What is Rickey Smiley’s net worth?
Rickey Smiley is a stand-up comedian, radio and television personality and actor who has a net worth of $2.5 million. Rickey Smiley is best known for his prank phone calls. He is the host of the nationally syndicated radio program “The Rickey Smiley Morning Show” and previously starred in the television series “The Rickey Smiley Show” and the reality series “Rickey Smiley For Real.” In 2002, Rickey played the role of ‘Santa Claus’ in the Ice Cube film ‘Friday After Next’. That same year, he appeared as “Snitch Mitch” in the Ice Cube film “All About the Benjamins.” In the 2008 Ice Cube film, he appeared as his character ‘Bernice Jenkins’. Among his other credits, he appeared in the films ‘First Sunday’ and ‘Baggage Claim’.
Early life and education
Rickey Smiley was born Broderick Smiley on August 10, 1968 in Birmingham, Alabama. For his higher education, he went to Alabama State University in Montgomery.
Stand-up comedy
Early in his career as a stand-up comedian, Smiley appeared on television shows such as ‘Def Comedy Jam’, ‘Snaps’ and ‘Showtime at the Apollo’. He also hosted the 13th season of the BET stand-up comedy show “Comic View” in 2004. In his comedy routines, Smiley typically plays a variety of colorful fictional characters, such as Bernice Jenkins, Rusty Dale and Lil’ Daryl.
Radio career
In 2004, Smiley became the morning show personality for radio station KBFB in Dallas, Texas. He became known on the channel for his elaborate jokes, where he role-played as different characters. Some of Smiley’s most notable gags include “Buried Alive,” in which he pretends to be a narcoleptic who works at a funeral home and is accidentally buried alive; “Uncle Melvin,” in which he jokingly mentions his uncle; and “She PEED,” which ends with the recipient of the call, an older lady, laughing so hard she pees on herself. In 2008, Smiley signed a deal with Syndication One to release his radio show nationally as ‘The Rickey Smiley Morning Show’. The show can be heard on many mainstream urban and urban contemporary adult stations in the United States.
Television career
In 2011, Smiley became host of the newly created Fox-produced television program “Dish Nation,” featuring tabloid news and pop culture commentary. For the show’s second season, he was joined by his cast mates from “The Rickey Smiley Morning Show” in Atlanta. Smiley remained in ‘Dish Nation’ until 2019. Meanwhile, he appeared in a number of other television shows. From 2012 to 2014, he starred in his own sitcom, ‘The Rickey Smiley Show’, which aired on TV One. He then co-hosted the Stellar Awards from 2014 to 2016.
Smiley then released his own reality series, ‘Rickey Smiley For Real’, which premiered on TV One in 2015. The series followed Smiley as he balanced his career and his personal life as a father. “Rickey Smiley For Real” ran for five seasons through 2018. Elsewhere on television, Smiley made numerous appearances on the Bravo reality series “The Real Housewives of Atlanta” between 2014 and 2018. He also co-hosted the Black Music Honors from 2017 to 2020, and co-hosted the 2021 Super Bowl Gospel Celebration.
Film career
Smiley made his feature film debut in the 2002 stoner comedy “Friday After Next,” the third film in the “Friday” franchise starring Ice Cube. He reunited with Ice Cube in 2008 for the crime comedy “First Sunday,” which also starred Katt Williams and Clifton Powell from “Friday After Next.” In the film, Smiley played his popular stand-up character Bernice Jenkins. His next film was the 2010 direct-to-video dance drama ‘Stomp the Yard: Homecoming’, a sequel to ‘Stomp the Yard’. Three years later, Smiley appeared in David E. Talbert’s novel ‘Baggage Claim’, which Talbert adapted from his book of the same name.
Private life
Smiley was previously married to Brenda Morris for twelve years, with whom he had four children: Brandon, D’Essence, Aaryn and Malik. In the summer of 2020, their daughter Aaryn was shot during a road rage incident. Later, in early 2023, their 32-year-old son Brandon committed suicide by an intentional drug overdose.