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Post Malone explained how he came up with his rap name — and you may be surprised at how easy it was

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Post Malone released his second studio album "Beerbongs & Bentleys" in April. Tabatha Fireman/Getty Images
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Post Malone is just one of many celebrities with a stage name — but he put less thought into his new moniker than you may think.

The rapper, born Austin Richard Post, recently appeared on NBC's "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon" and revealed how he landed on the name Post Malone at the beginning of his career.

"I was like 14, and I had started getting into producing and rapping and singing over my own stuff. And I needed a name, you know, for my s---- mixtape," he told Jimmy Fallon. "So I ran [my real name] through a random rap name generator... now I'm stuck with it."

In fact, Post Malone isn't the only rapper who relied on that randomized method. Donald Glover famously found his rapper name, Childish Gambino, using a Wu-Tang name generator.

"We were all hanging out, chilling and drinking and then we were like, 'Oh, Wu-Tang name generator, let's put our name in,'" he revealed on "The Tonight Show" back in 2011. "And we're putting them all in, and they're all funny and stuff, and then mine came up and I was like, 'you guys, it's not funny anymore. This is something big.' I just really liked it."

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Callie Ahlgrim
Callie Ahlgrim is a senior reporter at Business Insider who writes about pop culture, with a special focus on the music industry.As a cofounding member of BI's music vertical, Callie has covered a range of hot topics at the intersection of art, celebrity culture, and show business: the political implications of Bad Bunny's success; the fan feedback loop in Taylor Swift's creative process; the symbolism of Kendrick Lamar's Super Bowl halftime show; the commercial impact of Beyoncé's country album; the brand identities of stars like Harry StylesMorgan WallenAddison RaeKaty Perry, and Frank Ocean; the modern challenges of making money as a musician; and more.She also covers celebrity PR strategies, blockbuster movies, prestige TV shows, and internet trends.Callie graduated from Boston University with a Bachelor of Science in Journalism, a Bachelor of Arts in English, and a minor in Spanish. She previously wrote columns for Man Repeller and ELLE.