Sunshine isnāt the only thing that makes Florida glow. Americaās third most populous state boasts some major star power, with the several of the biggest celebrity icons from the world of film, music and sports calling Florida home.
Shining a light on the brightest Floridian stars, FloridaBet.com decided to take a break from our Florida sports betting coverage to rank the stateās most famous celebrities. To determine the list below, we employed a weighted system using AhRefs.com Keywords Explorer and Google Trends. The results capture the most searched celebrities from Florida over the past year.
Our initial long list of Florida celebrities focused on individuals who spent at least 10 of their formative childhood or teenage years in Florida. We then narrowed it down using the methodology described above to spotlight the actors, musicians, athletes, and social media stars currently dominating the cultural conversation in 2024.
Weighted Rank | Celebrity | Hometown City | Search Volume Over Past Year |
1 | Ariana Grande, Singer-Songwriter | Boca Raton, FL | 3.0M |
2 | Pitbull, Singer-Songwriter | Miami, FL | 1.5M |
3 | Eva Mendes, Actress | Miami, FL | 997K |
4 | Roman Reigns, Wrestler | Pensacola, FL | 873K |
5 | Camila Cabello, Singer-Songwriter | Miami, FL | 849K |
6 | Deion Sanders, College Football Coach | Fort Myers, FL | 815K |
7 | Lamar Jackson, Current NFL Player | Pompano Beach, FL | 768K |
8 | Bella Thorne, Actress | Pembroke Pines, FL | 652K |
9 | Sarah Paulson, Actress | Tampa, FL | 483K |
10 | Derrick Henry, Current NFL Player | Yulee, FL | 482K |
11 | Leighton Meester, Actress | Marco Island, FL | 452K |
12 | Antonio Brown, Former NFL Player | Miami, FL | 440K |
13 | Enrique Iglesias, Singer-Songwriter | Miami, FL | 410K |
14 | Mandy Moore, Actress | Longwood, FL | 402K |
15 | Adin Ross, Streamer & Influencer | Boca Raton, FL | 382K |
1. Ariana Grande, Singer-Songwriter, Boca Raton. Search volume: 3.0M. Pop sensation Ariana Grande tops our list of Florida's biggest celebs. The āThank U Nextā singer has been busting out chart-topping hits for over a decade with no signs of slowing down. 2024 has already been a massive year for singer, with her seventh studio album hitting record stands in March. Expect another boost in search volume soon when Grande hits the big screen for the highly anticipated film adaptation of the hit Broadway musical "Wicked."
2. Pitbull, Singer-Songwriter, Miami, FL. Search volume: 1.5M. Known as āMr. 305,ā Florida rapper Pitbull is synonymous with the city of Miami. In the early-2010s he established himself as an international hitmaker in large part due to his star-studded collabs with the likes of Enrique Iglesias (āI Like Itā), Kesha (āTimberā), and Usher (āDJ Got Us Fallinā in Loveā). Local Pitbull fans looking to escape to Sin City can check out the rapper during his upcoming residency in Las Vegas, which begins this Fall.
3. Eva Mendes, Actress, Miami, FL. Search volume: 997K. Despite not appearing on the big screen for over ten years, Eva Mendes still checks in as Floridaās third biggest celebrity. After starring in a string of hit films during the early-2000s, including "Training Day" and a stint in the "Fast and Furious" franchise, Mendes walked away from the big screen, in part to raise the two daughters she shares alongside Barbie-actor Ryan Gosling. Although she keeps busy with other projects, including penning a recent childrenās book, Mendes hasnāt ruled out a return to acting.
4. Roman Reigns, Wrestler, Pensacola, FL. Search volume: 873K. WWE star Roman Reigns has dominated pro wrestling since his 2012 debut, becoming a six-time world champion and headlining WrestleMania a record-setting nine times. Reigns is part of the legendary Anoaāi family. The Samoan wrestling dynasty also includes former WWE superstars Rikishi and Yokozuna, who are both Reignsā cousins, as well as Dwayne āThe Rockā Johnson (although Reigns and Johnson are not related by blood).
5. Camila Cabello, Singer-Songwriter, Miami, FL. Search volume: 849K. Ranking fifth on the list of Floridaās most famous people, Camila Cabello began her career as part of the girl group Fifth Harmony before establishing herself as a solo artist. Born in Cuba but raised in Miami, Cabelloās music draws heavily from her Latino roots.
