NeNe Leakes

Background

NeNe Leakes is a household name in the reality T.V. industry. She’s known as the ‘original housewife of Atlanta,’ taking the world by storm in 2008 with her no-nonsense, tell-it-like-it-is persona, quick wit, and quirky sense of humor. Born Linnethia Monique Johnson on December 13, 1967, in the U.S., she grew up in Athens, Georgia. Leakes is a Sagittarius and of African-American descent. She attended Clarke Central High School. While studying at Morris Brown College, she fell pregnant with her first child. Before entering the world of reality T.V., she appeared in an episode of “The Parkers” in 1999 and played a minor role in the film “The Fighting Temptations” in 2003. While living in Atlanta, Leakes met friends who would link her up with show producers at Bravo.

In 2008, she made her first appearance as an original cast member on the reality T.V. series “The Real Housewives of Atlanta.” Following the success of the show’s first season, which pulled in over a million viewers per episode, Leakes penned her “Never Make The Same Mistake Twice” book with Denene Millner. In her trademark humorous, no-holds-barred style, she told the story of her life, childhood, relationship with an abusive boyfriend, and path to self-acceptance. She also shared her unfiltered views on some of her fellow T.V. show castmates. Leakes remained a cast member on “The Real Housewives of Atlanta” for seven seasons, but in 2015, she announced that she wouldn’t return for the eighth season. She would appear in a supporting role on the show but still earn the same salary as before — a testament to her star power and appeal to viewers. She returned to the show for seasons 10 through 12 as a full-time cast member.

Season 13 of “The Real Housewives of Atlanta” was filmed without Leakes, who again announced that she would not return to the show. In 2020, she released a song called ‘Come and Get This Hunni’ on her YouTube channel. Leakes opened a lounge in May 2021 named The Linnethia, hosting singers like Tamar Braxton and Keke Wyatt for concerts and appearances. In April 2022, she filed a federal lawsuit against N.B.C. Universal and Bravo, production companies Truly Original and True Entertainment, and “Real Housewives of Atlanta” producer Andy Cohen for violating federal employment and anti-discrimination laws.