Blair Waldorf was born into a life of luxury.

Leighton Meester, the actress who portrays Gossip Girl's Queen B, was born to a woman who was sentenced to a prison term for smuggling marijuana.

As Us Weekly reports in its new cover story, Connie Meester was pregnant with Leighton when she was sentenced to 10 years in a federal prison in Texas.

At 29, she gave birth while she was just beginning her sentence following a conviction for her involvement with a drug ring that was smuggling massive, 1,200-pound shipments of marijuana into the United States from Jamaica.

Her father, Doug, also served time for being part of the smuggling operation. At present, Doug works in construction and Connie is a screenwriter.

Leighton Meester's rough start gives her perspective today.

"It makes me very nonjudgmental and open-minded," the 22-year-old said. "And I think it just makes me appreciate the things that I have now."

Now, the Gossip Girl star and her mother - who was released in 1986 after serving only 16 months of her sentence - have a solid relationship.

"She's always there for me no matter what," Leighton Meester said of her mom. "I swear, that woman knows everything."

Steve Marsi is the Managing Editor of TV Fanatic. Follow him on Google+ or email him here.