Bake your favorite cupcakes for Taylor Momsen, as the "Gossip Girl" star and singer of the Pretty Reckless is celebrating her 17th birthday today. She'll be celebrating her big day in Atlanta, where her band is on the road as part of the Warped Tour. Though she is not yet of legal voting age, Momsen has already managed to put together quite a career together. She has made a name for herself as an actress as one of the stars of "Gossip Girl," and her acting skills were especially on display in Gus Van Sant's "Paranoid Park." She has also established herself as a fashion icon, always dressing sharply and modeling for Madonna's new fashion line.
But her music career has really elevated her. Though her band has yet to release a full-length album (their debut Light Me Up is scheduled to hit stores at the end of August), they have become live favorites because of their raw, hook-heavy songs and Momsen's incredible stage presence. She always comes dressed to impress, and she carries herself with a raw sexuality that reminds many people of the early days of Courtney Love and Hole (though Momsen has gone on record saying she doesn't appreciate those comparisons).
Like a proper rock star, she even has a feud. Momsen has taken shots at Miley Cyrus. "I think the Disney bubblegum s--- that the world is living right now is pathetic," she told FHM UK. "I thought we passed that repression. I'm not looking to be Miley f---ing Cyrus. I don't care about the fame. I do it because I love music." Interestingly, this isn't the first time the two have been at odds, as Cyrus beat out Momsen for the titular role on "Hannah Montana" back when that show was casting.
The Pretty Reckless have dropped two savagely excellent videos in their short tenure as a group. There was the smoking "Makes Me Wanna Die" and the recently-released, ultra-sexy "Miss Nothing." On her 17th birthday, here's to Taylor Momsen and truly raw rock and roll.