Jussie Smollett facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Jussie Smollett
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Smollett at the 2016 PaleyFest
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| Born | June 21, 1982 Santa Rosa, California, U.S.
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| Years active | 1991–1995; 2009–present |
| Relatives | Jurnee Smollett (sister) Jake Smollett (brother) |
Jussie Smollett (born June 21, 1982) is an American actor and singer. He started his career as a child actor in 1991. His first movie was The Mighty Ducks in 1992. From 2015 to 2019, Smollett played a musician named Jamal Lyon in the TV show Empire on Fox.
About Jussie Smollett's Early Life
Jussie Smollett was born in Santa Rosa, California. His parents are Joel and Janet Smollett. He has three brothers and two sisters: Jake, Jocqui, Jojo, Jurnee, and Jazz. Several of his brothers and sisters are also actors.
Jussie is from a mixed background. His mother is African-American, and his father is Jewish. When he was two years old, his family moved to Queens, New York. Later, when he was about seven, they moved to Los Angeles. Smollett finished high school at Paramus Catholic High School in Paramus, New Jersey.
Jussie Smollett's Acting and Music Career
Smollett began his career as a child model in New York City. He also worked as an extra in movies like Mo' Better Blues (1990) and New Jack City (1991). He then acted in films such as The Mighty Ducks (1992) and North (1994).
On television, he starred with his five real-life siblings in the TV show On Our Own from 1994 to 1995. In 2012, Smollett returned to acting. He had a main role in the comedy-drama movie The Skinny. That same year, he released an EP called The Poisoned Hearts Club. He also appeared as a guest star on The Mindy Project (2012) and Revenge (2014).
In 2014, Smollett was chosen to play Jamal Lyon in the TV show Empire. Jamal was a musician trying to get his father's approval. Smollett acted alongside Taraji P. Henson and Terrence Howard in this series. His role was seen as important because it showed a black gay man in a positive way on television. Smollett continued his role in later seasons. He also directed an episode of the show in 2017.
In February 2015, Smollett announced he had signed a music deal with Columbia Records. He planned to release an album. He helped write the songs "I Wanna Love You" and "You're So Beautiful". These songs were on the Original Soundtrack from Season 1 of Empire album, released in March 2015.
In June 2015, it was shared that Smollett would guest-star with his younger sister Jurnee in the show Underground, which aired in 2016. Smollett released his first album, Sum of My Music, in March 2018. This album is R&B music with parts of electronic music and hip hop. He released it himself through his own label, Music of Sound.
In April 2019, Fox Entertainment said that even though Smollett's contract was extended for the sixth season of Empire, his character would not appear in it.
Smollett directed a movie called B-Boy Blues. It was based on a 1994 novel about black gay life. The movie came out in November 2021.
Jussie Smollett's Film Roles
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1992 | The Mighty Ducks | Terry Hall | Nominated – Young Artist Award for Outstanding Young Ensemble Cast in a Motion Picture |
| 1994 | North | Adam | |
| 2009 | Pitch This | Mike | Short film |
| 2012 | The Skinny | Magnus | |
| 2014 | Born to Race: Fast Track | Tariq | Direct-to-video |
| Ask Me Anything | Nico Dempster | ||
| 2016 | The Tale of Four | John | Short film |
| 2017 | Alien: Covenant – Prologue: Last Supper | Ricks | Short film |
| Alien: Covenant | |||
| Marshall | Langston Hughes | ||
| 2021 | B-Boy Blues | Director and writer | |
| 2024 | The Lost Holliday | Jason Holliday | Director and co-writer (with Jerrell Chesney) |
Jussie Smollett's Television Roles
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
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| 1991 | A Little Piece of Heaven | Salem Bordeaux | Television film |
| 1993 | Alex Haley's Queen | Simon | Miniseries |
| 1993 | Coach | Billy | Episode: "Piece o' Cake" |
| 1993–1994 | Cro | Mike | Voice, 20 episodes |
| 1994–1995 | On Our Own | Jesse Jerrico | Series regular, 20 episodes |
