Jessica Ann Simpson (born July 10, 1980) is an American singer, actress, and television personality who rose to fame in the late 1990s. She has achieved seven Billboard Top 40 hits, and has three gold and two multi-platinum RIAA-certified albums. Simpson starred with her then-husband Nick Lachey in the MTV reality show Newlyweds: Nick and Jessica. She ventured into the country music market in 2008 and released Do You Know.Early life and career:
Simpson was born in Abilene, Texas, the daughter of Tina and Joe Truett Simpson, who was a minister and psychologist. As a child, she began singing at her local Baptist church. At age twelve, Simpson unsuccessfully auditioned for The Mickey Mouse Club. While attending J.J. Pearce High School, she signed to Proclaim Records, a minor Gospel music record label. She recorded an album, self-titled, "Jessica", but Proclaim went bankrupt and the album was never officially released except for a small pressing funded by her grandmother. This small funding however gained her minor attention and she gave concerts with other acts such as Kirk Franklin, God's Property, and CeCe Winans. Simpson left high school at age sixteen (she later earned her GED), and after Columbia Records executive Tommy Mottola heard "Jessica", she was signed to the label.
Personal lifeMarriage to Nick Lachey:
On October 26, 2002, at age 22, Simpson married Nick Lachey. She famously announced she had remained a virgin until her marriage. In November 2005, after months of tabloid speculation, Simpson and Lachey announced they were separating. Simpson filed for divorce on December 16, 2005, citing "irreconcilable differences." The couple's divorce was publicized worldwide and was reportedly finalized on June 30, 2006.
Simpson told Jane magazine in October 2006 that she knew her marriage to Lachey was over when he refused to join her on a charity trip to Africa, even though it was on their third wedding anniversary.
The couple sold their Calabasas mansion, in which Newlyweds was filmed, to Malcolm in the Middle star Justin Berfield for an undisclosed amount. Simpson received increased publicity following her divorce, reportedly having romances with her Employee of the Month co-star Dane Cook and Maroon 5 frontman Adam Levine. On February 6, 2007, the Associated Press reported that Simpson said she was stung when her ex-husband jumped back into dating after their high-profile breakup. "Oh, it hurt me," the 26-year-old singer-actress says in an interview in the March issue of Elle. "Two or three weeks later? Yeah, I'd say it kind of hurt me."
Other relationships:Following her divorce, Simpson had an off-and-on relationship with musician John Mayer. Dating rumors started in August 2006 with a People magazine article, but kicked into high gear when Simpson and Mayer spent New Year's holiday together in New York City, both attending Christina Aguilera's New Year's Eve 2006 party. The couple eventually parted ways for good in May 2007.
In November 2007, Simpson began dating Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo. The relationship was controversial among some Dallas Cowboys fans, as she was blamed when Romo had poor football performances. Some of the Cowboy's fans gave her the nickname Yoko Romo in comparison to Yoko Ono who many Beatles fans blame for "ruining" John Lennon. This was further fueled when the Cowboys lost to the Giants in the divisional playoffs, when Romo and Simpson went on a trip during the Cowboy's bye week. FOX broadcaster Terry Bradshaw called into question Simpson and Romo vacationing in Mexico.
"If only Tony had called me and said, 'Terry, Jessica [Simpson] and I are going to go to Mexico,' I would've told him: 'You crazy? Don't do that! The paparazzi is going to find you, man. You're a star. She's a star. It's just going to happen,' " Bradshaw said in an interview with the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.
Even President Bush jokingly endorsed the "Jessica jinx" after the Giants went on to win the Super Bowl in 2008. During the traditional White House reception for the winning team, the president quipped, "We're going to send Jessica Simpson to the Democrat National Convention."On July 13, 2009, People magazine reported that Romo and Simpson had ended their relationship. A source close to the pop star told the magazine that Romo broke up with Simpson on July 9 — the night before her 29th birthday. "She is heartbroken," said the source. "She loves Tony. But it's been difficult lately. He's busy with his career, and she's getting ready to shoot her show (The Price of Beauty). They decided to part ways."
