Nicholas Scott Lachey ( ; born November 9, 1973) is an American actor, singer-songwriter, producer, TV personality and host. He rose to fame as the lead singer of the multi-platinum-selling boyband 98 Degrees and later starred in the reality series '' Newlyweds: Nick and Jessica'' with his then-wife, Jessica Simpson. He has released four solo albums: '' SoulO'', '' What's Left of Me'', ''A Father's Lullaby'', and ''Soundtrack of My Life''. He also had a recurring role on the television series '' Charmed''. He hosted NBC's ''

The Sing-Off ''The Sing-Off'' is an American television singing competition featuring a cappella groups. It debuted on NBC on December 14, 2009, and was produced by Sony Pictures Television and Outlaw Productions, with Mark Burnett's One Three Media (for a t ...

'', co-hosted VH1's '' Big Morning Buzz Live'' from 2014 to 2015, and

Nickelodeon Nickelodeon (nicknamed Nick) is an American pay television channel and the flagship property of the Nickelodeon Group, a sub-division of the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global. Launched on April 1, 1979, as the first ca ...

's ''

America's Most Musical Family ''America's Most Musical Family'' is an American Reality television, reality music competition television program that aired on Nickelodeon from November 1, 2019, to January 17, 2020. The program features 30 talented families competing for a re ...

'', and co-hosts the

Netflix Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple lang ...

shows '' Love Is Blind'' and ''The Ultimatum'' with his wife Vanessa Lachey. He is also the sole host of '' Perfect Match'' for Netflix. In 2021, Lachey won the fifth season of '' The Masked Singer''.

Early life

Lachey was born in

Harlan, Kentucky Harlan is a List of cities in Kentucky, home rule-class city in and the county seat of Harlan County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 1,745 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census, down from 2,081 at the 2000 census. Harlan is ...

, to Cathalyn (née Fopma) and John Lachey. He is the brother of singer and actor Drew Lachey, alongside whom he has worked closely. His maternal grandfather, Robert James Fopma, was of Dutch descent. Nick's other ancestry is English, Scottish, German, and distant Welsh and French. He attended Clovernook Elementary School in the

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ; colloquially nicknamed Cincy) is a city in Hamilton County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. Settled in 1788, the city is located on the northern side of the confluence of the Licking River (Kentucky), Licking and Ohio Ri ...

suburb of North College Hill, Ohio, and the School for Creative and Performing Arts in Cincinnati. He attended

Miami University Miami University (informally Miami of Ohio or simply Miami) is a public university, public research university in Oxford, Ohio, United States. Founded in 1809, it is the second-oldest List of colleges and universities in Ohio, university in Ohi ...

Oxford, Ohio Oxford is a city in northwestern Butler County, Ohio, United States. The population was 23,035 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. A college town, Oxford was founded as a home for Miami University and lies in the southwestern portion ...

, where he joined Sigma Alpha Epsilon. In the fall of 1992, he allegedly enrolled at the

University of Southern California The University of Southern California (USC, SC, or Southern Cal) is a Private university, private research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1880 by Robert M. Widney, it is the oldest private research university in ...

, according to a "statement" he made during his guest appearance on '' The Arsenio Hall Show'' on December 12, 2013.

Career

Lachey started his professional singing career at Kings Island with close & very best friend Justin Jeffre in the mid-1990s singing in a do-wop singing group quartet throughout the park and water park. Lachey was a member of the boyband 98 Degrees along with his brother, Drew, Justin Jeffre, and Jeff Timmons. Their debut album was the self-titled '' 98 Degrees''; however, the band's first real success came with their follow-up album '' 98 Degrees and Rising''. 98 Degrees has sold over 10 million records. 98 Degrees performed a one-off summer reunion show in Hershey, Pennsylvania, at the Summer Mixtape Festival on August 18, 2012, their first concert in more than a decade. During the summer of 2003, the

reality show Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring ordinary people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early 1990s ...

'' Newlyweds: Nick and Jessica'', starring Lachey and then-wife Jessica Simpson, began airing on MTV. The couple starred in the television special ''The Nick and Jessica Variety Hour'', which aired in 2004 and was compared to '' The Sonny & Cher Show''. In 2005, ''Newlyweds'' won a People's Choice Award for Favorite Reality Show before wrapping shortly after. On November 11, 2003, his solo debut album, ''SoulO'', was released. Despite being released during the success of ''Newlyweds'', the album was a commercial failure. Lachey took a recurring role in the series '' Charmed'' where he played a dyslexic ghostwriter between 2004 and 2005. Nick Lachey at Ramstein1

'' What's Left of Me'' was released on May 9, 2006, and debuted at number two on the ''Billboard'' 200. The album was certified Gold, after selling more than 500,000 copies domestically. The first single from the album was the title track, " What's Left of Me", released on February 21, 2006. The song became a hit, reaching a peak position of number six on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. The video for "What's Left Of Me" featured former MTV VJ, Vanessa Minnillo. Lachey recorded " Ordinary Day" for the

Oprah Winfrey Oprah Gail Winfrey (; born Orpah Gail Winfrey; January 29, 1954) is an American television presenter, talk show host, television producer, actress, author, and media proprietor. She is best known for her talk show, ''The Oprah Winfrey Show' ...

