Stephen A. Smith is set to begin hosting his two new SiriusXM shows in September. But it turns out, according to Smith, his deal with SiriusXM extends further than strictly just serving as a host.
During an appearance on the Gil’s Arena podcast on Friday, Smith spoke about his upcoming role, explaining how his deal serves as more of a “partnership” than an average radio hosting gig, where he will earn a share of the profits at Mad Dog Sports Radio instead of simply collecting a paycheck for hosting the shows.
“My deal with SiriusXM isn’t just to be a host, it’s to be a partner,” said Smith. “It’s one thing to just get the dollars, and it’s another thing to share the profits. That’s one reason, let me be real about it. The other part about it is, I’m the kind of person that don’t hide. So, when you are doing radio, it’s live. Mad Dog Sports Radio, leading into Mad Dog Russo’s show, I’m taking calls. If you have something to say, I’m right there.
“Not only that, it re-airs after his show goes off. So it’s 1-3 eastern (time), then he comes on 3-6, and my show re-airs from 6-8. Any time I want to, if there is something that went on between 3-6 that I didn’t get the opportunity to address, I can simply go on the air and address it again. I like being a bit conspicuous. I like having that kind of presence where you can try to get around me, but you really, really can’t. And so, I don’t mind work. I don’t mind working hard. Hell, I couldn’t play, I better know how to do something else. So it’s one of those situations where I’m out there on my grind, I’m doing what I do.”
Smith will continue on with his roles at ESPN at First Take and NBA Countdown, along with hosting his podcast, The Stephen A. Smith Show, on his YouTube channel. And according to Smith, maintaining these responsibilities was a non-negotiable aspect of his deal with SiriusXM.
“I’ve been in this business for a long time. Radio is a really, really big deal from the standpoint of being able to communicate with listeners and callers. Volleying back and forth and having that presence. But not at the expense of giving up my YouTube channel. I wasn’t going to do that. Not at the expense of giving up ESPN, I wasn’t going to do that. So right now, I feel like I’ve got it all. So we’ll see what happens.”
Clearly, despite some fans potentially wanting a break from the overexposure of Stephen A. Smith throughout his coverage of the 2025 NBA Playoffs, Smith has no issue further expanding his reach heading into football season. So it will be interesting to see whether sports fans perhaps grow tired of his presence yet again as he takes on even more responsibility in the sports media landscape.
About Reice Shipley
Reice Shipley is a staff writer for Comeback Media that graduated from Ithaca College with a degree in Sports Media. He previously worked at Barrett Sports Media and is a fan of all things Syracuse sports.