6. Deion Sanders, College Football Coach, Fort Myers, FL. Search volume: 815K. Former pro football and baseball player, Deion Sanders holds the unique distinction of being the only athlete to ever compete in both the World Series and the Super Bowl. These days, the two-time Super Bowl winner is the head coach of the University of Colorado Buffaloes football team, where his son Shedeur Sanders serves as the teamās starting signal caller.
7. Lamar Jackson, Current NFL Player, Pompano Beach, FL. Search volume: 768K. Baltimore Ravens quarterback and two time NFL MVP Lamar Jackson checks in as the seventh bigger Florida celebrity. After a stand-out collegiate career with the Louisville Cardinals, which included a Heisman winning season in 2016, Baltimore drafted Jackson in 2018. Since then he has helped spearhead five playoff appearance for the purple and black ā including a trip to last yearās AFC Championship.
8. Bella Thorne, Actress, Pembroke Pines, FL. Search volume: 652K. From child star to adult film director, Florida actress Bella Thorne has certainly had a unique career. Thorneās break out role was in the Disney kids series āShake it Up,ā which aired from 2010 to 2013. But following her departure from the House of Mouse, she would not only direct the aforementioned award winning adult film Her & Him, but also create an OnlyFans account that reportedly earned her over $2 million dollars in her first week on the direct-to-consumer porn service.
9. Sarah Paulson, Actress, Tampa, FL. Search volume: 483K. A shining star on both the big and small screens, Tampaās Sarah Paulson owns one of the most prolific acting resumes of the past thirty years. Perhaps best known for her appearances on the āAmerican Horror Storyā anthology series, earlier this year Paulson won the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play.
10. Derrick Henry, Current NFL Player, Yulee, FL. Search volume: 482K. The second Baltimore Raven to make our list of Floridaās fifteen biggest celebrities, Derrick Henry is arguably the NFLās most dominating running back. Known for his bulldozing downhill run style, the former Alabama RB (and 2015 Heisman winner) just signed a new two-year $16 million dollar deal with the Baltimore Ravens last offseason, joining fellow Floridian celeb Lamar Jackson for the 2024 campaign.
11. Leighton Meester, Actress, Marco Island, FL. Search volume: 452K. Best known for her breakout role as Blair Waldorf on āGossip Girl,ā Leighton Meester is Floridaās 11th biggest celebrity. While she still remains an influential figure in fashion and on the red carpet, Meesterās acting career has mostly stalled out. Her most recent headlining role was in the 2023 Amazon Freevee Christmas movie EXmas, produced by BuzzFeed Studios.
12. Antonio Brown, Former NFL Player, Miami, FL. Search volume: 440K. With 928 career receptions, 12,291 receiving yards, and 83 touchdowns across 12 seasons, Antonio Brownās Hall of Fame-caliber NFL career speaks for itself. Unfortunately, these days Brown, who left pro football in 2021, is mostly making headlines for a litany of on-going legal issues and his off-color remarks on social media.
13. Enrique Iglesias, Singer-Songwriter, Miami, FL. Search volume: 410K. Another Miami music legend with a strong presence on the Latino pop charts, Enrique Iglesias ranks as Floridaās thirteenth biggest celeb. The āHeroā singer has managed to achieve worldwide success with hits in both English and Spanish, selling over 180 million records globally. In fact, the Billboard Latin Music Awards named Iglesias as the āTop Latin Artist of All Timeā in 2020.
14. Mandy Moore, Actress, Longwood, FL. Search volume: 402K. A mainstay on screen and across the radio airwaves since her breakout as a teenage pop star in the late-90s, Mandy Moore officially achieved Americaās Sweetheart status as a cancer-stricken teenager in the 2002 coming-of-age film A Walk to Remember. More recently, in 2022 Moore wrapped up her seven season stint on the hit NBC inter-generational dramedy āThis Is Us,ā where she once again brought millions of Americans to tears in her role as Rebecca, the beloved matriarch of the Pearson family.
15. Adin Ross, Streamer & Influencer, Boca Raton, FL. Search volume: 331K. The only internet personality to crack our list of the top 15 most famous Floridians, Adin Ross represents a new generation of celebrity. Although he wonāt turn 24 until next month, Ross has already gained a huge internet following, beginning with his video game live streams on the website Twitch. Although Ross has been subsequently banned from the site, the streamerās divisive online presence has only fueled his rise in prominence.
USA Today photo by Patrick Breen.
Author
Jeff Parker is an entertainment writer for FloridaBet.com. A writer for film, television and the internet, Jeff is a life long movie buff, with a Masters Degree in Popular Culture. He lives in Halifax, Nova Scotia, where he works full time as documentary filmmaker and producer.
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