布兰登·韦斯利·孔，Branden Weslee Kong was born on March 13, 1984, in Walnut Creek, California, and raised in South San Francisco, California. His middle name, Weslee, is spelled after his mother's maiden Lee. At age 12, he made his first local commercial. In middle school, his basketball coach gave him the nickname Smilie because he was always smiling.