It’s crazy to think of a world without some of the most well-known people in it. Can you imagine never hearing of Barack Obama? Oprah Winfrey? Or even Justin Bieber? You would be surprised to know how many famous people were born to teen moms, and how many of them almost were not born at all.

Imagine being 15, 16, or even 17 years old. You are in high school. You’re enjoying your friends and a carefree life, and then you get pregnant. You are faced with the ultimate decision of keeping your baby or not. I guarantee almost every teenage mother has the thought of abortion, even if it was just a fleeting thought and not a viable option for her. There is also adoption that was probably thrown out there as well. These soon-to-be-parents were just kids who had no idea what they were doing or the impact their decision would make on the world. These teenagers had absolutely no idea when they decided to have their babies that they would grow up to be world famous. I’m sure every mom dreams of having a crazy successful child who grows up to make their mark in the world, but not all of us are that lucky.

The world works in mysterious ways, and some might say these stars were destined to be born and designed for greatness, but others might argue that the upbringing that comes from a struggling single mother is what made these stars unique. Whatever the case may be, I’m sure glad these 15 celebrities were born.

15 Selena Gomez

Before the mega success of her Disney days, Selena Gomez got her start on Barney & Friends when she was just seven years old. She was born on July 22, 1992, to parents Amanda (Mandy) Cornett and Ricardo Gomez. Selena was raised in Grand Prairie, Texas and her parents were only teenagers at the time. Her mom Mandy was 16 when she gave birth to Selena, and her dad was 17 years old.

Selena recalls her parents getting divorced when she was five years old. She was upset about it because her family was falling apart, but her mom was only 21 years old, raising a child and going through a divorce when most 21-year-olds are deciding which alcohol to bring to the party that night. According to an E! Entertainment special, Selena said she blamed her mom a lot for the split and she still feels really bad about it. Her mom gave up her entire life for her and worked three jobs at one point. Now, Selena is at a place where she totally understands the sacrifices her mom made for her and is so beyond grateful.

14 Justin Bieber

Speaking of Selena Gomez, I’m sure we all remember her on-again-off-again relationship with Justin Bieber. Bieber is a Canadian pop-star that was discovered on YouTube and went on to have his debut album, My World, go platinum in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom.

However, before all the fame and fortune, Justin was born to a single mother in Ontario, Canada, in 1994. Justin’s mom, Pattie Mallette, was only 17 years old at the time of Justin’s birth. While Justin’s parents maintained a relationship for a while after he was born they split up. Pattie admits that abortion was initially pushed on her by people. She didn’t say by who but after the thought was put in her head, she knew that was not a real option for her. She had no idea how she was going to care for this baby, but she knew she would do everything she could.

13 Oprah Winfrey

Can you even imagine a world without Oprah Winfrey? I sure can’t. Oprah has been such an influential person in the lives of so many people. However, her early life was very difficult. Oprah was born on January 29, 1954, to her mother, Vernita Lee, who was 19 years old and working as a housemaid at the time. Oprah’s father, Vernon Winfrey, was in the armed forces at the time.

As a young girl in rural Mississippi, Oprah lived with her mother and grandmother, in extreme poverty. She even used potato sacks as clothing at times, but Oprah recalls being destined for greatness at a young age. While watching her grandmother hang clothes on the line, she told Oprah that she was going to need to learn how to do that as well, but she knew in that moment that her life was not going to be the same as her grandmother's.

12 Jamie Foxx

Although Jamie Foxx worked as an actor and comedian for many years, it wasn’t until 2005 that he gained major success. However, the funnyman and Oscar winner had a not-so-easy childhood. Jamie Foxx was born Eric Bishop on December 13, 1967, in the small town of Terrell, Texas. His father and mother were only teenagers at the time and were very young. They quickly became overwhelmed with the responsibility and burden of parenthood.

When Jamie Foxx was just 7 months old, he was officially adopted by his maternal grandparents and Foxx now credits his grandmother for his inspiration. His grandmother was 60 years old when she adopted him. She was a devout Christian and only allowed religious music to be played in the house. She pushed Foxx to take piano lessons and his talents were evident throughout his childhood. Foxx has said, "Everything is right under your finger in life; all you have to do is take time out to find which notes to play to make music. The music will be your life. You just have to put the work to it."

11 Barack Obama

The first black president of the United States of America was once just a boy being raised by a single mom and his grandparents in Hawaii. Obama was born on August 4, 1961. His parents met as students at the University of Hawaii. His Mom, Ann Dunham, was a white American from Kansas, and his father, Barack Obama Sr., was a black Kenyan studying in the United States. Interracial marriage was illegal in most states, but they tied the knot in a secret ceremony when Ann was three months pregnant. His mom was only 18 years old at the time.