-produced film, '' For One More Day''. Lachey began working on his third solo album in 2007. Lachey also starred in a well-known TV series, '' One Tree Hill'', as a singer at Red Bedroom Productions. It was announced in January 2010 that Jive Records had put his new album on hold indefinitely. In June 2010, Lachey confirmed that he had parted ways with Jive Records. In July 2010, Jive Records confirmed they had parted ways with Lachey. '' Taking the Stage'', a musical reality show documenting the personal lives of high school students at the School for Creative and Performing Arts, premiered on

MTV MTV (an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable television television channel, channel and the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group sub-division of the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global. Launched on ...

in March 2009. It was produced by Lachey. In December 2009, he hosted ''

'', a long form four-part American singing competition featuring a cappella groups, a role he reprised in December 2010 for the show's second and third seasons on NBC. Lachey was a contestant in the NBC celebrity reality competition series called '' Stars Earn Stripes''. On January 16, 2014, VH1 announced Lachey would resume hosting Big Morning Buzz Live, upon its return on March 3, 2014. On September 6, 2017, Lachey was announced as one of the celebrities who will take part in the 25th season of ''

Dancing with the Stars ''Strictly Come Dancing (widely known as Dancing with the Stars)'' is an international television franchise based on the format of the British TV series '' Strictly Come Dancing,'' itself a successor to the show ''Come Dancing'' (1950–1998) ...

'', competing against his wife Vanessa. He was paired with professional dancer Peta Murgatroyd. Murgatroyd's husband, Maksim Chmerkovskiy, was paired with Vanessa. On October 23, Lachey and Murgatroyd were the fifth couple to be eliminated from the competition, leaving in ninth place. Lachey hosted a musical competition on

titled ''

'' which premiered on November 1, 2019. Lachey and his wife currently co-host the Netflix reality shows '' Love Is Blind'' and '' The Ultimatum: Marry or Move On''. Lachey also hosts '' Perfect Match'' for Netflix, solo.

Other ventures

Lachey is part owner of the Hollywood Fame, a team in the

American Basketball Association The American Basketball Association (ABA) was a major professional basketball league that operated for nine seasons from 1967 to 1976. The upstart ABA operated in direct competition with the more established National Basketball Association thr ...

that began play in fall 2006, and was part of an ownership group of the Tacoma Rainiers, the

Seattle Mariners The Seattle Mariners are an American professional baseball team based in Seattle. The Mariners compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West Division. The team joined the American ...

' Triple-A affiliate. Lachey is also a die-hard

Cincinnati Bengals The Cincinnati Bengals are a professional American football team based in Cincinnati. The Bengals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The team plays its h ...

Cincinnati Reds The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. The Reds compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Divisi ...

and Cincinnati Bearcats fan. On April 7, 2009, Lachey threw out the ceremonial first pitch for the

MLB Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

Opening Day Opening Day is the day on which professional baseball leagues begin their regular season. For Major League Baseball (MLB) and most of the American minor leagues, this day typically falls during the first week of April, although in recent year ...

game in

Cincinnati, Ohio Cincinnati ( ; colloquially nicknamed Cincy) is a city in Hamilton County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. Settled in 1788, the city is located on the northern side of the confluence of the Licking River (Kentucky), Licking and Ohio Ri ...

. On July 9, 2011, Lachey sang the National Anthem for the inaugural NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Kentucky Speedway in Sparta, Kentucky. Lachey was among a group of investors that placed a marijuana legalization initiative on the Ohio ballot in 2015. The initiative sought exclusive grow rights for the group members while prohibiting all other cultivation except small amounts for personal use. Lachey appeared in a TV ad advocating for passage of the initiative, but it was ultimately defeated. Lachey is on the Entertainment Council of the hunger-relief organization

Feeding America Feeding America is a United States–based Nonprofit organization, non-profit organization that is a nationwide network of more than 200 food banks that feed more than 46 million people through food pantries, soup kitchens, shelters, and other c ...

. In 2021, Lachey competed on season five of '' The Masked Singer'' as "Piglet". He was declared the winner of the season.

Personal life

In December 1998, Lachey and fellow singer Jessica Simpson were introduced by their shared manager at a Christmas event. They subsequently began dating after meeting again at a '' Teen People'' event in January 1999, but broke up for five months beginning in April 2001 until getting back together following the

September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks, also known as 9/11, were four coordinated Islamist terrorist suicide attacks by al-Qaeda against the United States in 2001. Nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercial airliners, crashing the first two into ...

