ENGLEWOOD, Colo., June 30 /PRNewswire/ -- Comedian Rickey Smiley will perform in the premiere episode of the Starz original stand-up comedy series "Martin Lawrence Presents 1st Amendment Stand-up" on Wednesday, July 9 at 10 p.m. (ET/PT).

Smiley, a Birmingham, Ala. native, boasts past achievements such as hosting BET's "Comic View" in 2000 and the 2001 TV series "The Way We Do It," as well as playing Santa Claus in the movie Friday After Next, which have put him on the map as a well-rounded comic. Fans can also hear Smiley on Dallas's radio station KBFB - FM 97.9 The Beat. In addition to being a live performer, Smiley has released five comedy CDs entitled "The Best of Comedian Rickey Smiley" featuring character impersonations and prank phone calls.

"Martin Lawrence Presents 1st Amendment Stand-up" is executive produced by one of America's most popular actor/comedians, Martin Lawrence. Now in its third season, the weekly series features 35 talented, explosive, and certainly not politically correct, comedians who take the spotlight to tell it like it is in their own hard-hitting style. Filmed before a live audience in Washington, D.C. at the historic Lincoln Theatre, the show is hosted by comedian Doug Williams who adds his own style of comedy. Spinning the music is celebrated entertainer and DJ Biz Markie. Featured comedians are Joey Medina ("The Original Latin Kings of Comedy"), Angelo Lozada ("Showtime at the Apollo"), Steve Brown ("Def Comedy Jam") and others.

Starz Entertainment, LLC, is a premium movie service provider operating in the United States. It offers 16 movie channels including the flagship Starz(R) and Encore(R) brands with approximately 16.8 million and 31.4 million subscribers respectively. Starz Entertainment airs more than 1,000 movies per month across its pay TV channels and offers advanced services including Starz HD, Encore HD, Starz On Demand, Encore On Demand, MoviePlex On Demand, Starz HD On Demand, Encore HD On Demand, MoviePlex HD On Demand, Starz Play, and Vongo(R). Starz Entertainment (http://www.starz.com) is an operating unit of Starz, LLC, which is a wholly owned subsidiary of Liberty Media Corporation, and is attributed to Liberty Entertainment Group, a tracking stock group of Liberty Media Corporation.

        Contact(s):

        Rhiannon Hendrickson                 Michele Gregoire-Langevin
        Starz Entertainment                  Starz Entertainment
        720.852.5802                         720.852.4504
        rhiannon.hendrickson@starz.com       michele.langevin@starz.com

        Chelsey J. Burrows
        Starz Entertainment
        720.852.5838
        chelsye.burrows@starz.com

Source: Starz Entertainment, LLC