When Obama was 2, his father returned to Kenya. His parents eventually divorced and his father was killed in an automobile accident 19 years later. When Obama was six, he lived in Indonesia with his mom and step-father. He attended Catholic and Muslim schools before returning to Hawaii to live with his grandparents when he was ten.

10 Louis Tomlinson

He was born as Louis Troy Austin on December 24, 1991, in Doncaster, South Yorkshire, England. His mom (or mum) was only a teenager at the time, and his parents split up when Louis was young. When his mother later married Mark Tomlinson, Louis took his stepdad's last name. Louis Tomlinson has five younger step-sisters: Georgia, Charlotte, Félicité and twins Daisy and Phoebe. Unfortunately, his mother and stepfather later divorced, and in 2014, his mother welcomed another set of twins, Ernest and Doris, with her husband at the time Daniel Deakin.

In a sad turn of events, Louis Tomlinson recently lost his mother to cancer. After quietly battling leukemia, Johannah Deakin passed away on December 7, 2016. Louis was very close to his mom and really couldn’t imagine going on without her, however, her dying wish was for him to continue singing and pursuing his dreams. Around the time of her death, Louis was only days away from an X-Factor performance. He said, "I remember saying to her: 'Mum, how the f*** do you expect me to do this now?' And she didn't swear much, my mum. She'd always tell me off for swearing. And this time she was like: 'You've got to f***ing do it, it's as simple as that.'"

9 Nick Cannon

Nicholas Scott Cannon was born on October 8, 1980, in San Diego, Ca. His parents James Cannon and Beth Hackett were very young when he was born and also separated when Nick was a young child. So Nick grew up being shuttled back and forth from California to North Carolina. When Nick was only 8 years old, he got the bug to perform after his grandfather gave him several musical instruments. Not long after this, Nick switched from music to stand up comedy.

Nick was invited to perform stand up at his father’s public access show, and it wasn’t long after that that teenage Nick was performing at well-known comedy clubs. Cannon’s big break came when he was cast as a series regular and a staff writer for the Nickelodeon sketch comedy show ‘All That’. At only 17 years old, Nick Cannon became the youngest staff writer in television history.

8 Eminem

Eminem, of course, is known as an American rapper, record producer, and actor. However, his early life was not the easiest. He was born Marshall Bruce Mathers III on October 17, 1972, in St. Joseph, Missouri. Eminem grew up never knowing his father, who abandoned him and his family when he was just an infant. Eminem made many attempts to contact him throughout his childhood, but his father rejected all of them.

As a result of the circumstances, Eminem was raised by a single mom, Deborah Mathers, who was only a teenager at the time. She couldn’t seem to hold a job for more than a couple months, so they moved frequently from Missouri and Detroit, Michigan, spending large amounts of time in public housing projects. "I would change schools two, three times a year," Eminem later recalled. "That was probably the roughest part about it all." He would go on to be very critical of his upbringing in his music which led to his mom filing a defamation case for 10 million dollars. They ended up settling for $25,000.

7 Jack Nicholson

Jack Nicholson was born in Neptune, New Jersey, on April 22, 1937, and he grew up in Manasquan, New Jersey, which is about 50 miles south of the city on the Jersey Shore. He grew up believing that John and Ethel May Nicholson were his parents. Ethel May was a hairdresser as well as a talented oil painter, and John was a department store window dresser. June Nicholson, whom he believed was his older sister, was an aspiring actress.

June died of cancer in 1963, when Jack was 26 years old. Then, over ten years later, in 1974, a TIME magazine reporter researching a cover story on Nicholson discovered that June was actually his birth mother, and the people he believed to be his parents were actually his grandparents. Since June was only 17 years old at the time of Jack’s birth, unmarried, and unsure of who the father was, Jack’s grandparents agreed to raise him as their own.

6 50 Cent

Born Curtis Jackson, 50 Cent grew up in South Jamaica, a neighborhood of Queens, which is a borough of New York City. It is a tough neighborhood, plagued by gang violence, and 50 Cent was surrounded by it from the day he was born. His mother, Sabrina Jackson, was only 15 years old when he was born on July 6, 1976.

In order to support her son, she turned to dealing drugs. Eventually, Sabrina became one of the most feared drug dealers in Queens. When 50 Cent was eight, Sabrina was killed mysteriously, possibly as a result of a drug war. 50 Cent was then raised by his grandmother who had nine other kids to take care of. 50 Cent began working and dealing drugs at age twelve, in order to provide for himself. At 15 years old he bought his first gun, and by nineteen he was the neighborhood drug king, bringing in about $150,000 a month. He enjoyed rap music, but it wasn’t until his son was born that he knew he had to give up selling drugs and focus on his music career.

