15 Celebrities Who Were Teen Parents

The Modern Family star became a teen mother when she had her son, Manolo, at age 19. Decades later, she spoke about how she didn't want more children after him, because she felt she'd benefitted in some ways by being a young mom. "I had the energy for everything," she said of raising her son as a teenager.

Britney's younger sister got pregnant at 16, which effectively ended her teen acting career. Her Nickelodeon show, Zoey 101, went off the air, and Jamie Lynn went on to raise her daughter Maddie, who is now 13 years old. Eventually, Jamie went on to marry a man named Jamie Watson and welcomed another child, daughter Ivey, in 2018.

Whoopi's daughter, Alex Martin, was born when Whoopi was just 18 and going through a tough time battling a heroin addiction. The comedian and TV host raised Alex as a single mother, taking odd jobs while using food stamps to make ends meet. Things turned out OK in the end, but it was definitely a struggle for Whoopi when she was younger.

Beyoncé may have been 30 when she gave birth to Blue Ivy, but her sister Solange was a teen mom. Solange had her son, Julez, when she was just 17, and teen motherhood was an experience she would later call "isolating and lonely and so cold and dark." It's definitely not easy to raise a child when you're still a child yourself.

There are several teen dads in Hollywood too, with Hanson singer Taylor Hanson being one of them. The musician was 19 when he and his then-18-year-old wife, Natalie, welcomed their son Jordan Ezra. Since then, the couple has had six more kids, including their most recent, daughter Maybellene Alma Joy, at the end of 2020.

The former Bachelorette's early motherhood days weren't just complicated by her age. At 19, the new mother also lost her fiancé Ricky Hendrick in a plane crash. Suddenly, Emily had to raise her young daughter Ricki without her partner. She made it through that tough time, though, and has since gone on to have four more kids with her husband, Tyler Johnson.

The youngest teen mother on this list, singer Aretha Franklin got pregnant with her first child at just 12 years old, and she had her second one by the time she was 15. Still, despite the immense amount of work of parenting two children as a teen, she managed to make it in the music industry and become a legend for the ages.

At 13, Whale Rider star Keisha Castle-Hughes became the youngest actress to be nominated for Best Actress at the Academy Awards. A few years later, she also became a young mother at age 17, when she had her daughter Felicity-Amore. She recently gave birth to her second child in June 2021.

The American Idol star welcomed her daughter, Zion, at age 17, and then continued chasing her dreams of being a singer. She managed to balance young motherhood and her passions, and now she has a great life at home and career-wise. On Instagram, Fantasia often calls Zion her "best friend."

At 19, LeBron James became a first-time father when his son LeBron Jr. was born. And he quickly decided to be someone dedicated to breaking his family's chain of single motherhood. While he didn't grow up with his own dad around, the NBA star stuck around for his own family. He now has two sons and a daughter with his wife, Savannah James.

The country singer was also a very young teen mother, giving birth to her daughter Betty Sue at age 15. A year later, she welcomed a son named Jack. And just three years after that, she had her daughter Cissy. So by the time Loretta turned 20, she already had three kids to worry about. But she also never let go of her country music dreams, successfully balancing both family and career.

It's hard enough to be a teen mom to one child, let alone to twins, and while in a failing marriage. But that's exactly what happened for model Niki Taylor. "I was pregnant at 18, had [Jake and Hunter] at 19, and was divorced by 21 … it was a lot on my plate for my young 20s!" she later told People.

Bristol's teen pregnancy was somewhat of a scandal at the time, because her mother Sarah Palin was running for vice president. Bristol gave birth to her son Tripp at 18 and got engaged to his father, Levi Johnston, but things didn't work out between them. She later married Dakota Meyer and went on to have two more children with him before their 2018 divorce.

At 16, Lil Wayne became a teen dad when his daughter Reginae Carter was born. The now 22-year-old is still very close with her father, and she has several siblings now as well. Lil Wayne is also father to Kameron Carter, Dwayne Carter III, and Neal Carter. And though he's a busy dad with a thriving career, he always makes time for his kids.

Anna Nicole Smith welcomed her son, Daniel, when she was 19, and the two were very close. But tragically, Daniel died at age 20, just days after Anna gave birth to her second child, a girl she eventually named Dannielynn. Even more tragically, Anna also died just five months after that. Just so sad all around.