Frances Gladney gained recognition as the wife of the renowned American musician, Smokey Robinson, who is also a producer, and songwriter. In addition to being an interior designer, Gladney is also an entrepreneur. They tied the knot in May 2002 and have been happily married since.
Frances Gladney Bio Summary
Full name: Frances Gladney
Gender: Female
Date of birth: 11 May 1970
Age: 54 years old (as of 2024)
Zodiac sign: Taurus
Place of birth: Los Angeles, California, United States
Current residence: Pittsburgh, United States
Nationality: American
Ethnicity: African-American
Religion: Christianity
Sexuality: Straight
Height: 5 ft 8 in (176 cm)
Weight: 110 lbs (50 kgs)
Hair color: Black
Eye color: Brown
Marital status: Married
Partner: Smokey Robinson
Profession: Interior designer and entrepreneur
Early Life & Career
Frances Glandney, an African-American, was born in 1970 in Los Angeles, California, United States. Despite her American nationality, little is known about her upbringing and family background.
Frances Gladney is a successful interior designer and business owner, while her spouse, Smokey Robinson, is a renowned musician, composer, and former executive. Smokey Robinson rose to prominence as the frontman and main songwriter for The Miracles, one of the earliest groups to join Motown Records.
Throughout his successful music career, he has accumulated a considerable amount of wealth. He is the mastermind behind popular songs such as Baby Baby Don’t Cry, The Tears of a Clown, I Second That Emotion, and You’ve Really Got a Hold on Me.
Frances and Smokey have also collaborated to create a skincare brand. The skincare collections known as My Girl and The Get Ready were created specifically for individuals with melanated skin tones. These names were influenced by songs that were originally composed for the Temptations.
Frances Gladney & Smokey Robinson’s Relationship
Despite being 12 years apart in age, Smokey Robinson and Frances Gladney were both born on February 19. To celebrate, their friends treated them to a dinner where they both got to try coconut shrimp for the first time. This new experience brought them closer together and sparked a different kind of connection between them.
Smokey clarified that he and Frances were members of a close-knit circle of friends, and she was concerned that they would “start gossiping” if they discovered their relationship. In April 2023, Smokey spoke about their relationship.
“When we first started seeing each other, she wanted to keep it on the down-low. She didn’t want anybody to know because we were friends. And then all our friends were going to be talking about us.”
The couple has now been married for over twenty years. To commemorate their 21st wedding anniversary in 2023, Smokey posted a sincere tribute to Frances Gladney on Instagram. He captioned the photo,
“Celebrating a beautiful anniversary weekend with my love Mrs. Frances Robinson ❤️❤️ @mygirl219.”
Smokey Robinson’s Previous Relationship
Smokey was previously married to Claudette Rogers Robinson for 27 years before tying the knot with Frances Gladney. According to Rock N Heavy, the couple faced difficulties with pregnancies, including the loss of stillborn twins and seven miscarriages.
After some time, they were blessed with the arrival of two children. However, their marriage eventually fell apart when she found out about his third child with his mistress. Despite being together for nearly 30 years, she ended up divorcing him.
Smokey is the father of three children. His eldest son, Berry Robinson, and his only daughter, Tamla Robinson, were born in 1968 and 1971 respectively when he was married to Claudette. His third child, Trey Robinson, was born in 1984. In his memoir, “Smokey: Inside My Life,” Smokey mentions that he shares Trey with a woman known as Kandi.
Despite being the son of a famous figure, Berry has chosen to stay out of the public eye, showing little inclination towards following in his father’s footsteps. In 2019, Tamla made efforts to establish a new holiday, Father Daughter Day, along with Smokey, to foster stronger familial relationships and connections.
Trey and Berry share the similarity of both leading a more low-key lifestyle. What is certain is that Smokey maintained a cordial relationship with his mother.
Net Worth
It is speculated that fashion designer Frances Gladney’s net worth is $500k, which she has accumulated through her entrepreneurial and interior design pursuits. In contrast, her husband’s net worth is rumored to be $150 million.
