Chynna Phillips

Gilliam Chynna Phillips was born in Los Angeles, California, on February 12, 1968, to John and Michelle Phillips, both members of the popular 1960s folk/rock group the Mamas & the Papas. Although she grew up among rock 'n' roll royalty and other stars like Warren Beatty and Jack Nicholson, Chynna's childhood and youth were marred by substance abuse. She described her father as a "die-hard, take-it-to-the-grave" addict, and before long, she too was abusing drugs and alcohol. "I didn't know any other life," she confessed years later, when she had gone clean.

A more positive childhood tie came from Chynna's early friendship with Carnie and Wendy Wilson, daughters of The Beach Boys' Brian Wilson. The trio, who had known each other since they were infants, even put together a demo track of "Take Me Out to The Ballgame" in 1973, calling themselves The Satellites.

After high school, Chynna pursued an acting and modeling career, with some success. She appeared in a number of late-1980s films, including John Hughes' Some Kind of Wonderful (1987), The Invisible Kid (1988) and Caddyshack II (1988). The following year, she appeared in Cameron Crowe's Say Anything... and starred in the made-for-TV movie Roxanne: The Prize Pulitzer.

While her acting career was taking off, Chynna entered the family business after all. After a failed attempt at putting together a charity album featuring the children of '60s musicians, in 1986, Chynna had reunited with the Wilson sisters to form the band Wilson Phillips. But the trio wasn't able to get a record contract for a number of years. Finally, in 1990, Wilson Phillips released their first, self-titled album. Wilson Phillips, featuring songs like "Hold On," "Release Me" and "You're in Love," sold over 10 million copies worldwide and allowed the group to tour as far away as Japan.