Gray Chose Stage Name After Childhood Bike Crash

The I Try hitmaker's birth name is Natalie Hinds, but after landing her record contract in the 1990s, the singer realised she needed a more interesting handle for her stage alter-ego.

She picked MACy Gray, the name of an elderly man who lived in her neighbourhood as a child, copying his memorable title to launch her career.

But the star later had to fend off a lawsuit from her angry namesake.

She tells Grazia magazine, "My real name is Natalie Hinds but when I was a kid in Ohio I fell off my bicycle and landed under a mailbox that said MACy Gray, an old man whose name stuck with me.

"Later, when I went into music, everyone had a stage name, so I took his. I think he tried to sue me, but couldn't because names are public domain."