Linnethia Monique "NeNe" Leakes (; née Johnson; born December 13, 1967) is an American television personality, actress, presenter, businesswoman, author, and fashion designer. She first rose to prominence after becoming the breakout star on Bravo's reality television series, '' The Real Housewives of Atlanta''. She is widely regarded as one of the most notable personalities from '' The Real Housewives'' franchise and a prominent figure in reality television and pop culture. Born in

Queens, New York Queens is the largest by area of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. Located near the western end of Long Island, it is bordered by the ...

and raised in

Athens, Georgia Athens is a consolidated city-county in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. Downtown Athens lies about northeast of downtown Atlanta. The University of Georgia, the state's flagship public university and an Research I university, ...

, she is also known for her recurring character, Roz Washington, on the Fox comedy-drama series '' Glee''. Leakes also played Rocky Rhoades as a series regular on the sitcom '' The New Normal'' on NBC until its cancellation in 2013. She was a participant on NBC's '' The Celebrity Apprentice'' and ABC's '' Dancing with the Stars''. Leakes made her Broadway debut as Madame in '' Rodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella'' in 2014, and in 2015, starred as Matron "Mama" Morton in ''

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

''. She was one of the regular panelists on ABC's revival of the 1950s game show '' To Tell the Truth''. In addition to her television projects, Leakes had a clothing line on

Home Shopping Network HSN, Inc. an initialism of its former name Home Shopping Network, is an American free-to-air television network owned by the QVC Group (formerly Qurate Retail Group), which also owns Catalog merchant, catalog company Cornerstone Brands. It is ...

, before launching her SWAGG boutiques in select cities across the country.

Early life

Linnethia Monique Johnson was born in

Queens Queens is the largest by area of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. Located near the western end of Long Island, it is bordered by the ...

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. One of five children, she and one of her brothers were sent to live with an aunt in

, while the other three children stayed with her mother. It was believed that her mother could not take care of all five. After graduating from Clarke Central High School in

Athens Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...

, she decided to further her formal education at Morris Brown College in

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

for two years before becoming pregnant.

Career

Before Leakes met the producers of '' The Real Housewives of Atlanta'', she had appeared on TV shows like'' The Parkers'' thanks to meeting casting director Robi Reed-Humes. In 2003, she landed a minor role as a stripper in the film '' The Fighting Temptations'', starring Cuba Gooding, Jr. and

Beyoncé Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter ( ; born September 4, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and businesswoman. With a career spanning over three decades, she has established herself as one of the most Cultural impact of Beyoncé, ...

. However, none of her scenes are present in the final edit of the movie. In 2008, Leakes made her first appearance on '' The Real Housewives of Atlanta'' as an original cast member. After the first season, she co-wrote the book ''Never Make The Same Mistake Twice'' with Denene Millner''.'' Leakes was a main cast member for the first seven seasons. In June 2015, Leakes announced that she would not be returning for the show’s eighth season. However, Leakes was featured in season 8 of '' The Real Housewives of Atlanta'' in a supporting role, reportedly earning her full salary from the previous seven seasons. Leakes later returned to the show as a full-time housewife for the tenth through twelfth seasons (2017–20). In 2020, Leakes announced that she would not return to '' The Real Housewives of Atlanta'' for its thirteenth season. Leakes also transitioned into scripted television, playing the secretary Rocky Roades in the NBC comedy '' The New Normal''. Ryan Murphy cast Leakes in his series '' Glee'' in the third season in a recurring role as synchronized swim coach and Olympic bronze-medalist Roz Washington. In 2011, Leakes was a contestant in the eleventh instalment of

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...

's NBC series '' Celebrity Apprentice''. During the tenth episode of ''Celebrity Apprentice'''','' after arguments with fellow cast member Star Jones, Leakes walked off the show. Leakes has guest-hosted '' Anderson Live'', '' The Talk'', and appeared in '' Betty White's Off Their Rockers'' and '' The Price Is Right''. On March 4, 2014, she was announced as one of the celebrities who would compete in Dancing with the Stars (American TV series) season 18 of '' Dancing with the Stars''. She was paired with professional dancer, Tony Dovolani. Leakes and Dovolani were eliminated in Week 7 of competition (Latin Night) on April 28, 2014, finishing in 7th place. Leakes played the Mistress of Sensuality in

Las Vegas Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...

for resident show ''

Cirque du Soleil Cirque du Soleil (, ; ) is a Canadian entertainment company and the largest contemporary circus producer in the world. Located in the inner-city area of Saint-Michel, Montreal, Saint-Michel, Montreal, it was founded in Baie-Saint-Paul on 16 Jun ...

