Few would argue with John Krasinski’s selection as People’s Sexiest Man Alive. He’s handsome, talented and has a good sense of humor. But he’s not very musical. We went back through the nearly 40-year history of People’s Sexiest Man Alive franchise and found seven title-holders who have made the Billboard Hot 100.
In addition, six Sexiest Man Alive veterans starred in films that spawned Billboard 200-topping soundtracks. (Three of them also had Hot 100 hits, so we’ll save those mentions for the list below.)
Sean Connery, who was deemed Sexiest in 1989, starred in seven James Bond films, including Goldfinger, with a soundtrack that logged three weeks at No. 1 in 1965. (Here’s some sexy trivia for you: Connery was 59 when he took the title, making him the oldest Sexiest Man Alive in the franchise’s history.)
Tom Cruise, People’s choice for 1990, starred in Top Gun, with a soundtrack that logged five weeks at No. 1 in 1986. It also spawned the Oscar-winning smash “Take My Breath Away,” a Hot 100-topping hit for Berlin.
George Clooney, the choice for 1997, starred in O Brother, Where Art Thou?, with a soundtrack that logged two weeks at No. 1 in 2002. It also won album of the year at that year’s Grammys. Clooney has an even stronger connection to music: His aunt was singer Rosemary Clooney, who topped Billboard’s pre-Hot 100 pop charts in the 1950s with “Come On-a My House,” “Half as Much” and the double-sided smash “Hey There” and “This Ole House.” Rosemary Clooney received a well-deserved lifetime achievement award from the Recording Academy in 2002.
Here they are, the hunks who can sing, too – all the men who have been named People’s Sexiest Man Alive who have also made the Billboard Hot 100.
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Patrick Swayze
Date Crowned Sexiest: July 22, 1991
Age at the Time: 38
Hot 100 Hits: 1 – “She’s Like the Wind” (featuring Wendy Fraser), No. 3 in 1988. The Dirty Dancing soundtrack topped the Billboard 200 for 18 weeks in 1987-88.
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Hugh Jackman
Date Crowned Sexiest: Nov. 25, 2008
Age at the Time: 40
Hot 100 Hits: 1. “The Greatest Show,” credited to Jackman, Keala Settle, Zac Efron, Zendaya & The Greatest Showman Ensemble, reached No. 88 in 2018. The Greatest Showman soundtrack topped the Billboard 200 for two weeks that year.
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Bradley Cooper
Date Crowned Sexiest: Nov. 16, 2011
Age at the Time: 36
Hot 100 Hits: 2, including “Shallow” (collab with Lady Gaga), No. 1 in 2019. The A Star Is Born soundtrack topped the Billboard 200 for four weeks in 2018-19.
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Adam Levine
Date Crowned Sexiest: Nov. 19, 2013
Age at the Time: 34
Hot 100 Hits: 45, combining solo and Maroon 5 hits. This tally includes four No. 1 hits, all by Maroon 5 – “Makes Me Wonder” (2007), “Moves Like Jagger” (featuring Christina Aguilera, 2011), “One More Night” (2012) and “Girls Like You” (featuring Cardi B, 2018).
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Dwayne Johnson (The Rock)
Date Crowned Sexiest: Nov. 15, 2016
Age at the Time: 44
Hot 100 Hits: 1. “You’re Welcome,” from the film Moana, reached No. 83 in 2016. Lin-Manuel Miranda wrote the song, which appeared on the Moana soundtrack. The album was a blockbuster, reaching No. 2 on the Billboard 200 and logging 62 weeks at No. 1 on Top Soundtracks.
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Blake Shelton
Date Crowned Sexiest: Nov. 14, 2017
Age at the Time: 41
Hot 100 Hits: 43, including six that made the top 20, led by two that reached No. 12 – “Boys ’Round Here” (featuring Pistol Annies & Friends, 2013) and Post Malone’s “Pour Me a Drink,” on which Shelton was featured (2024).
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John Legend
Date Crowned Sexiest: Nov. 13, 2019
Age at the Time: 40
Hot 100 Hits: 23, including “All of Me” (a three-week No. 1 in 2014)
