Celebrities who got their angel wings in 2011

Hollywood blockbusters and platinum albums aren’t always enough for today’s A-listers. Each year, a few branch into the startup game, often investing big bucks in some of the world’s hottest young companies – and this year was no exception. We take a look back at nine celebrities who got their angel (investor) wings in 2011.

5 Seconds

00:00

Leonard DiCaprio – The three-time Oscar nominee headed a $4 million seed round back in October for Mobli, a real-time photo sharing service based in Israel. The company’s app allows users to share and view photos from various vantage points of the same place or event. DiCaprio isn’t just writing a check and sitting on the sidelines, either, instead assuming an advisory role as part of his investment agreement.

Toru Hanai / REUTERS

Justin Timberlake – The pop icon jumped headfirst into the investment pool this year, first taking a stake in the $35 million purchase of once-prominent social media site MySpace before helping lead a $2 million seed round in Stipple, a San Francisco start-up that helps people monetize their pictures online. There were also rumors that the teen heartthrob also poured some funds in a stealth start-up called Dekko in July.

Frazer Harrison / GETTY IMAGES

Kanye West – The 14-time Grammy winner joined fellow singing sensation Lady Gaga in August on a $7.5 million investment round in New York-based Turntable.fm, a music-driven social network where users can “DJ’ for their friends. Despite legal controversy surrounding its right to the music, the site has enjoyed quick success, picking up 140,000 active users in its first month.

Danny Moloshok / REUTERS

Lady Gaga – In addition to her Turntable.fm investment, the pop queen joined Google’s Eric Schmidt on a $1 million round in Backplane, which was founded by Gaga’s business manager, Troy Carter. The investment gave the singer a 20 percent stake in the company, which combines various social media presences into one community platform for brand managers and celebrities.

Joel Ryan / AP

Jason Mraz – The smooth singer-songwriter was among a group of investors who contributed to a $1.75 million seed round last month for Trippy, a social travel site that seeks suggestions and tips from users’ friends by tapping into social networking circles. Social media guru Randi Zuckerberg (Mark’s sister) and fashion designer Rachel Zoe also invested in the start-up.

Creative Commons licensed from Flickr user PhotoFM.com

Bar Refaeli – The Israeli supermodel in October invested $1 million in underwear e-commerce site Undeez, which is based in her home country. Refaeli is now responsible for business development and marketing for the company, which sells underwear, socks and T-shirts for both men and women.

Creative Commons licensed from Flickr user Laurent Jean Philippe

MC Hammer – The rapper traded his parachute pants for angel wings this year, investing in Bump Technologies (a device-to-device file sharing app), Square (an mobile payments start-up) and a number of other tech start-ups. He has also teamed up with NewMe, an accelerator program in Silicon Valley, and helped launch a new search engine start-up called WireDoo.

Nancy Andrews / THE WASHINGTON POST

Selena Gomez - The young singer/actress joined the angel game in November by participating in a $750,000 round for Postcards on the Run, which lets users convert smartphone photos into real-world postcards. The Los Angeles-based company will send the postcards anywhere in the world for about a dollar a piece, and Gomez had evidently been an early adopter.

Mario Anzuoni / REUTERS

Justin Bieber – No confirmation yet from Bieber’s camp, but several reports suggest the teen icon has agreed to invest in Thre.ad, a New York-based fashion photo sharing start-up. Bieber was also spotted earlier this year playing basketball with NBA player Steve Nash and Mide Duda, co-partner of Nash’s venture capital firm.

Joel Ryan / AP

FEATURED PHOTO GALLERIES

epa03714567 A Thai Buddhist family take an offering of lotus flowers to pay respects to a giant Buddha surrounded by more than 1,000 smaller Buddha statues at a Buddhism Park, on Vesak or Visakha Bucha day, in Nakhon Nayok, north of Bangkok, Thailand, 24 May 2013. Buddhist devotees throughout the world offer blessings at temples to mark one of the holiest days in Buddhism, commemorating the birth, enlightenment and the death of Buddha. EPA/BARBARA WALTON

Photos of the day

Buddhist Wesak festival, prisoners-of-war reunion, bridge collapse, world’s largest Lego model and more.

A portion of the Interstate 5 bridge is submerged after it collapsed into the Skagit River dumping vehicles and people into the water in Mount Vernon, Wash., Thursday, May 23, 2013 according to the Washington State Patrol. (AP Photo/Skagit Valley Herald, Frank Varga)

I-5 bridge collapse in Washington state dumps vehicles, passengers into river

No fatalities reported; collapse over Skagit River shuts down main route between Seattle and Canada.