Zumanity ''Zumanity'' (zoo-manity) was a resident cabaret-style show by Cirque du Soleil at the New York-New York Hotel & Casino on the Las Vegas Strip, placed into the theatre previously occupied by Michael Flatley's Lord of the Dance (musical). The pro ...

''. She made her Broadway debut on November 25, 2014, as Madame in '' Rodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella''. She played the role until the production closed on January 3, 2015. In November 2015, she was cast as Matron "Mama" Morton in ''

'' on Broadway for four weeks. Leakes released a song, entitled "Come and Get This Hunni", in April 2020. In January 2024, Leakes was announced as a co-host on Zeus Network's '' Baddies East'' reunion by cast member Natalie Nunn. In March 2024, Leakes starred in ''Hunting Housewives'', opposite Denise Richards, Melyssa Ford, and Kym Johnson-Herjavec for Lifetime.

Other ventures

Production

Leakes founded NeNe Leakes Entertainment, a television production company. The company produced Leakes' spin-off series '' I Dream of NeNe: The Wedding'' alongside True Entertainment, which premiered on September 17, 2013.

Fashion line

In February 2014, Leakes announced that she would be launching a clothing line later in the year. On July 28, 2014, Leakes launched the Nene Leakes Collection for the

(HSN).

Comedy

In March 2016, Leakes announced that she would be touring the United States in a one-woman comedy tour called "So Nasty, So Rude," named after one of her catchphrases. The tour started in April, with many shows sold out.

Boutiques

Leakes opened the first SWAGG Boutique location in Duluth, Georgia in November 2017, and it closed in August 2020. She then expanded SWAGG Boutique to the MGM National Harbor in Maryland and to Miami Beach, with these locations still open and operating.

Lounge

In October 2020, Leakes posted on Instagram that she would be opening a lounge in Duluth, Georgia. The Linnethia Lounge, named after Leakes' birth name, opened in May 2021. Singers such as KeKe Wyatt and Tamar Braxton have made appearances and performed concerts.

Personal life

Leakes resides in Duluth, Georgia, a suburb of

. Her home is known as "Casa Leakes". Leakes listed the home for sale in October 2021. She and husband Gregg Leakes separated in 2010, and she filed for divorce on April 29, 2010. The divorce was finalized September 29, 2011, after season four of ''The Real Housewives'' had finished shooting. NeNe and Gregg Leakes reunited and announced that they were engaged in January 2013. Bravo filmed their wedding planning and ceremony for a spin-off entitled '' I Dream of NeNe: The Wedding''. NeNe and Gregg remarried on June 22, 2013, at the InterContinental Buckhead Hotel in

. In June 2018, she revealed that Gregg had stage 3 colon cancer but announced in May 2019 that he was cancer-free. In June 2021, she announced that the cancer recurred and that he was in the hospital recovering after surgery. Gregg Leakes died from colon cancer on September 1, 2021 at the age of 66. On April 16, 2022, Leakes filed a federal lawsuit against

NBCUniversal NBCUniversal Media, LLC (abbreviated as NBCU and Trade name, doing business as NBCUniversal or Comcast NBCUniversal since 2013) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational mass media and Show business, entertainment conglomerate (comp ...

, Bravo, production companies True Entertainment and Truly Original, and '' Real Housewives'' producer Andy Cohen for violating federal employment and anti-discrimination laws. She dismissed the action and claims on August 19, 2022.

Filmography

Film

Television

Music videos

Video games

Producer

* '' I Dream of NeNe: The Wedding'' (TV Series) (executive producer)

Theatre

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Leakes, Nene African-American television personalities Living people American LGBTQ rights activists 21st-century African-American actresses 21st-century American actresses American female erotic dancers American erotic dancers Actresses from Georgia (U.S. state) Actresses from Queens, New York People from Duluth, Georgia American television actresses 1967 births People from Athens, Georgia 21st-century African-American people 20th-century African-American people 20th-century African-American women