| 2012 | The Mindy Project | Barry Stassen | Episode: "Josh and Mindy's Christmas Party" |
| 2014 | Revenge | Jamie | Episode: "Ashes" |
| 2015–2019 | Empire | Jamal Lyon | Series regular Nominated – BET Award for Best Actor Nominated – Teen Choice Award for Choice TV Actor: Drama Nominated – Teen Choice Award for Choice TV: Breakout Star Directed season 4, episode 16 |
| 2016 | Underground | Josey | 2 episodes |
| 2016 | Live! with Kelly | Himself | Guest host, six episodes |
| 2017 | Star | Jamal Lyon | Episode: "The Winner Takes it All" |
| 2018 | America Divided | Himself | Episode: "Whose History?" |
| 2023 | Jussie Smollett: Anatomy of a Hoax | Himself | 5-part docuseries, aired on Fox Nation |
Jussie Smollett's Music Videos
| Year | Artist | Title |
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| 2015 | Mariah Carey | "Infinity" |
| 2016 | Jussie Smollett | "F.U.W." |
Awards and Nominations for Jussie Smollett
| Year | Awards | Category | Recipient | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1993 | Young Artist Award | Outstanding Young Ensemble Cast in a Motion Picture | The Mighty Ducks | Nominated |
| 2015 | BET Awards | Best Actor | Empire | Nominated |
| Teen Choice Awards | Choice TV Actor Drama | Nominated | ||
| Choice TV: Breakout Star | Nominated | |||
| Choice TV: Chemistry | Nominated | |||
| Choice Music: Song from a Movie or TV Show | "You're So Beautiful" | Nominated | ||
| 2016 | NAACP Image Awards | Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series | Empire | Nominated |
| Outstanding New Artist | Won | |||
| Outstanding Duo, Group or Collaboration | Won | |||
| Outstanding Song (Contemporary) | Won |
Jussie Smollett's Music Albums
Albums
| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions |
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| US Heat. |
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| Sum of My Music |
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22 |
Extended Plays (EPs)
| Year | EP details |
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| 2012 | Poisoned Hearts Club
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Singles
| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Sales | Album | |||||||||
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| US |
US R&B /HH |
US R&B |
US Adult R&B |
FRA |
GER |
SWI |
AUT |
POR |
BUL |
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| "Good Enough" | 2015 | — | 33 | 13 | — | 60 | 25 | 55 | 54 | 2 | 40 |
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Empire: Original Soundtrack from Season 1 |
| "Keep Your Money" | 99 | 32 | 13 | — | 181 | 91 | — | — | — | — |
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| "No Apologies" (featuring Yazz) |
— | 44 | — | — | 195 | — | — | — | — | — |
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| "I Wanna Love You" | — | — | 21 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "Money For Nothing" (featuring Yazz) |
— | — | 23 | — | — | 94 | — | — | — | — | |||
| "You're so Beautiful" (featuring Yazz) |
47 | 18 | 10 | — | 79 | 42 | — | — | — | — | |||
| "Conqueror" (featuring Estelle) |
42 | 15 | 8 | 15 | 157 | 87 | — | — | — | — | |||
| "Nothing To Lose" | — | — | 15 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "Powerful" (featuring Alicia Keys) |
— | 36 | 10 | — | 152 | — | — | — | — | — | Empire: Original Soundtrack Season 2 Volume 1 | ||
| "Ain't About the Money" (featuring Yazz) |
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 39 | |||
| "No Doubt About it" (featuring Pitbull) |
— | — | 18 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "Chasing the Sky" (featuring Terrence Howard & Yazz) |
2016 | — | — | 24 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Empire: Original Soundtrack Season 2 Volume 2 | |
| "Good People" (featuring Yazz) |
— | — | 20 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "Need Freedom" | — | — | — | 30 | — | — | — | — | — | — | Empire: Original Soundtrack Season 3 | ||
| "Freedom" | 2018 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Sum of My Music | |
| "Catch Your Eye" (featuring Swizz Beatz) |
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "Hurt People" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "Ha Ha (I Love You)" | — | — | — | 19 | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||
