An autobiography from Stephen A. Smith is due in stores early next year. Straight Shooter: A Memoir of Second Chances and First Takes is an all-encompassing look at the First Take star’s life from his childhood to today.
Smith appreciates privacy and has been hesitant to talk about his personal life in the past. Occasionally he has made exceptions for shows hosted by friends and people in the business that he respects.
On Wednesday’s episode of First Take, Stephen A. Smith said that was largely due to a promise he made to his mother.
“She told me never to write a book until she passed away, because she knows I’m gonna say what I need to say,” he told Molly Qerim and Chris Russo. “I’m gonna speak my mind and I’m gonna speak my truth. There are things in there that she would not have wanted me to reveal while she was alive.”
He added that writing it made him more uncomfortable than he anticipated.
“There’s a lot in there that I didn’t want to tell, but if you gonna write a book, you gotta tell it.”
Russo joked that clearly Smith is excited. He had texted the New York radio legend the cover and some information about the book earlier in the summer.
Qerim has received some of that material too. She told Smith that what she has seen and read is very impressive.
“This is huge, and I’m proud of you. It’s hard to tell. I know you’ve kept your personal life close to the vest. For you to open up, I think people are going to respect you even more when they learn more about you.”
Stephen A. Smith noted that in addition to his childhood and his professional triumphs, the book will also revisit the controversies that surrounded him at points in his career. He noted the goal of the book was not necessarily to make him look good, but to help people better understand the man they see on TV each morning.
“I’ve never ran before, so there was no way I was going to start with this book,” Smith said.
