Tavis Smiley was born on September 13, 1964, in Gulfport, Mississippi, to Joyce Marie Roberts, a single mother at the time. Two years later, Joyce married Emory Garnell Smiley, a member of the U.S. Air Force. Due to Garnell's military reassignment to Grissom Air Force Base in Indiana, Tavis, along with a total of nine children in the household—four Smiley children and five nieces and nephews from Joyce's sister—relocated from Gulfport.
The household was governed by strict rules and discipline. Tavis and his sister, Phyllis, were once disciplined by their stepfather for showing disrespect to the pastor of their church, New Bethel Baptist Church, a testimony to the household's structured moral upbringing.
Tavis developed an interest in politics at the age of 13 after attending a political fundraiser. While attending Maconaquah High School in Indiana, he became an active participant in the debate team and served on the student council. In 1982, Smiley enrolled at Indiana University Bloomington without any financial assistance from his parents, supporting himself through various jobs.
While at Indiana University, he maintained his political interests and was appointed director of minority affairs in his dormitory. He also worked for the Bloomington Mayor's office, earning $5 per hour. Later, he secured an unpaid internship in the office of Los Angeles Mayor Tom Bradley, with financial assistance from the Bloomington Community Progress Council, which provided him $5,000 to support his living expenses. He continued to work with Bradley until 1990. Although he left the university before graduating, he eventually earned his degree in public affairs in 2003.
| Birth Date: | 13 Sep, 1964 |
| Age: | 55 yrs |
| Citizenship: | United States of America |
| Birth Place: | Gulfport |
| Education: | Indiana University Indiana University Bloomington |
| Gender: | Male |
| Description: | Talk show host, author, entrepreneur, advocate, philanthropist |
| Twitter Id: | Tavissmiley |
| Net Worth 2021: | 10 million |
