What happened to Amanza Smith's husband Ralph Brown? 'Selling Sunset' star's relationship left her shaken
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: When 'Selling Sunset' star Amanza Smith found out that her ex-husband, former NFL player Ralph Brown, had vanished in August 2019 while she was filming the second season of the Netflix series, she felt compelled to expose the agony her family had endured. Amanza claimed that she couldn't conceal such a significant portion of her life from the cameras, which had been monitoring her around the clock for over seven months.
The popular reality show used Ralph's absence as a plot point as the former interior designer and current real estate agent fought for exclusive custody of their two kids, Noah and Braker. Amanza still has no clue where Ralph may be, and we still don't know where he is.
She has provided several updates on the issue and her and her family's coping mechanisms throughout the years.
When did Amanza Smith of 'Selling Sunset' marry Ralph Brown?
Amanza married Ralph on July 17, 2010. Ralph used to play football at the University of Nebraska and was selected by the New York Giants in the fifth round of the 2000 draft. He retired in 2009.
When did Selling Sunset's Amanza Smith divorce ex husband Ralph Brown?
In 2012, Ralph and Amanza filed for divorce, calling it quits after only two years of marriage. Noah, their daughter, who was born before the wedding, attended the Indianapolis ceremony.
2011 saw the birth of their son, Braker, one year later. Before Ralph's disappearance, Amanza disclosed that throughout the eight years following their divorce, she and the former athlete had equal custody of the children, with the children spending half of the week with him and the other half with her.
Two years after Ralph vanished, in October 2021, Amanza was given sole custody of both of their children. Amanza was granted exclusive legal and physical custody of Noah and Braker as a consequence of the decision, which was made in a Los Angeles courtroom.
Court records also state that Ralph would not be entitled to visiting rights.
Ralph Brown stopped paying child support to Amanza Smith
Amanza revealed to host Amanda Hirsch on the October 6, 2020, episode of 'Dear Media's Not Skinny But Not Fat' podcast that Ralph "paid child support for a year and a half" following their divorce "and then stopped."
"He wasn't in a place where he could give me support, because after he retired from the NFL, he blew through his money. It's a typical story," she clarified, adding that her family was financially supported during their time together by actor Taye Diggs, who she dated for over five years.
When was Ralph Brown last seen?
Amanza revealed to E! News in August 2020 that Ralph was last seen on August 26, 2019, when he dropped the children off at their Los Angeles school. In 'Not Fat But Not Skinny', Amanza reported that on September 1, 2019, a few days later, she had last heard from him.
"He sent me an email, and he said, 'My situation isn't good right now. I can't financially take care of the children. It's not safe for them to be with me. You need to keep them until my situation changes'," she recalled Ralph saying to her.
In August 2020, Amanza informed Entertainment Tonight that a lot of Ralph's acquaintances had been in touch with her, asking if she knew where he was.
"I've had at least 20 of his ex-NFL teammates reach out to me, saying, 'Hey, have you heard from him? Do you know what's going on?'," she said.
"His best friend of 20 years has no idea," she added. "He's alive somewhere because otherwise, we would know. There are so many people actively trying, and there's just no answer."
Selling Sunset's Amanza Smith iced out by ex husband Ralph Brown's family
According to Amanza, Ralph's family has ignored her. Amanda was informed by Amanza on 'Not Skinny But Not Fat' that although she has tried to get in touch with Ralph's family via phone, email, and text message, they are just as unresponsive as he is.
She said, "Anytime I reach out to anyone, I get blocked, and the children were very close to their grandparents, aunts and uncles so the family has found the lack of connection to be especially traumatic. I've had to pick up the pieces and mend little broken hearts."
Is Ralph Brown missing?
"At one point, he submitted something to the courts, where he did a change of address," Amanza told Amanda. She saw this as proof that Ralph was still alive and was only attempting to hide.
"We traced it back, and it's a PO Box at, like, a UPS store," she added. After two months without hearing from Ralph, Amanza filed a missing person's report, but she was informed that it could not be accepted due to an email he sent her on September 1.
"I was redirected to an investigator in [the Glendale police] office, but after reviewing my case, they came back to me stating that he was not a missing person because there was no sign of foul play — and he had also sent me an email telling me that it was 'not safe for the children to be with him right now,' and I would need to keep them until his situation changed," she disclosed to E! News in August 2020. Amanza previously employed a private detective, but said that "they never got a visual" of his location.
Amanza Smith claims chronic traumatic encephalopathy drove Ralph Brown away
In August 2020, Amanza told Entertainment Tonight that she had pondered whether Ralph's football injuries—specifically, CTE, a brain ailment linked to repetitive trauma to the head—may have played a role in his disappearance. "In my mind, it's like, okay, if he's had some sort of mental breakdown or — he played in the NFL for 11 years, I have to wonder if maybe it's CTE," she stated, continuing, "Those are real [issues]."
'Selling Sunset' Season 8 will be released on Netflix on September 6.