Jerrica Brooks, a.k.a.
Monayfrom “Claim to Fame,” came one guess short of winning the season.
Monay’s father wasn’t her only surprise.
She also revealed her real name, Jerrica Monay is her middle name.
His real name is Jerry Brooks, and Jerrica Brooks was named after him.
However, initially, he was a little hesitant about her appearing on the ABC reality show.
In an interview withEntertainment Weekly, Brooks shared his first reactions to her reality TV debut.
Smoove was “really excited” but then got nervous as filming neared.
“So when I said I was gonna go on the show, he got nervous.
He’s like, who’s gonna take care of everything?
I’m gonna miss you, blah, blah, blah, " she told EW.
Despite Smoove’s early hesitations, Brooks reassured him that everything would be fine, and he calmed down.
He often added commentary and discussed the episodes with his daughter, Jerrica Brooks.
In typical father fashion, he constantly teased her about things that happened on the show.
In particular, he found the “Claim to Fame” cast’s guesses about Chris Osmond hilarious.
Smoove also found a lot of humor in the cast’s wrong guesses about Brooks' celebrity relative.
Steve Harvey was a popular guess for her father’s identity.
Brooks said it became a running joke between them.
Harvey and Brooks have met before, but he’s not some secret long-lost relative.
According to her, Harvey and her father have a “nice relationship.
“Harvey has seven kids, but Brooks is the only child of Smoove.
Brooks tried to throw him off and responded with “Wow, Gabriel.
That’s so close.
But super close.”
Brooks also tried to convince the house that her father was a different famous person.
She wanted the other contestants to think her father was former basketball player and host John Salley.
Therefore, she assumed it was a believable lie.
However, Brooks eventually dropped the lie and moved on from that plan.
Instead, she credits her social game as the reason for her longevity on “Claim to Fame.”
