Forrest (surname)

Forrest is a common English surname deriving from Forest. Variant spellings include Forest, Foriest, De Forest, De Forrest, DeForest and DeForrest. It appears to originate in Scotland around the Edinburgh region. The Forrest clan fought with Bonnie Prince Charlie travelling down to England with the Scottish invasions of the 17th and 18th centuries.

Notable real persons with the name include:

Forrest (singer)

Forrest M. Thomas Jr. (April 21, 1953 – September 9, 2013), known professionally as Forrest, was an American singer, based in the Netherlands.

Born in Galveston, Texas, where he sang in church during childhood, he moved to Los Angeles, California as a teen and won several contests there as a singer. After this stage in his career, he moved to the Netherlands, where he had a hit in 1982 with the song, "Rock the Boat", a cover of The Hues Corporation's 1974 No. 1 US hit. His version peaked at No. 4 in the UK Singles Chart and in his native United States (No. 9 Hot Dance Club Play).

A second single, "Feel the Need in Me" (originally by The Detroit Emeralds), was a hit in the UK, reaching No. 17. A third single, "One Lover (Don't Stop The Show)", peaked at No. 67 in the UK.

He and his wife, Manon Thomas, a television presenter had two sons, but later separated, after which he began to concentrate again on music. He sang in R.E.S.P.E.C.T., a theatre show, in 2001, dedicated to 1960s soul music. He was asked by DJ Roog to front the band Planet Hardsoul, who had a minor hit with their cover of "Where Did Our Love Go". In December 2012 Thomas married again, to Diana van Lippen.