Ricky Bell is a famous musician, especially for being part of the R&B/pop group New Edition. As one of the co-founding members of New Edition, Bell made a name for himself for his rapping skills.
However, it goes without a word that Bell suffered from severe abuse of substance, which almost cost his life, and made him lose his home. But, despite such bad events happening in the ’90s to Bell, he has come up clean and he continues to push his rapping career. So, how wealthy is Ricky Bell as of 2024?
Ricky Bell’s Net Worth
Ricky Bell’s net worth is estimated at $1.5 million as of 2024. Ricky Bell came into the limelight as one of the founding members of New Edition, a pop group that released numerous hit songs in the 80s.
Ricky enjoyed a comfortable lifestyle, thanks to the good income that he was getting from his rapping career. In 2000 he also began a solo career, releasing his debut album. Despite the group being successful and releasing numerous hit albums, it could not hold together for long.
Career
Ricky Bell was born the youngest of eleven children in Roxbury, Boston, Massachusetts. Bill began singing when he was young after he formed a group with his friend Ralph Tresvant. Later on, Bill and Ralph joined hands with other singers Bobby Brown, Michael Bivins, and Ronnie DeVoe, and formed New Edition.
The group began releasing songs in 1978, and it went on to achieve massive success. After the group recorded Heartbreak, they allowed Bill to go on solo projects, but instead, he formed a group with DeVoe and Bivins.
Bill, Bivins, and DeVoe formed BBD, and it gained recognition with its first release. It became the first band to fuse rap elements with R&B consistently, terming their style as Hip-hop smoothed.
BBD was the lead singer of the group and he showed great potential to succeed in a solo career. While Bill sang as a backup vocalist for New Edition, he went on to use his voice in singles in the 90s. BBD released a new album in 2017 Three Stripes, becoming the trio’s first album in 15 years.
Personal Life
In 2004, Bell held a double wedding with Tresvant. He married actress Amy Correa and started a family with her. While the new Edition Story miniseries was released in 2017, it brought out a different picture of Bell. The singer had struggled with substance abuse in the mid-1990s, and he would not help himself but use Marijuana, Cocaine, alcohol, and Oxycontin.
The series revealed that Bell’s substance abuse was extreme to the extent that he lost his house and other properties because he was selling them to satisfy his addiction.
The rapper overdosed on cocaine and it nearly cost him his life. As a result, Bell joined rehab. Since he checked out of rehab, he has been sober. While Bobby Brown’s addiction was made public during his time with New Edition, Bell’s struggles were kept a secret.
