Lindsay Morgan Lohan (born Lindsay Dee Lohan [1] on 2 July 1986 ) is an American actress and pop music singer . Lohan was born in New York City and raised in Merrick , Long Island , New York . Lohan started in show business as a child model for magazine and television ads . At age 10, she began her acting career on a soap opera ; at 11, she made her motion picture début by playing both twins in Disney 's 1998 remake of The Parent Trap . Lohan's breakout role in Mean Girls came six years later, shining the media spotlight on her professional and personal lives—including her nightlife and her parents' marital and legal struggles.

As an adult, Lohan began to take on more independent projects, including Robert Altman 's A Prairie Home Companion . While filming Herbie: Fully Loaded , Lohan recorded and released Speak in 2004, launching her career in music ; her second album was released in 2005.