Celebrities With Strange Musical Side Projects

Stars may be stars because they are the some of the best at what they do, but they aren't always the best at everything they do. Have you ever encountered a musical project by an actor that is just terrible?

While many actors seem ready and willing to jump into a career in front of the music microphone, what comes out doesn't always make it seem like a good idea. Let's explore some celebrities who encountered a host of public confusion and dismay accompanying the releases of their musical creations.

Joaquin Phoenix Becomes a Rapper

In 2009, prolific actor Joaquin Phoenix, probably best known for his role as Johnny Cash in the 2005 movie "Walk the Line," began to exhibit public behavior that was erratic, causing the media to question whether the man had lost his mind.

After an epic disaster of an appearance on the David Letterman show, in which Phoenix amused a confused audience with an announcement of an impending hip-hop career alongside a meandering demeanor and a slew of mainly one-word answers. The stunt was later revealed to be a hoax aimed at promoting Phoenix's 2010 mockumentary about launching a hip-hop career. Thank goodness for that!

Jada Pinkett-Smith: Ruining Rock With "Wicked Wisdom"

Jada Pinkett-Smith, wife of actor and rapper Will Smith, whose career took off as a result of his role in the early-90s TV comedy hit, "The Fresh Prince of Bel Air." Lovely Jada Pinkett-Smith has admirably acting chops and a breathtaking look, but "Wicked Wisdom" is just a disorganized, disjointed, disingenuous wreck.

The "Wicked Wisdom" style sort of sounds like Canadian 90s breakout girl metal band Kittie, but oh so much worse; muddier and made up with a completely forgettable, contrived metal sound from the backup band. This has prompted the public to urge Pinkett-Smith to put this project aside pursue one of the great many things she can do well.

Scarlett Johansson Confusingly Covers Tom Waits

In 2008, Scarlett Johansson released a studio album of Tom Waits cover songs, featuring the lovely Miss Scarlett on vocals. Though Tom Waits is a well-known and respected musician and Scarlett Johannson an actor with some serious singing chops, her debut studio album, Anywhere "I Lay My Head" It was at best, weird and at worst extremely boring, but not bad. Really.

Who is Tom Waits, you ask? He is a musician who has been making music for almost 50 years. Though Waits has released a host of albums, his best known work comes in the form of cover songs. If you have heard a Tom Waits song and you are not really into music, it was probably a cover of "Downtown Train" by Rod Stewart. Waits has also acted in a number of movies, including "Mystery Men" and "Bram Stoker's Dracula."

The official website for this band has dissolved into a parked domain, so it is possible that Johansson wants to forget "Anywhere I Lay My Head" just as much as the general public does. Though Johansson's beauty tends to linger on the mind, her album of Tom Waits certainly was a forgettable piece of work!

Johansson has more recently worked with Pete Yorn on a project that seems to be receiving some commercial and critical success on the album "Break Up," so the music world can probably chalk this one up to an error in judgment and not to a lack of musical talent. However, music fans who want to hear those songs should probably just listen to Tom Waits instead!