Paula Abdul
Biography
Paula Julie Abdul (born June 19, 1962) is an American singer, dancer, choreographer, actress, and television personality. She began her career as a cheerleader for the Los Angeles Lakers at the age of 18 and later became the head choreographer for the Laker Girls, where she was discovered by the Jacksons. After choreographing music videos for Janet Jackson, Abdul became a choreographer at the height of the music video era and soon thereafter she was signed to Virgin Records. Abdul's debut studio album, Forever Your Girl (1988), became one of the most successful debut albums at that time, selling seven million copies in the United States and setting a record for the most U.S. Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles from a debut album: "Straight Up", "Forever Your Girl", "Cold Hearted", and "Opposites Attract". Her second album, Spellbound (1991), scored the number-one singles "Rush Rush" and "The Promise of a New Day". With six number-one singles on Hot 100, Abdul tied Diana Ross for the third-most chart-toppers among female solo artists at the time. As of 2025, Abdul places seventh along with Diana Ross and Lady Gaga for the most number-one singles by female artists in the U.S. to date. Abdul was one of the original judges on the television series American Idol from 2002 to 2009, and has since appeared as a judge on The X Factor, Live to Dance, So You Think You Can Dance, and The Masked Dancer. She received choreography credits in numerous films, including Can't Buy Me Love (1987), The Running Man (1987), Coming to America (1988), Action Jackson (1988), The Doors (1991), Jerry Maguire (1996), and American Beauty (1999). She received 17 MTV Video Music Award nominations, winning five, as well as receiving the Grammy Award for Best Music Video for "Opposites Attract" in 1991. She received the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Choreography twice for her work on The Tracey Ullman Show, and her own performance at the American Music Awards in 1990. Abdul was honored with her own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and is the first entertainer to be honored with the Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards' Hall of Fame Award. Abdul was born in San Fernando, California. She is Jewish: her father, Harry Abdul, is of Syrian Jewish heritage and was born in Aleppo, Syria, raised in Brazil and emigrated to the United States. Her mother, Lorraine (Rykiss), was a concert pianist of Jewish heritage, from Minnedosa, Manitoba, Canada. Abdul has an older sister named Wendy. As an avid dancer, Abdul was inspired towards a show business career by Gene Kelly in the film Singin' in the Rain. ... Source: Article "Paula Abdul" from Wikipedia in English, licensed under CC-BY-SA.
Known For(113 works)
Family Guy
1999Family Guy
1999
Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen
2009Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen
2009
The Daily Show
1996The Daily Show
1996
The Kelly Clarkson Show
2019The Kelly Clarkson Show
2019
Saturday Night Live
1975Saturday Night Live
1975
Saturday Night Live
1975Saturday Night Live
1975
The Jennifer Hudson Show
2022The Jennifer Hudson Show
2022
Dancing with the Stars
2005Dancing with the Stars
2005
RuPaul's Drag Race
2009RuPaul's Drag Race
2009
The View
1997The View
1997
LIVE with Kelly and Mark
1988LIVE with Kelly and Mark
1988
Jimmy Kimmel Live!
2003Jimmy Kimmel Live!
2003
American Idol
2002American Idol
2002
Sabrina, the Teenage Witch
1996Sabrina, the Teenage Witch
1996
Hell's Kitchen
2005Hell's Kitchen
2005
Fresh Off the Boat
2015Fresh Off the Boat
2015
Champs-Elysées
1982Champs-Elysées
1982
The Ellen DeGeneres Show
2003The Ellen DeGeneres Show
2003
Spin City
1996Spin City
1996
Late Night with Conan O'Brien
1993Late Night with Conan O'Brien
1993
MTV Video Music Awards
1984MTV Video Music Awards
1984
The Tonight Show with Jay Leno
1992The Tonight Show with Jay Leno
1992
Sacrée soirée
1987Sacrée soirée
1987
Drop Dead Diva
2009Drop Dead Diva
2009
So You Think You Can Dance
2005So You Think You Can Dance
2005
So You Think You Can Dance
2005So You Think You Can Dance
2005
The Bernie Mac Show
2001The Bernie Mac Show
2001
That's So Raven
2003That's So Raven
2003
The Reichen Show
2005The Reichen Show
2005
Cybill
1995Cybill
1995
Lip Sync Battle
2015Lip Sync Battle
2015
Impractical Jokers
2011Impractical Jokers
2011
All That
1994All That
1994
A Little Late with Lilly Singh
2019A Little Late with Lilly Singh
2019
American Music Awards
1974American Music Awards
1974
The Wayans Bros.
1995The Wayans Bros.
1995
All of Us
2003All of Us
2003
The Jay Leno Show
2009The Jay Leno Show
2009
Less than Perfect
2002Less than Perfect
2002
American Idol
2018American Idol
2018
The Single Guy
1995The Single Guy
1995
The Tracey Ullman Show
1987The Tracey Ullman Show
1987
On Air with Ryan Seacrest
2004On Air with Ryan Seacrest
2004
TRL
1998TRL
1998
Going Live!
