Spectacular Smith

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Spectacular Smith
Spectacular Smith event.jpg
Born
Spectacular Blue Smith

(1986-09-07) September 7, 1986 (age 35)
Miami, Florida, U.S.
Alma materHarvard Business School[1]
Occupation
  • Entrepreneur
  • Author
  • Investor
  • Entertainer
  • Keynote Speaker
  • TV Personality
  • Philanthropist
Years active1997–present
TelevisionLove & Hip Hop: Miami
Children2
Musical career
GenresHip hop, R&B
InstrumentsVocals
Labels
Associated acts

Spectacular Blue Smith (born September 7, 1986), known by his stage name Spectacular, is an American entertainer, keynote speaker, entrepreneur, television personality, author, and philanthropist. He is the Chairman and CEO of Adwizar Inc[3] and founder of the record label Mula Music Group. Black Enterprise estimated his net worth is $65 million, making him one of the five most influential entrepreneurs at the intersection of music and tech,[4] and is the creator of Grumpy Cat viral brand.[5]

Career[]

Smith started dancing when he was 11 and took his love of performing into the rap group he formed with his brothers, Pretty Ricky.[6] His father, Joseph "Blue" Smith, who is of Jamaican descent,[7] managed the group and was the owner of the indie label.[8] Spectacular contributed musically and also choreographed the group's stage performances as they signed a deal with Atlantic Records. The band went on the Scream IV tour as they promoted hits such as "Grind With Me"[9] and "Your Body".[10][11]

Aside from being a recording artist, Smith is also an entrepreneur. Intrigued by the business possibilities of social media, he experimented with Pretty Ricky's Facebook page, testing out theories behind social networks for a full year until he found a system for gaining and monetizing followers.[12] He then turned those ideas into Adwizar, a company that manages and monetizes social media accounts.[13] The company manages social media pages of artists such as Bow Wow, Kevin Gates, Soulja Boy, Master P, Birdman, and Bone Thugs-n-Harmony.[14][15][16] Smith is the creator of Grumpy Cat, a social media brand that has gone viral and is claimed to have made him a $100 million.[17]

On February 14, 2017, Smith released his first book, titled Spectacular Love: How to Make Good Love Last, published by Bluestar Books.[18]

2020[]

On December 7, 2020, Smith allegedly fake-sneezed and said "Coronavirus", resulting in an argument between him and a Disney employee. Smith eventually responded physically.[19] According to an arrest affidavit from the Orange County Sheriff's Office, Smith accidentally punched the Disney employee while falling.[20][19][21] Smith later responded that "There's 2 sides to every story."[22]

Honors and awards[]

  • 2019 - Innovator Of The Year by Black Enterprise[23]
  • 2018 - Top 5 Most Influential Entrepreneurs in Tech and Music by Black Enterprise[2]
  • 2018 - The 10 Most Inspiring Business Leaders by Mirror Review[24]
  • 2017 - Greatest and Most Inspiring Entrepreneur by Inc. Magazine[25]
  • 2017 - Top 10 Marketing Gurus To Watch in 2018 by Huffington Post[26]
  • 2019 - 14 Entrepreneurial Thought Leaders From Black Twitter by Black Enterprise[27]
  • 2019 - Best Privately Owned Company In America by Entrepreneur Magazine[28]

Discography[]

Singles[]

Filmography[]

External links[]

References[]

