Vanessa Hudgens

From a mixed race background (her father is of Irish and Native American descent and her mother is Filipina), Vanessa Hudgens first performed on stage at the age of eight, appearing in local productions of shows such as Carousel, The Wizard Of Oz and The King & I. After the family had moved to LA she passed auditions to appear in TV commercials and went on to make her movie debut in the teen drama Thirteen in 2003. Another starring role followed in the movie Thunderbirds, as well as roles in TV shows Quintuplets, Still Standing, The Brothers Garcia, Drake & Josh and The Suite Life Of Zack & Cody. Her highest profile role, however, was in the role of Gabriella Montez in High School Musical 2 and 3. Chart success as a pop singer wasn't far behind and her debut album V in 2006 produced the two hit singles Come Back To Me and Say OK. Still only 18, she was estimated that year to have earned over $2 million, making her one of the highest paid people in America under the age of 30. Second album, Identified was released in 2008 and included the single Sneakernight. She also featured heavily in the gossip pages when it became known she was in a relationship with her High School Musical co-star Zac Efron, although they split up in 2010.

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