Several celebrities have chosen a less-traveled path in the Hollywood spotlight and have been candid about their decisions to abstain from sex before marriage.
Whether it was for religious reasons or other personal preferences, stars including Jessica Simpson, Carrie Underwood and Justin Bieber had different reasons for choosing celibacy before tying the knot.
Here is a look at celebrities who saved themselves for the sacred bond of marriage.
From left to right, Justin Bieber, Carrie Underwood and Jessica Simpson are among the celebrities who saved themselves for marriage. (Getty Images)
Jessica Simpson
“Sweetest Sin” singer Jessica Simpson, who is also the daughter of former pastor Joe Simpson, was given a purity ring to wear by her father when she was 12 years old.
Simpson, now 42, previously admitted that her decision to abstain from sex until her elaborate wedding with 98 Degrees singer and ex-husband Nick Lachey was challenging, yet trendy.
Jessica Simpson and Nick Lachey were married from 2002 until their split in 2006. (Getty Images)
“My virginity is something I stand strong in,” the pop star told People. “It’s not always easy. But I do respect it. Virginity can be cool and sexy.”
Lachey and Simpson were married from 2002 until their split in 2006. Both of them have since remarried and share children with their current spouses, Vanessa Lachey and Eric Johnson, respectively.
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Carrie Underwood
Country star Carrie Underwood revealed to Slate Magazine in 2007 that she planned to wait to have sex until her wedding night.
The former “American Idol” winner previously dished on her first kiss with professional hockey player Mike Fisher.
“Our first real date was on New Year’s Eve, and our first kiss was when the ball dropped,” Underwood said, according to Taste of Country.
Carrie Underwood and Mike Fisher have been married since 2010. (Francis Specker/CBS via Getty Images)
“We were in front of people, and he’s not a big PDA guy,” she added. “I figured, I’ll go in for it because he can’t leave me hanging, right? So I made him kiss me in public.”
Underwood and Fisher married in 2010 and have two children together, Isiah and Jacob.
Ciara
“Goodies” singer Ciara shared the importance of waiting until marriage to have sex.
“I really believe that when you focus on a friendship, you have the opportunity to build a strong foundation for a relationship — and once you know you’re really great friends, and you’re what we call ‘equally yoked,’ where you share the same values or the same outlook on life, it kind of sets the tone,” she told Cosmopolitan South Africa in 2017.
Ciara and NFL star Russell Wilson share two children and are expecting another child. She additionally has a son with rapper Future. (Getty Images)
“Knowing that you’ll always have the friendship and that you can always go back to it is very important, and very powerful.”
Ciara and NFL star Russell Wilson remained abstinent until after their July 2016 wedding. The happy couple share two children, daughter Sienna Princess Wilson and Win Harrison Wilson. Ciara also has a son named Future Zahir with ex-fiancé, rapper Future.
The “Promise” singer revealed this past August she is expecting another child with Wilson.
CIARA EXPLAINS WHY SHE CHOSE TO BE ABSTINENT BEFORE MARRIAGE TO RUSSELL WILSON
Andy Grammer
Multiplatinum singer-songwriter Andy Grammer confessed he remained celibate until he tied the knot with fellow artist Aijia in 2012.
“I actually waited until I was married to have sex,” Grammer candidly shared on “The Talk” via People in 2016.
The “Honey I’m Good” crooner admitted, “That was not without some porn, unfortunately.”
“I do think that, as a culture, we don’t understand the effects of that. I feel for men right now because it’s never been this easy to do something so destructive to yourself,” Grammer continued. “It makes my heart sad that we don’t quite understand how destructive that is, on a daily basis, that we can be doing to ourselves.”
Andy Grammer and wife Aijia share two daughters, Louisiana and Israel. (Getty Images)
Grammer and Aijia share two daughters, Louisiana and Israel.
Justin Bieber
Before tying the knot with wife Hailey Bieber, Justin Bieber spoke out about his reason for remaining celibate until their wedding night.
Bieber said he turned to God after he recognized he had “a legitimate problem with sex.”
“He doesn’t ask us not to have sex for him because he wants rules and stuff,” Justin told Vogue in 2019. “He’s like, ‘I’m trying to protect you from hurt and pain.’ I think sex can cause a lot of pain.”
Before tying the knot with wife Hailey Bieber, Justin Bieber spoke out about his reason to remain celibate until their wedding night. (Getty Images )
The “Peaches” singer confessed he previously had a sex addiction, and his abstinence was a way for him to “feel closer to God.”
“Sometimes people have sex because they don’t feel good enough. Because they lack self-worth. Women do that, and guys do that. I wanted to rededicate myself to God in that way because I really felt it was better for the condition of my soul. And I believe that God blessed me with Hailey as a result. There are perks. You get rewarded for good behavior.”
The two tied the knot in September 2018 at a New York City courthouse wedding.
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Sarah Drew
During a Fox News Digital interview in 2014, Sarah Drew reflected on how she related to her “Grey’s Anatomy” character.
When Drew was asked to join the cast of “Grey’s Anatomy” as the Christian Dr. April Kepner, she wanted to make sure her religious character would be portrayed fairly and not as a “judgy Christian” often seen on television.
“Grey’s Anatomy” star Sarah Drew confessed she waited until marriage to have sex in a Fox News Digital interview. (Getty Images)
“For April, the first thing that was revealed was she was a virgin,” Drew said. “I waited until I was married to have sex, so I understood April’s motivations. The writers thought it would be a really cool and interesting story to tell that isn’t seen too often.”
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Yvonne Orji
“Insecure” star Yvonne Orji, 39, recently shared that she is still waiting until her wedding night to have sex.
Despite acting out several sex scenes in the hit HBO show, Orji joked on Chelsea Handler’s podcast that people should “pray” for her future husband since she has “a lot of pent-up energy” in her.
“Insecure” star Yvonne Orji, 39, recently shared that she is still waiting until her wedding night to have sex. (Getty Images)
Orji previously explained that her faith and religion played a big part in her remaining celibate.
“Before any of [the fame] happened, I sat down with myself and with God and thought, when I make it, how do you want me to represent you while I’m here?” she told PEOPLE in 2017. “It was like, okay, I know why I’m here. It’s to make you proud.”
