| NET WORTH: | $1 Million |
|---|---|
| Source of Wealth: | Actor, Photographer, Singer |
| Born: | June 21, 1982 |
| Age: | 38 |
| Birth Name: | Justin Smollett |
| Height: | 5ft. 11in. (1.82m) |
Jussie Smollett is an American actor, photographer and singer. In 1987, he started as a child actor, acting in films such as "The Mighty Ducks" in 1992. He also portrayed Jamal Lyon, a musician, in the musical drama television series "Empire" which received positive feedbacks for its positive portrayal of a black gay man.
Early Life
Justin Smollett was born on June 21, 1982, in Santa Rosa, California. His parents, Janet and Joel Smollett. He has five other siblings: three brothers and two sisters. His family moved to Elmhurst neighborhood of New York City when he was 2 years old, and then to Los Angeles when he was about 9.
He attended Paramus Catholic High School in Paramus, New Jersey. When he was 19, he came out to his parents and told them he was gay.
Career
Smollett started working first as a child model in New York City. Later on, he worked as an extra in some of New York-shot movies like "Mo' Better Blues" and "New Jack City". In 1994-1995, he starred alongside his five real-life siblings in ABC sitcom "On Our Own".
In 2012, he returned to the movie industry as the leading role in the LGBT-themed comedy drama "The Skinny", directed by Patrick-Ian Polk. He later appeared as guest in the romantic comedy television series "The Mindy Project" and in the drama television series "Revenge" in 2014. He was chosen to portray the role as Jamal Lyon— a gay musician from a family in the music industry that struggles to gain his father's approval— on the Fox musical drama series "Empire". His role in the television series received positive feedbacks for its portrayal of a black gay man. Smollett's role was removed from its final two episodes of season five due to his alleged assault controversy.
In February 2015, Smollett signed a recording contract with Columbia Records and has plans on releasing his album soon. He also co-wrote the songs from the Original Soundtrack from Season one of Empire album, "I Wanna Love You" and "You're So Beautiful" that was released on March 2015.
In March 2018, he released his debut album "Sum of My Music", which is an R&B album and self-released it with his own label, Music of Sound.
Alleged hate crime hoax
On January 19, 2019, Smollett reported to the police that he was attacked outside his apartment and was called racial and homophobic slurs by two men wearing ski masks saying "this is MAGA country", referencing the slogan of former President Donald Trump "Make America Great Again". According to the Chicago Police Department, the suspects poured an unknown liquid to Smollett and tied a noose around his neck. On February 20, 2019, he was by a grand jury with a class 4 felony for filling a false police report, and surrendered himself the next day at the Chicago Police Department's Central Booking station. On March 26, the same year, all charges filed against Smollett were dropped and he will be performing 16 hours of community service.
Personal Life
During a television interview with Ellen DeGeneres in March 2015, Smollett publicly came out as gay. He also clarified his sexual orientation in a 2016 interview with Out and stated "If I had to label myself, I would label myself as a gay man" and believes that openness to love is more important than gender.
Net Worth
As an American actor, singer, and photographer, Jussie Smollett has an estimated net worth of $1 million as of today, 2020.
