What is Michael Blackson's Net Worth?
Michael Blackson is a Liberian/Ghanaian actor and comedian who has a net worth of $4 million. Michael Blackson is known for his appearances on such television shows as "Are We There Yet?," "Wild 'n Out," "Hip Hop Squares," and "The Michael Blackson Show." He has also been in many movies, including "The Savages," "One Night in Vegas," "Meet the Blacks," and "Coming 2 America." Blackson's stage name is a parody of pop singer Michael Jackson.
Early Life
Michael Blackson, whose real name is Kojo Bediako, was born on November 28, 1972 in Monrovia, Liberia to Ghanaian parents. He grew up in both Liberia and Ghana before moving to the United States in the mid-1980s. After living for a while in Newark, New Jersey, Bediako settled in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. While working at Domino's, a coworker suggested he pursue a comedy career by starting an open mic.
Paras Griffin/Getty Images
Television Career
Encouraged by his coworker, Bediako embarked on a career in comedy. In 1995, he made an appearance on the television show "Snaps." Later, in 2000, he performed on the BET stand-up comedy program "ComicView." Bediako took the stage name Michael Blackson, a parody of pop singer Michael Jackson. He went on to perform on "The Bad Boys of Comedy" in 2005, and in 2006 had a brief role in an episode of the sitcom "30 Rock." Blackson returned to "ComicView" in 2008, and the next year performed on Martin Lawrence's "1st Amendment Stand-Up." He had his first recurring gig from 2011 to 2012, appearing in various roles on the TBS sitcom "Are We There Yet?" Over the subsequent years, Blackson appeared on "The Arsenio Hall Show," "In the Cut," "50 Central," and "Leave it to Stevie."
From 2017 to 2019, Blackson was a cast member on Nick Cannon's sketch comedy game show "Wild 'n Out." During the same period of time, he was a recurring panelist on the game show "Hip Hop Squares." Meanwhile, in 2018, Blackson hosted the BET Social Awards and was in the main cast of "Rich Africans." The next year, he hosted the Hollywood and African Prestigious Awards and starred on his own show, "Dr. Blackson." Turning to reality television, Blackson served as a judge on "Casting One Mo' Chance" in 2020. In 2021, he was part of the cast of the first season of "VH1 Couples Retreat." The same year, he appeared on "MTV Cribs." Among his other credits, Blackson starred on "The Michael Blackson Show" in 2023.
(Photo by Amy Sussman/Getty Images)
Film Career
Blackson made his feature film debut in 2000 with a brief role as an angry customer in the stoner comedy sequel film "Next Friday." He went on to have small parts in "Repos" and "The Last Stand," both in 2006. In 2007, Blackson appeared briefly in "The Savages." His subsequent credits included various direct-to-video releases, including "Black Supaman," "You're Triflin," "Internet Dating," "What We Do," and "Ex$pendable." In 2013, Blackson played Mr. Roland in the Nigerian film "One Night in Vegas." He was next in "Mutumbo the Lost Prince," "Kony Montana," and the parody film "Tooken." In 2016, Blackson played Mr. Wooky in the black comedy horror film "Meet the Blacks," a parody of the film "The Purge." He later reprised his role in the 2021 sequel, "The House Next Door: Meet the Blacks 2."
Blackson had a big year on film in 2018, appearing in five titles: "Easy Money," "The Stuff," "Got My Hustle Up," "Sliders," and Tyler Perry's romcom "Nobody's Fool." He went on to appear in three films in 2019: "Angel and the Mailman," "I Got the Hook Up 2," and "The Lick Movie." The following year, Blackson played John in "American Dream." He subsequently played Nexdorian Lieutenant in the romantic comedy sequel film "Coming 2 America," starring Eddie Murphy and released in 2021.
Other Media Appearances
In addition to appearing on television and film, Blackson has released some comedy albums, including "Modasucka: Welcome to America." He has also appeared in some music videos, such as those for Shawty Put's song "Dat Baby Don't Look Like Me"; LeLe XO's "Sugar Daddy"; and Busta Rhymes's "Czar."
Personal Life
In the summer of 2021, Blackson proposed to his girlfriend Rada Darling during a radio interview on "The Breakfast Club." Later in the year, he became a US citizen.
In 2023, Blackson helped build a school in Ghana named the Michael Blackson Academy, located in the Central Region of the country where he grew up.