SILVER SPRING MD: MAY 18
from left to right, Bodybuilders Jorge Villatoro, Sidney Bumbrey, Eric Holmes and Ron Coleman show off their most muscular poses for the judges at the 2013 Musclemania - Capital Tournament of Champions Contest held at the Montgomery College Cultural Arts Center in Silver Spring, Maryland on May 18, 2013.
(Photo by Marvin Joseph/The Washington Post)

Flexing their muscles

Dozens of bodybuilders came out to Silver Spring to compete in the 2013 Musclemania Capital Tournament of Champions.

epa03714543 US actress Carmen Electra arrives for the Life Ball gala, at the airport Schwechat, in Vienna, Austria, 24 May 2013. The 21th Life Ball, an annual fundraising charity event for HIV and Aids projects, takes place at the Vienna City-Hall on 25 May 2013. EPA/HERBERT NEUBAUER

Eye on entertainment

Carmen Electra, Barbara Eden, Sharon Stone, Goldie Hawn, Jaden Smith and more.

A police forensics officer investigates a crime scene where one man was killed in Woolwich, southeast London May 22, 2013. British Prime Minister David Cameron has called a meeting of his government's emergency Cobra security committee after the killing of a man in south London, his office said on Wednesday. REUTERS/Stefan Wermuth (BRITAIN - Tags: CRIME LAW POLITICS TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY)

Terrorism cited in London cleaver attack

Two assailants hacked to death a British soldier on a busy southeast London neighborhood street Wednesday afternoon before delivering an apparent...

MOORE, OK - MAY 22: A street of tornado destructed homes is reflected on a puddle of water on May 22, 2013 in Moore, Ok. (Photo by Ricky Carioti/The Washington Post)

Assessing tornado damage in Oklahoma

Amid great destruction, residents of the Oklahoma City suburb of Moore begin to assess the severity of the twister that hit Monday.

WASHINGTON DC: MAY 22
Contestant Travis Rumans, 31 dances with his beloved glow sticks for talent at Penn Social in Washington, DC on May 22, 2013. The contestants help raise over $15,000 for the Children’s National Medical Center in Washington, D.C.
The Mr. DC pageant is a fundraising event to benefit Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals.
The qualifications for the Mr. District of Columbia finalists is that they must live, work and attend school in the District of Columbia between the ages of 21-30 who are unmarried, intelligent, and dapper in a suit.
(Photo by Marvin Joseph/The Washington Post)

Mr. D.C. Pageant contestants compete for charity

Contestants in the Mr. D.C. Pageant, a fundraising event, helped raise more than $15,000 for the Children’s National Medical Center.

A Burrowing owl tries to perch on a protective rope in a public park in Cooper City, Fla. Monday, May 20, 2013 as rain falls. (AP Photo/J Pat Carter)

Animal views

Fun and fascinating creatures around the world.

Back to Previous Gallery

Discussion Policy | FAQ | About Discussions

Comments

Add your comment

Read what others are saying About Badges

SuperFan Badge

SuperFan badge holders consistently post smart, timely comments about Washington area sports and teams.

More about badges | Request a badge

Culture Connoisseur Badge

Culture Connoisseurs consistently offer thought-provoking, timely comments on the arts, lifestyle and entertainment.

More about badges | Request a badge

Fact Checker Badge

Fact Checkers contribute questions, information and facts to The Fact Checker.

More about badges | Request a badge

Washingtologist Badge

Washingtologists consistently post thought-provoking, timely comments on events, communities, and trends in the Washington area.

More about badges | Request a badge

Post Writer Badge

This commenter is a Washington Post editor, reporter or producer.

Post Forum Badge

Post Forum members consistently offer thought-provoking, timely comments on politics, national and international affairs.

More about badges | Request a badge

Weather Watcher Badge

Weather Watchers consistently offer thought-provoking, timely comments on climates and forecasts.

More about badges | Request a badge

World Watcher Badge

World Watchers consistently offer thought-provoking, timely comments on international affairs.

More about badges | Request a badge

Post Contributor Badge

This commenter is a Washington Post contributor. Post contributors aren’t staff, but may write articles or columns. In some cases, contributors are sources or experts quoted in a story.

More about badges | Request a badge

Post Recommended

Washington Post reporters or editors recommend this comment or reader post.

You must be logged in to report a comment.

Comments our editors find particularly useful or relevant are displayed in Top Comments, as are comments by users with these badges: . Replies to those posts appear here, as well as posts by staff writers.

All comments are posted in the All Comments tab.

More about badges

Get a badge

To pause and restart automatic updates, click "Live" or "Paused". If paused, you'll be notified of the number of additional comments that have come in.