5 Lil Wayne

Rapper Lil Wayne was born Dwayne Michael Carter Jr. on September 27, 1982, in New Orleans, Louisiana. His mother was just a teenager at the time. Lil Wayne began making music as a child. He grew up in Hollygrove, one of New Orleans' poorest neighborhoods. He began rapping at the age of eight, and later met brothers Bryan and Slim Williams, the founders of Cash Money Records. They were impressed with Lil Wayne’s skills and gave him a business card. Being ambitious, Wayne continued to call them until they took him under their wing and let him hang around the label’s offices.

Outside of the studios, Lil Wayne was living dangerously. He sold crack cocaine for a while, and even accidentally shot himself in the chest with his mother’s gun. Apparently, the bullet went right through him and he bounced back within a couple weeks. He went on to gain success as a rapper and even had his own son at 15 years old.

4 Jared Leto

Jared Leto was born on December 26, 1971, in Bossier City, Louisiana. His parents divorced shortly after he was born, and his mother, a teenager and artist, is the one who raised him. The family struggled financially, but creativity was emphasized as Jared was growing up. He and his older brother, Shannon, gained a huge appreciation of the arts.

Leto studied at Philadelphia's University of the Arts and studied painting, but he ended up switched his focus to acting and moving to New York City, where he majored in filmmaking. It wasn't until 1992, when Leto moved to Los Angeles and starred in his breakthrough acting role. He played, Jordan Catalano, in My So-Called Life, opposite of Claire Danes.  He quickly became a heartthrob and even later went on to make it on People magazine's "50 Most Beautiful People" list in both 1996 and 1997.

3 Dr. Dre

Originally born Andre Romelle Young, Dr. Dre was born on February 18, 1965, in Los Angeles, Ca. His parents were Verna and Theodore Young. His mom was only 16 years old when he was born. Dr. Dre grew up in Compton, raised mostly by his mother.

Early on in his career, Dr. Dre was a DJ. His musical talents earned him a spot on the World Class Wreckin' Cru with DJ Yella, Shakespeare, Cli-N-Tel, and Mona Lisa. Dr. Dre became the in-house producer and DJ for the short-lived electro-pop group. N.W.A. was the rap group that joined together Eazy-E, Ice Cube, and Dr. Dre. Their song Straight Outta Compton was a vicious street classic that resonated with the frustrations of the young, black and persecuted in LA. Straight Outta Compton soon became an underground success although it had almost no airplay. N.W.A. became notorious for the group's aggressive content.

2 Eric Clapton

Eric Patrick Clapton was born on March 30, 1945, in his grandparents home in England. Eric Clapton was the son of a 16-year-old girl named Patricia Molly Clapton, and Edward Walter Fryer, a 24-year-old Canadian soldier who was stationed in England during World War II. It was clearly very difficult for an unmarried 16-year-old to raise a baby by herself in the mid-1940s.

Patricia’s parents, Rose and Jack Clapp, stepped in as legal guardians and raised Eric as their own. He grew up believing his mother was his sister, and although Rose and Jack Clapp never adopted Eric, they remained legal guardians until 1963. Eric’s last name comes from Rose’s first husband and Pat’s father, Reginald Cecil Clapton. Eric’s mother Patricia eventually married and lived in Canada and Germany with her husband who was in the military. Together, she and her husband had two girls and a boy. Eric’s half-brother, Brian, was killed in a road accident in 1974 when he was 26 years old and his half-sisters are Cheryl and Heather.

1 Gretchen Wilson

Gretchen Wilson was born on June 26, 1973, in Pocahontas, Illinois. Her mother was just a teenager at the time and raised Gretchen as a single mom. They lived in a trailer park as Gretchen was growing up. In the ninth grade, Gretchen decided to drop out of high school. She was a bartender and worked in the kitchen at local clubs. She would sing for extra tips in order to pay the bills. In 1996, after performing for several months as lead singer for a local cover band, Wilson moved to Nashville in order to pursue a musical career.

Her dream of overnight success was anything but a reality. She worked in bars for four years, waiting for her big break. She was eventually discovered by singer-songwriters Big and Rich, who were impressed by her singing one night, and introduced her to the Nashville music community. Wilson eventually signed with Sony Music Nashville and went on to have two platinum-selling albums in 2003 and 2005.

Sources: biography.com, huffingtonpost.com, lifenews.com, notablebiographies.com, Millercenter.org, thefamouspeople.com, cnn.com, mirror.co.uk, oxygen.com, thoughtco.com, ericclapton.com