“For me singing is just like breathing” – Kenny Smith

  That statement explains just how much passion rising artiste Kenny Smith puts into his music on a daily basis. Born and raised in the breadbasket parish of St. Elizabeth, Kenny grew up in a musical family, his brother Randy sings and his oldest brother Elvis plays the guitar. Their father also plays the guitar. 

Their mother was so in love with music that she named her three sons after her favourite country music recording artistes, Randy after Randy Travis, Elvis after Elvis Presley and Kenny after one of the biggest names in country music, Kenny Rogers. 

Kenny used to sit in awe and watch as his father played the guitar at their home in Nain. He begged him to teach him to play instrument and in no time, Kenny was strumming out his own melodies. Not feeling complete with only being able to play just one instrument, Kenny decided to learn how to play four more, taking his musical skills to a higher level. Kenny soon discovered that he had a hidden skill – songwriting, and he put pen to paper as often as he could, penning lyrics to love songs and social commentary. 

In May 2013, Kenny auditioned for the number one talent show in Jamaica, and was placed in the top fourteen from his audition location, however he was not selected to join the other 11finalists who made it to the studio. Kenny did not let that deter him and instead he focused on the band he formed with his friends in St. Elizabeth, working on crowd favourites and of course performing his own songs. 

A few months later, lady luck shone a bright light on Kenny Smith, as Craigy T called him back into the competition as his wild card. Week after week, Kenny thrilled Jamaica with his soulful and raspy voice and was rewarded with the fourth place position. Since then, he has been working with Craigy T who has taken on the role as his manager and mentor. 

Kenny has performed at several events including the high school competition Digicel Showdown. He put his incredible songwriting skills to work and has released his first single “I Love You” produced by Craigy T for GAFJAM Records. 

“This song is from my heart and it’s just the beginning” said Kenny. 

Since then Kenny has matured even more musically and has written and recorded over 13 songs for GAFJAM Records, as well as other established labels, such as Bombrush Records and Big Ship Records to name a few. Plans are set for these singles to begin hitting the airwaves leading up to the release of his debut album in 2015.