Vishnupriya Shay Mooney, of popular country duo Dan + Shay, welcomed his fourth son with wife Hannah Billingsley.
The couple shared the news on Instagram in a joint post, writing, “Our brand new baby BOY is finally here!”
Along with two photos of the newborn, they also said he was born at 7 pounds, 9 ounces, and is “perfectly healthy.” They added, “Thank you Jesus for another miracle!”
Plus, they revealed his name—Aubrey Ellis Mooney—adding another baby to their family whose name starts with the letter A. Here are the baby name details.
Aubrey
- Origin: German and French
- Meaning: Elf ruler, according to Nameberry.com
- Similar Names and Variations: Aubrie, Aubree, and Audrey
- Famous Namesakes: There’s rapper Drake, whose first name is Aubrey, as well as actresses Aubrey Plaza and Aubrey Anderson-Emmons.
- Peak Popularity: This name first appeared on the Social Security Administration’s (SSA) top 1,000 baby boy names list in 1900. It stayed on the list until 2002. It also made it on the top 1,000 baby girl names list in 1973, as the 882nd most popular one. It’s remained on the list ever since, growing in popularity. It was the 101st most popular girl’s name in 2023.
Ellis
- Origin: English
- Meaning: Benevolent, according to Nameberry.com
- Similar Names and Variations: Elis, Elijah, Elias
- Famous Namesakes: Although Ellis is often a surname, some famous people with it as a first name include musician Ellis Marsalis Jr., former baseball player Ellis Burks, and late musician Ellis Larkins.
- Peak Popularity: Ellis first appeared on the SSA’s top baby boy names list in 1900. It was the 173rd most popular name that year. Ellis has gone up and down in popularity, but it’s always remained on the list as a boy’s name and was the 273rd name in 2023. As for the girl names list, Ellis popped up in 2015 as the 962nd most popular one. It’s stayed on the list and, in 2023, it was the 757th most popular name.
Baby Aubrey Ellis joins the couple’s three other sons: Asher James, 8, Ames Alexander, 4, and Abram Shay, 2.
Mooney and the former Miss Arkansas connected in 2015 in a very modern way: Billingsley slid into Mooney’s DMs on social media. They tied the knot two years later.
In 2024, Mooney shared a photo of his wife on Instagram, writing, “I genuinely can’t put into words how you’ve changed my life. You inspire me every day to be a better father and husband. Life is just better with you.”
