Tisha Campbell Opens Up About Overcoming Financial Struggles: “I Had $21 and a Knife Cost $7”
Tisha Campbell may be a familiar face from iconic shows like Martin and My Wife and Kids, but behind the glitz and decades-long career is a story of true perseverance. During a candid interview on The Breakfast Club, the 56-year-old actress got real about hitting rock bottom financially—and how she fought her way back.
It’s been nearly a year since Campbell and her ex-husband, actor Duane Martin, officially closed a nearly decade-long bankruptcy case that began in 2016. But the emotional and financial scars of that journey are still fresh.
In one particularly raw moment during the interview, Campbell shared a memory that stuck with her: “The story was I had $21 in my pocket and a knife cost $7 and I wanted to pay for the knife. It was Christmas and I had a choice to try to get some extra toys for my kids at the Rite Aid or something.”
Let that sink in. A woman we’ve seen on red carpets and primetime TV was standing in Rite Aid, debating between a kitchen utensil and a few last-minute toys for her children—Xen, now 23, and Ezekiel, 15.
It’s the kind of truth we don’t often hear from celebs, but it’s powerful.
Campbell, who filed for divorce in 2018 after 27 years with Martin, says she still doesn’t fully understand how they got to the point of bankruptcy. “I was kind of separated from it, so I don’t really know how we got through it,” she admitted. “But it really is just taking yourself outside of it and keep it moving forward.”
And move forward she has. While financial struggle is tough enough, Campbell has also faced the challenge of raising two children with very different special needs—her eldest has autism, and her youngest lives with ADHD. Still, she radiates strength. “I got kids, man,” she said simply. “I just keep moving forward. I can’t look backwards. I can’t. So I just don’t.”
When DJ Envy brought up the misconception that “successful” women in Hollywood are immune to hardship, Campbell nodded to the noise—but also to her refusal to be distracted by it.
“The way I look at life, it’s like a football game,” she said. “Whoever’s on the field running with me and got that ball with me or running the field with me, I’m good… I don’t pay attention to the cheerleaders—those are the fake friends. I don’t pay attention to the crowd noise because they’re there to boo and to cheer. So I can’t pay attention to any of it.”
Tisha Campbell is proof that even when life tries to knock you down, you can rise again—gracefully, fiercely, and in your own time.
And now? She’s not just “good.” She’s grounded, focused, and moving full speed ahead.