Marcus Smith is a rapper, singer, and songwriter born-and-raised in Cleveland, OH. After 15 years in bands Black & Broke and SANKURO, Smith is now navigating the music scene as a solo artist. Smith is a self-taught multi-instrumentalist. Starting with piano when he was 14, he learned a new instrument each summer for five years, including guitar, bass, ukulele, and drums. As a kid, Marcus Smith would sit in his room trying to imitate his favorite artists Weird Al Yankovic and Hanson and their influence comes through in his witty lyrics and affinity for harmonies.
“Music is such an important part of my family, with 7 of my 9 siblings involved in music in some shape or form. I love that I can make the music that I love while representing the Smith family name while specifically honoring my dad and older brother.”
Marcus Smith released his first official EP, #Bananas in 2014, the follow up EP, #Pudding in 2016. In 2019 Marcus Smith released his debut solo album, NILLA, which stands for "Now, I'm Living Life Again.” Taking care of 70% of the production himself, the album mixes some Childish Gambino inspired hip-hop with Bruno Mars inspired crooning and is 100% Marcus Smith. In July 2020, he released an EP titled Milky Way Lover and is currently working on his sophomore album (currently untitled) scheduled to release Q1 2022
