 1998 and received their star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame eight years later.

The group changed significantly over the years, seeing LaTavia Roberson and LeToya Luckett replaced by Michelle Williams and Farrah Franklin in early 2000, though Franklin left the group the same year resulting in the group becoming a trio.

The average time to a Hollywood star

While these individuals received their stars faster than any other recording artists this century, the wait for this award is often much longer. To demonstrate this, we’ve calculated the average number of years that recording artists wait from the release of their debut album to earning that coveted star.

On average, artists who received a star since 2000 have waited 30.57 years to receive their star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. This huge amount of time means that artists are often retired, or even passed away, by the time they receive this recognition. However, the prestige and accomplishment represented by these awards also immortalise their names in the history of music and entertainment for future generations to discover and appreciate.

Methodology

We wanted to find out which musicians and groups received their stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame the fastest. To do this, we first recorded all of the stars granted to people in the recording category from 2000 onwards, as stated on the Hollywood Walk of Fame website, as well as the year in which they were granted the award.

We then found each artist’s debut album and noted the release date. For individuals we found the earliest album they released, whether it was as part of a group or as a solo artist, while for stars awarded to groups we recorded the date of the group’s first album release.

We then calculated the time between the first album’s release date and the date at which each artist was granted their star to reveal how long it took each of them to earn their star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. We also calculated the average time that it took these artists to earn their stars.