  1. ^ "Pretty Ricky's Spectacular Smith is enrolled at Harvard Business School". blavity.com. Retrieved 16 November 2018.
  2. ^ a b "Black History Month: The 5 Most Influential Entrepreneurs at the Intersection of Music and Tech". Black Enterprise. Retrieved 17 June 2018.
  3. ^ "Pretty Ricky singer goes from broke to making millions by tweeting". Rolling Out. Retrieved 17 June 2018.
  4. ^ "Black History Month: The top 5 Most Influential Entrepreneurs at the Intersection of Music and Tech". Black Enterprise. Retrieved 17 June 2018.
  5. ^ "Pretty Ricky's Spectacular Was Behind This $100 Million Deal, And Fans Are Floored". BET.com. Viacom. 5 February 2019. Retrieved 10 September 2020. Spectacular Smith is the mastermind behind the viral sensation Grumpy Cat..
  6. ^ "Here's How Spectacular Smith Went From Pretty Ricky to Dead Broke to Raking in Millions on Social Media". VH1. Retrieved 17 June 2018.
  7. ^ "Boys to Men - Pretty Ricky". Vibe Magazine. Google Books: Vibe Media Group. 1 October 2008. p. 108. Retrieved 10 February 2020. Born to a Jamaican mother, Smith's father died...
  8. ^ Carter, Brooke (12 March 2017). "What Happened to Pretty Ricky 2017 - What They're Doing Now". Gazette Review.
  9. ^ "Pretty Ricky Reunited for Final Album and Tour". The Boombox. Retrieved 17 June 2018.
  10. ^ "Pretty Ricky, Shins Grab Top Album Chart Spots". Billboard.
  11. ^ "Don't Miss These 4 Shows - By jschiewe - May 18, 2017 - SF Weekly". SF Weekly. 18 May 2017.
  12. ^ "R&B To ROI: Meet The Man Helping Celebrities Go Viral". Inc.
  13. ^ "Interview: Pretty Ricky's Spectacular Smith Makes Money Moves with Adwizar". Black Enterprise. 2017-09-20. Retrieved 2021-06-18.
  14. ^ "Pretty Ricky's Spectacular Shares His Bedroom Tips, and Talks About His New Album 'Sex God'". The Boombox.
  15. ^ Setaro, Shawn. "Spectacular Smith Uses Social Media To Make Big Bucks With Adwizar". Forbes.com.
  16. ^ "He Used to Sing in a Boy Band. Now He's Making Millions by Tweeting (a Lot)". Inc.com. 16 August 2017. Retrieved 17 June 2018.
  17. ^ Abraham, Maya. "Pretty Ricky's Spectacular Was Behind This $100 Million Deal, And Fans Are Floored". BET.
  18. ^ "Pretty Ricky's Spectacular Shares His Bedroom Tips, and Talks About His New Album 'Sex God'". The Boom Box.
  19. ^ a b "Spectacular Blue Smith Arrested for Allegedly Assaulting Disney World Worker After Joking About COVID-19". PEOPLE.com. Retrieved 2021-06-18.
  20. ^ Rice, Katie. "Hip-hop artist and entrepreneur Spectacular Smith arrested for hitting Disney worker: report". orlandosentinel.com. Retrieved 2021-06-18.
  21. ^ "Spectacular Blue Smith Busted in COVID dispute for Allegedly Assaulting Disney World Staff". TMZ. Retrieved 2020-12-07.
  22. ^ "Pretty Ricky's Spectacular Smith arrested at Disney World after alleged altercation with worker". USA Today. Dec 2, 2020.
  23. ^ "Innovator Of The Year". vibe.com.
  24. ^ "The 10 Most Inspiring Business Leaders". mirrorreview.com.
  25. ^ "Greatest and Most Inspiring Entrepreneur". reader.magzter.com.
  26. ^ "10 Marketing Gurus To Watch In 2018". Huffingtonpost.com.
  27. ^ Hill, Selena (2020-06-08). "14 Entrepreneurial Thought Leaders From Black Twitter". Black Enterprise. Retrieved 2020-11-16.
  28. ^ Roxanna, Carmen. "Spectacular Smith's Company 'Adwizar' Named The Best Privately Owned Company In America On The Entrepreneur 360 List". Baller Alert.
  29. ^ Grant, Jasmine. "Class Is In Session For This Member of Pretty Ricky, Who is Officially a Harvard Student". vh1.com.
  30. ^ "Spectacular Handles His Family Business". vh1.com.
  31. ^ "UPDATED: SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 150 Monday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 8.19.2019". vh1.com. Archived from the original on 2019-08-20.
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