St. Louis rapper/singer
Smino combines hip-hop with funk and soul influences, much like contemporaries
Isaiah Rashad,
Saba, and
Ab-Soul. Debuting in the early 2010s with a series of mixtapes and EPs, he issued his official debut,
blkswn, in 2017 and marked his first appearance on the Billboard charts the following year with
NOIR. A year after releasing the 2020 mixtape She Already Decided,
Smino partnered with Motown for his third record.
Born Christopher Smith, Jr., he was raised by a family of musicians who provided early exposure to jazz, blues, and gospel music, which he would go on to blend with his own influences,
Kanye West and
Dungeon Family. A drummer since childhood,
Smino played in his church band before he started rapping. His first foray into hip-hop was as half of the St. Louis duo YDOC ("Young Dumb and Outta Control"). Later, he released a solo mixtape, SMEEZY DOT COM. After graduating high school, he moved to Chicago to attend Columbia College. There, singer Drea Smith (his cousin) introduced him to other artists in the local scene.
In 2015, he formed the music collective Zero Fatigue with producer
Monte Booker, rapper Jay2AintShit, and singer
Ravyn Lenae.
Smino released his first official EP, the sexually charged S!Ck S!Ck S!Ck, that October, quickly following with the
Blkjuptr EP, an
André 3000-esque meditation on cultural alienation. By year's end, he'd released the title track to his debut LP, "Blkswn," which was closely followed by the subsequent 2017 singles "Anita" and "BlkOscars."
Blkswn arrived in early 2017 and featured appearances by
Ravyn Lenae,
Noname, and more.
Smino promoted the effort on tours supporting
SZA and
T-Pain through the end of the year.
In 2018, he issued "New Coupe, Who Dis?" with Chicago emcee
Mick Jenkins. That November, he released his second full-length,
NOIR, which was his first to enter the Billboard 200. An EP, High 4 Da Highladys, arrived in 2019, as did the single "Reverend." The following year,
Smino released his second mixtape, She Already Decided. He also joined with
Monte Booker and
the Drums for the Madden NFL 21 game soundtrack song "Backstage Pass." A non-album track, "MKL Dr," appeared in early 2021, followed a few months later by "Rice & Gravy" with
Monte Booker. That November,
Smino issued another track, "I Deserve" featuring NOS, and revealed that he'd signed a deal with Motown Records. ~ Neil Z. Yeung