Portrait of Katharine McPhee

Birthday profile

Katharine McPhee

Katharine McPhee, American singer-songwriter and actress

Born
March 25, 1984
Age in 2026
42
Zodiac sign
Aries
Birth year
1984

About Katharine McPhee

Katharine Hope McPhee (born March 25, 1984) is an American actress and singer. In May 2006, she was the runner-up on the fifth season of American Idol. Her eponymous debut album was released on RCA Records in January 2007, and debuted at number two on the Billboard 200, selling 381,000 copies (as of December 2010). The album's first single, "Over It", was a Billboard Top 30 hit and was certified gold in 2008. Her second album, Unbroken, was released on Verve Forecast Records on January 5, 2010, and debuted at No. 27 on the Billboard 200. The album featured the single "Had It All", which peaked at number 22 on the AC chart. It has sold 45,000 copies as of January 2011. Her third album, the holiday-themed Christmas Is the Time to Say I Love You, was released in October 2010. It debuted at number 11 on the Billboard Top Holiday Albums chart, while the single "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" peaked at number 16 on the Billboard AC chart. McPhee released her fourth album, Hysteria, in September 2015. She released her fifth album, I Fall in Love Too Easily, composed of jazz standards, in November 2017. McPhee has an established acting career, in The House Bunny and Shark Night 3D, and portrayed Karen Cartwright in Smash (2012–2013) and Paige Dineen in Scorpion (2014–2018). She made her Broadway debut as Jenna in Waitress in 2018 and originated the role in the West End production (2019), and returned to the Broadway show (2019–2020). After the first round of Hollywood week, she sang "I'll Never Love This Way Again" by Dionne Warwick, which earned favorable comments from the judges.

Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.

The world when Katharine McPhee was born

Katharine McPhee was born in 1984. The year snapshot below places that birthday in its cultural and historical setting: the music and films people were following, the headlines shaping public life, and the everyday prices families encountered.

Culture in 1984

  • #1 song"When Doves Cry" – Prince
  • Top movieAmadeus
  • Top TV showDynasty
  • Best-selling bookThe Unbearable Lightness of Being – Milan Kundera

Headlines and milestones

  • Major sports momentMary Lou Retton wins Olympic all-around gymnastics gold
  • Top headlineBhopal gas disaster in India kills thousands
  • Technology milestoneApple Macintosh launches with revolutionary GUI
  • Defining fadBreakdancing
  • Notable inventionApple Macintosh
  • World population4.77 billion

United States snapshot

  • U.S. leaderRonald Reagan
  • Sports championDetroit Tigers (World Series)
  • Also wonBoston Celtics (NBA)
  • U.S. population235.8M

1984 versus 2026

These figures put everyday life in Katharine McPhee's birth year beside the site's latest United States snapshot.

Measure19842026
Gas$1.13$3.45/gal
Average home$72,400$435,000
Average income$26,433$67,500
Minimum wage$3.35$7.25/hr (federal)
Movie ticket$3.36$11.95
Postage stamp$0.20$0.73
Population235.8M341 million

Sources and editorial standards

This profile combines a biographical source with structured birthday and historical context. Sources recorded for this profile: Wikipedia, IMDb, MusicBrainz. See our editorial policy for sourcing, corrections, and review standards.

Read the source biography on Wikipedia. Wikipedia text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.