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NeNe Leakes
Leakes in 2013
Born	Linnethia Monique Johnson (1967-12-13)December 13, 1967 (age 57) New York City, U.S.
Education	Morris Brown College (two years)
Occupations	Television personality actress presenter author fashion designer
Years active	1999–present
Spouses	Gregg Leakes ​ ​ (m. 1997; div. 2011)​ ​ ​ (m. 2013; died 2021)​
Children	2

Linnethia Monique "NeNe"Leakes (/ˈniːniliːks/; néeJohnson; born December 13, 1967)^[1][2] is an American television personality, actress, presenter, businesswoman, author, and fashion designer. She first rose to prominence after becoming the breakout star onBravo's reality television series,The Real Housewives of Atlanta. She is widely regarded as one of the most notable personalities fromThe Real Housewives franchise and a prominent figure in reality television and pop culture.^[3][4][5]

Born inQueens, New York and raised inAthens, Georgia, she is also known for her recurring character, Roz Washington, on theFox comedy-drama seriesGlee.

Leakes also played Rocky Rhoades as a series regular on the sitcomThe New Normal onNBC until its cancellation in 2013. She was a participant on NBC'sThe Celebrity Apprentice andABC'sDancing with the Stars. Leakes made herBroadway debut as Madame inRodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella in 2014, and in 2015, starred as Matron "Mama" Morton inChicago.

She was one of the regular panelists on ABC's revival of the 1950s game showTo Tell the Truth. In addition to her television projects, Leakes had a clothing line onHome Shopping Network, before launching her SWAGG boutiques in select cities across the country.

Linnethia Monique Johnson was born inQueens,New York City.^[1] One of five children, she and one of her brothers were sent to live with an aunt inAthens, Georgia, while the other three children stayed with her mother. It was believed that her mother could not take care of all five.^[6] After graduating fromClarke Central High School inAthens, she decided to further her formal education atMorris Brown College inAtlanta for two years before becoming pregnant.^[7][8]

Before Leakes met the producers ofThe Real Housewives of Atlanta, she had appeared on TV shows likeThe Parkers thanks to meeting casting directorRobi Reed-Humes. In 2003, she landed a minor role as a stripper in the filmThe Fighting Temptations, starringCuba Gooding, Jr. andBeyoncé. However, none of her scenes are present in the final edit of the movie.^[9]

In 2008, Leakes made her first appearance onThe Real Housewives of Atlanta as an original cast member.^[10] After the first season, she co-wrote the bookNever Make The Same Mistake Twice withDenene 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.^[11] However, Leakes was featured in season 8 ofThe 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 toThe Real Housewives of Atlanta for its thirteenth season.^[12]

Leakes also transitioned into scripted television, playing the secretary Rocky Roades in theNBC comedyThe New Normal.^[13][14]Ryan Murphy cast Leakes in his seriesGlee in the third season in a recurring role as synchronized swim coach and Olympic bronze-medalist Roz Washington.^{[15][16][17][18]} In 2011, Leakes was a contestant in theeleventh instalment ofDonald Trump'sNBC seriesCelebrity Apprentice.^[19] During the tenth episode ofCelebrity Apprentice, after arguments with fellow cast memberStar Jones, Leakes walked off the show.^[20][21]

Leakes has guest-hostedAnderson Live,^[22]The Talk, and appeared inBetty White's Off Their Rockers^[23] andThe Price Is Right.^[24] On March 4, 2014, she was announced as one of the celebrities who would compete inDancing with the Stars (American TV series) season 18 ofDancing 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.^[25]

Leakes played the Mistress of Sensuality inLas Vegas for resident showCirque du Soleil:Zumanity.^[26] She made herBroadway debut on November 25, 2014, as Madame inRodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella. She played the role until the production closed on January 3, 2015.^[27] In November 2015, she was cast as Matron "Mama" Morton inChicago on Broadway for four weeks.^[28]

Leakes released a song, entitled "Come and Get This Hunni", in April 2020.^[29]

In January 2024, Leakes was announced as a co-host onZeus Network'sBaddies East reunion by cast memberNatalie Nunn.^[30] In March 2024, Leakes will star inHunting Housewives, oppositeDenise Richards,Melyssa Ford, andKym Johnson-Herjavec forLifetime.^[31]

Leakes founded NeNe Leakes Entertainment, a television production company. The company produced Leakes' spin-off seriesI Dream of NeNe: The Wedding alongsideTrue Entertainment, which premiered on September 17, 2013.^[32]

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 theHome Shopping Network (HSN).

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.^[33]

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

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 asKeKe Wyatt andTamar Braxton have made appearances and performed concerts.

Leakes resides inDuluth, Georgia, a suburb ofAtlanta.^[34] 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 ofThe Real Housewives had finished shooting.^[35] NeNe and Gregg Leakes reunited and announced that they were engaged in January 2013.^[36][37] Bravo filmed their wedding planning and ceremony for a spin-off entitledI Dream of NeNe: The Wedding.^[38] NeNe and Gregg remarried on June 22, 2013, at the InterContinental Buckhead Hotel inAtlanta.^[39] In June 2018, she revealed that Gregg had stage 3colon 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.^[40][41]

On April 16, 2022, Leakes filed a federal lawsuit againstNBCUniversal,Bravo, production companies True Entertainment and Truly Original, andReal Housewives producerAndy Cohen for violating federal employment and anti-discrimination laws.^[42] She dismissed the action and claims on August 19, 2022.^[43]

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

Wikimedia Commons has media related toNeNe Leakes.

• NeNe Leakes atIMDb

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