. They became engaged in February 2002, and married on October 26, 2002, in

Austin, Texas Austin ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Texas. It is the county seat and most populous city of Travis County, Texas, Travis County, with portions extending into Hays County, Texas, Hays and W ...

. In November 2005, after months of tabloid speculation, Lachey and Simpson announced they were separating. Simpson filed for divorce on December 16, 2005, citing "irreconcilable differences". The couple's divorce was highly publicized worldwide and was reportedly finalized on June 30, 2006. Soon after the release of " What's Left of Me", Lachey's 2006 music video starring Vanessa Minnillo, he and Minnillo began dating. They briefly broke up in June 2009, but had reunited by October 2009. Lachey and Minnillo became engaged in November 2010, and married on July 15, 2011, on Sir

Richard Branson Sir Richard Charles Nicholas Branson (born 18 July 1950) is an English business magnate who co-founded the Virgin Group in 1970, and controlled 5 companies remaining of once more than 400. Branson expressed his desire to become an entrepreneu ...

's private Necker Island in the

British Virgin Islands The British Virgin Islands (BVI), officially the Virgin Islands, are a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory in the Caribbean, to the east of Puerto Rico and the United States Virgin Islands, US Virgin Islands and north-west ...

. The wedding was filmed and televised on TLC. They have three children, born in September 2012, January 2015, and December 2016.

Discography

98 Degrees * '' 98°'' (1997) * '' 98° and Rising'' (1998) * ''

Revelation Revelation, or divine revelation, is the disclosing of some form of Religious views on truth, truth or Knowledge#Religion, knowledge through communication with a deity (god) or other supernatural entity or entities in the view of religion and t ...

'' (2000) * '' 2.0'' (2013) Solo albums * '' SoulO'' (2003) * '' What's Left of Me'' (2006) * ''A Father's Lullaby'' (2013) * '' Soundtrack of My Life'' (2014)

Filmography

Film

Television

Awards and nominations

; ASCAP Pop Music Awards , - , 2007 , " What's Left of Me" , Most Performed Song , ;

American Music Awards The American Music Awards (AMAs) is an annual American music awards show produced by Dick Clark Productions since 1974. Nominees are selected on commercial performance such as sales and airplay. Winners are determined by a poll of the public and ...

, - , 2006 , Himself , Favorite Male Pop/Rock Artist , ;Groovevolt Music and Fashion Awards , - , rowspan=2, 2007 , '' What's Left of Me'' , Best Pop Album - Male , rowspan=2 , - , "What's Left of Me" , Best Pop Song Performance - Male ; MTV Video Music Awards , - , 2006 , What's Left of Me , Best Male Video , ;

Teen Choice Awards The Teen Choice Awards were an annual awards show that aired on the Fox television network between 1999 and 2019. The awards, based on a popularity vote that could be overridden by the producerswho reserved the right to choose the winnerscovered ...

, - ,

2000 2000 was designated as the International Year for the Culture of Peace and the World Mathematics, Mathematical Year. Popular culture holds the year 2000 as the first year of the 21st century and the 3rd millennium, because of a tende ...

, " Where You Are" (with Jessica Simpson) , Choice Music: Love Song , , - ,

2003 2003 was designated by the United Nations as the International Year of Fresh water, Freshwater. In 2003, a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition 2003 invasion of Iraq, invaded Iraq, starting the Iraq War. Demographic ...

, rowspan=2, '' Newlyweds: Nick and Jessica'' , Choice TV: Reality Hunk , rowspan=4 , - ,

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and Its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 60 ...

, Choice TV: Reality/Variety Star - Male , - , rowspan=2,

2005 2005 was designated as the International Year for Sport and Physical Education and the International Year of Microcredit. The beginning of 2005 also marked the end of the International Decade of the World's Indigenous Peoples, Internationa ...

, rowspan=4, Himself , Choice TV: Personality - Male , - , rowspan=2, Choice Red Carpet Fashion Icon: Male , - , rowspan=3,

2006 2006 was designated as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification. Events January * January 1– 4 – Russia temporarily cuts shipment of natural gas to Ukraine during a price dispute. * January 12 – A stampede during t ...

, , - , Choice Hottie: Male , , - , "What's Left of Me " , Choice Music: Love Song ,

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Lachey, Nick 1973 births 20th-century American singers 21st-century American singers 98 Degrees members American contemporary R&B singers American dance musicians American male film actors American male singers American people of Dutch descent American people of English descent American people of German descent American people of French descent American people of Irish descent American people of Scottish descent American people of Welsh descent American pop rock singers American soul singers American tenors Jive Records artists Living people Male actors from Cincinnati Male actors from Kentucky Miami University alumni Musicians from Cincinnati People from Harlan, Kentucky Participants in American reality television series Singers from Ohio Singers from Kentucky Songwriters from Kentucky University of Southern California alumni Masked Singer winners Sigma Alpha Epsilon members