1987Going Live!
1987
Celebrity Wheel of Fortune
2021Celebrity Wheel of Fortune
2021
The Late Late Show with Craig Kilborn
1999The Late Late Show with Craig Kilborn
1999
The Movies That Made Us
2019The Movies That Made Us
2019
Robots
2005Robots
2005
Entertainment Tonight
1981Entertainment Tonight
1981
Entertainment Tonight
1981Entertainment Tonight
1981
Today
1952Today
1952
Steve
2017Steve
2017
Muppets Tonight
1996Muppets Tonight
1996
The Muppets Mayhem
2023The Muppets Mayhem
2023
The Nineties
2017The Nineties
2017
Made for Love
2021Made for Love
2021
This Is Pop
2021This Is Pop
2021
The Arsenio Hall Show
2013The Arsenio Hall Show
2013
The X Factor
2011The X Factor
2011
Canada's Drag Race
2020Canada's Drag Race
2020
Chip 'n Dale: Rescue Rangers
2022Chip 'n Dale: Rescue Rangers
2022
Brüno
2009Brüno
2009
Private School
1983Private School
1983
Can't Buy Me Love
1987Can't Buy Me Love
1987
JANET JACKSON.
2022JANET JACKSON.
2022
Impractical Jokers: Dinner Party
2020Impractical Jokers: Dinner Party
2020
Al TV
1984Al TV
1984
The Streamy Awards
2009The Streamy Awards
2009
RuPaul
2019RuPaul
2019
Paris in Love
2021Paris in Love
2021
E! True Hollywood Story
1996E! True Hollywood Story
1996
L.A. Story
1991L.A. Story
1991
Time Out: The Truth About HIV, AIDS and You
1992Time Out: The Truth About HIV, AIDS and You
1992
Let's Dance
2006Let's Dance
2006
The Master of Disguise
2002The Master of Disguise
2002
Waking Sleeping Beauty
2009Waking Sleeping Beauty
2009
Family Guy Presents: Stewie Kills Lois and Lois Kills Stewie
2009Family Guy Presents: Stewie Kills Lois and Lois Kills Stewie
2009
The Masked Dancer
2020The Masked Dancer
2020
Howard
2018Howard
2018
The Golden Bachelor
2023The Golden Bachelor
2023
Best Wishes, Warmest Regards: A Schitt's Creek Farewell
2020Best Wishes, Warmest Regards: A Schitt's Creek Farewell
2020
Romy and Michele: In the Beginning
2005Romy and Michele: In the Beginning
2005
Annie Leibovitz: Life Through a Lens
2007Annie Leibovitz: Life Through a Lens
2007
Sinatra: 80 Years My Way
1995Sinatra: 80 Years My Way
1995
Impractical Jokers: The Movie
2020Impractical Jokers: The Movie
2020
2009 Game Show Awards
20092009 Game Show Awards
2009
Mr. Rock n Roll: The Alan Freed Story
1999Mr. Rock n Roll: The Alan Freed Story
1999
Celebrity Ghost Stories
2020Celebrity Ghost Stories
2020
Life Is Not a Fairytale: The Fantasia Barrino Story
2006Life Is Not a Fairytale: The Fantasia Barrino Story
2006
A Sister's Secret
2018A Sister's Secret
2018
A Smoky Mountain Christmas
1986A Smoky Mountain Christmas
1986
For Our Children
1993For Our Children
1993
Celebrities Uncensored
2003Celebrities Uncensored
2003
Hey Paula
2007Hey Paula
2007
American Idol: The Best of Seasons 1-4
2005American Idol: The Best of Seasons 1-4
2005
VH1 Divas 2009
2009VH1 Divas 2009
2009
Live to Dance
2011Live to Dance
2011
The Friday Night Project
2005The Friday Night Project
2005
The Waiting Game
2001The Waiting Game
2001
Touched By Evil
1997Touched By Evil
1997
Sesame Street: Zoe's Dance Moves
2003Sesame Street: Zoe's Dance Moves
2003
Janet Jackson: Japanese Singles Collection - Greatest Hits
2022Janet Jackson: Japanese Singles Collection - Greatest Hits
2022
American Idol: The Search For A Superstar
2002American Idol: The Search For A Superstar
2002
Raging Midlife
2025Raging Midlife
2025
Singin' in the Rain: Raining on a New Generation
2012Singin' in the Rain: Raining on a New Generation
2012
American Idol: The Worst of Seasons 1-4
2005American Idol: The Worst of Seasons 1-4
2005
2022 American Rescue Dog Show
20222022 American Rescue Dog Show
2022
Power Girls
2002Power Girls
2002
Barbie Dance Club
1989Barbie Dance Club
1989
Paula Abdul Cardio Dance
2000Paula Abdul Cardio Dance
2000
Paula Abdul: Under My Spell Live
1992Paula Abdul: Under My Spell Live
1992
Paula Abdul's Get Up & Dance
1994Paula Abdul's Get Up & Dance
1994