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What Happened To Rickey Smiley's Son Brandon? Comic Opens Up On 'Triggering' Year of Grief After Son's Death
As Rickey Smiley comes up with a new book, he misses his deceased son Brandon dearly. How did Brandon pass away? Find out.
The man who makes the world smile is having tears of his own as he mourns the loss of his son. First Sunday star Rickey Smiley is grieving the loss of his son Brandon after a year as his book Sideshow: Living with Loss and Moving with Faith comes to a conclusion. The year has been a roller coaster, especially as the 55-year-old came to terms with the death of his 32-year-old son Brandon. What exactly happened to Brandon? Find out.
What happened to Rickey Smiley’s son Brandon?
The year has been specially “triggering” for Rickey as he learns to navigate and come to terms with his son Brandon’s death. His 32-year-old son succumbed to an accidental overdose. Brandon too, just like his father was a stand up comic to be. He died of Fentanyl and ethanol toxicity in January 2023 after battling addiction to painkillers for a long time. Rickey has taken his time to open up about the same in an interview with People. While describing his book Sideshow, the Friday after Next star says, “When you come up on the one year, it is almost like it's happening all over again because you're triggered.” He then continues, “I was walking through my home like something was going to happen to my son all over again. It was just horrible. My anxiety was completely through the roof.” The American TV host also reveals how it was all a countdown to the day Brandon died. He says, “It was almost like a countdown to the 29th, the day he died.” 
What did Rickey Smiley say about losing his son Brandon?
To Rickey, losing one’s child so young to a drug overdose, grappling with their death is an unlikely and unfortunate experience. He says, “It’s your 32-year-old son that died, but man, you start thinking about your 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12-year-old son. You're thinking about the birthday parties at Chuck E. Cheese, you're thinking about the kid that slept in the bed with you, that you helped get dressed and brush his teeth.” He also adds, “That’s your child. I felt it from top to bottom, inside to outside.” Rickey continues, “I feel like I had died. It literally felt like a part of me died,” and then says, “It was depressing, anxiety, sadness. Nothing I ever felt before, and sometimes it makes you feel like you wished you were dead also because the pain is unbearable.”
To cope with the entire ordeal, Smile sees a therapist twice a week that has been helpful. Therapy has been helping Smiley regulate. As we wait for the Smiley family’s speedy recovery from such a loss, stay tuned to Pinkvilla for more updates.
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