Katt Williams Was Homeless at 13 — and Making $2,000 a Day

Before the sold-out shows and the famous interview, Katt Williams says he was a teenager on his own, making money in ways most adults would struggle to match. On Club Shay Shay he laid out the contrast plainly: homeless at 13, yet bringing in around $2,000 a day.

The full conversation

The full conversation is “Katt Williams Unleashed | CLUB SHAY SHAY”, the long-form Club Shay Shay interview in which host Shannon Sharpe, the three-time Super Bowl champion and Pro Football Hall of Famer, sits down with comedian Katt Williams. It is the interview behind this moment, in which Williams lays out the contrast between his early teenage years on his own and the career that followed, and it is one of the most-watched podcast conversations on the channel. You can watch it in full on the official Club Shay Shay YouTube channel.

More moments: Katt Williams · Club Shay Shay

What happened in this moment

Williams told Shannon Sharpe that he left home young and had to look after himself from an early age. The detail that stuck with listeners was the money: by his own account, he was earning about $2,000 a day while still a teenager with nowhere stable to live. He spoke about it without self-pity, as a fact of how he grew up.

Why everyone is talking about it

The two halves of the story do not seem to belong together, and that is why it travelled. A child with no home, and a daily income most adults never see, in the same sentence. It also reframes his better-known refusal story: the man who turned down $50 million did not learn independence as a star. He learned it early, when he had no safety net at all.

The background

Williams’s Club Shay Shay interview became one of the most talked-about podcast moments of recent years, and clips from it keep finding new audiences. This one stands out because it is about the years before fame, and because it explains, in his own telling, why he has always been willing to walk away from a deal.

Key takeaways

• Katt Williams says he was homeless at 13.
• By his own account, he was making around $2,000 a day at the time.
• He connects that early independence to his later willingness to refuse big offers.

Source: Club Shay Shay, hosted by Shannon Sharpe. Full episodes on the official Club Shay Shay YouTube channel.

Frequently asked questions

Was Katt Williams really homeless at 13? That is what he said on Club Shay Shay, describing his early teenage years on his own.

How was he making $2,000 a day? He described earning the money himself as a teenager, without giving a detailed breakdown in the clip.

Watch next

Katt Williams: Turned Down $50 Million Four Times | Katt Williams Explains Why He Turned Down The King of Comedy | When Your Whole Family Depends on Your Success

Another story about family and self-reliance: When Your Whole Family Depends on Your Success.

Jane Brooks covers the podcast moments everyone ends up talking about — the interviews, the slip-ups and the stories celebrities tell when the conversation gets comfortable. She runs the written side of Pods Talk Media.