MUSIC STARS WHO CHANGED THEIR NAMES

While the basketball player formerly known as Ron Artest is primarily an athlete, let's not forget he is a rapper as well! One of the wackier name changes, Artest now goes by Metta World Peace, a decision he made last year. His publicist said "metta" was a Buddhist term for "loving kindness and friendliness toward others" and that the strange choice was made for "personal reasons." All in all, "World Peace" does look pretty good on the back of a jersey, and Madonna's involuntary shout-out at the Super Bowl must've been a big plus too.

Photo by Getty Images Aug 3, 2012

MUSIC STARS WHO CHANGED THEIR NAMES

Of all the entertainment genres, music is by far the most identity-crises-stricken of the lot. Even after having their names emblazoned across album covers, charts, billboards and news headlines, they sure don't flinch much when it comes to a name change. With rapper Snoop Dogg recently taking on his Rasta incarnation Snoop Lion, let's take a look at just some of the other artists who've made the big switch!