An active member of the Northeast Ohio music scene since 2004, rapper and multi-instrumentalist released his sophomore album this month.
Just before the COVID-19 pandemic, the now 32-year-old artist experienced a low turnout at a performance in Downtown Cleveland, causing him to consider quitting music for good.
鈥淚 had practiced for days, for weeks even. Three people showed up. One of them was my mom,鈥� Smith said. 鈥淚'll give the same performance for three people that I would for 300, because that's just my work ethic, I guess. But, you know, it's still disheartening.鈥�
A new opportunity came calling in 2021 that changed the trajectory of Smith鈥檚 journey as a solo artist.
Asher Roth, noted for his 2009 party-rap song, "I Love College,鈥� put out a call on social media for collaborators to create instrumentals and write verses for his upcoming album, 鈥淭he Greenhouse Effect Vol. 3.鈥�
Smith tuned into Roth鈥檚 live stream where he asked for vocalists to write a verse about 鈥渂eing impatient.鈥� Smith started working on lyrics immediately.
鈥淚 presented it to him, like, maybe 20 minutes after the stream ended, and he's like, 鈥榃ell, if that's not impatience, I don't know what is.鈥� I think I was the first one to get a placement on that album,鈥� Smith said.
Roth selected this contribution for his song 鈥淨uid Pro Grow,鈥� where Smith鈥檚 vocals are also featured.
Shortly after, Smith was chosen as one of three inaugural artists in residence at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. He got to spend time with industry experts and musicians to learn more about songwriting, performing and marketing.
This opportunity in 2021 allowed Smith to leave his full-time job and accept a position with the Rock Hall in their membership department.
鈥淚t was just weird to go from wanting to step away from music to being fully immersed in it within six months or less,鈥� Smith said.
Blending humor with diverse musical influences
Smith spent summers as a teenager learning new instruments by watching instructors on YouTube.
He first learned the keyboard then picked up guitar, bass, ukulele and drums.
Smith started the hip-hop group, Black & Broke, with some friends in high school.
The teenage musicians performed parody songs in the style of Smith鈥檚 idol, Weird Al Yankovic, in Northeast Ohio until 2015.
鈥淚 feel like he doesn鈥檛 take himself seriously. That鈥檚 what I like about my music currently. For the most part, it鈥檚 very fun. And I just explore a lot of genres. And I think Weird Al is very good at that,鈥� Smith said.
After graduation, Smith and his bandmates formed a 鈥渟upergroup鈥� with the Astrovans.
鈥淓verybody loved it so much,鈥� he said. 鈥淭o this day, a couple of them are still in my solo live band.鈥�
Smith comes from a big family of musicians who introduced each other to different styles of music. His stepfather was a rapper in the Cleveland area in the 1980s.
He grew up listening to artists like Janet Jackson, Prince, Doobie Brothers, LL Cool J and Jamiroquai.
鈥淚 loved taking songs on the radio, making our own versions of them. And that's kind of how we got started,鈥� Smith said.
When several of his bandmates moved out of the area, Smith decided to begin his solo music career. His parody song, 鈥淪andwiches,鈥� became a crowd favorite.
Smith wrote the track as a freshman attending college at the University of Cincinnati. He was looking for a bite to eat, and the only dining establishment that accepted his student card was Subway.
鈥淭he first whole first verse is literally my experience that evening,鈥� Smith said. 鈥淲e end the show with it because people love it so much.鈥�
The rapper focused on humor and lighthearted themes for much of his early years of writing and performing music.
Smith now describes his solo music as a blend of hip-hop, funk rock, soul and pop, stemming from the influences of his family and friends.
The journey to releasing a new solo record
In 2019, when he considered stepping away from the mic, Smith faced setbacks as a performer and in his career. He released his first solo debut album, 鈥淣ILLA鈥� that year.
鈥漀ILLA" stands for 鈥淣ow I鈥檓 Living Life Again,鈥� a statement that resonated with Smith after he struggled with a bad bout of depression.
He said a favorite song on the album is 鈥淜eswick,鈥� named after the street he grew up on in Shaker Heights.
鈥淭here's audio clips at the beginning and end of my grandparents, because I used to have a little tape recorder when I was a kid, and I would just go around recording them,鈥� he said.
鈥淭o be in the mindset to do it again is a blessing."Marcus Smith
In 2020, Smith released the 鈥淢ilky Way Lover鈥� EP, which originally included a song called 鈥淐oppertone鈥� reflecting current events of that year, including the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis.
鈥淚t started off as a song that I was writing to an unborn child, because we were talking about possibly having kids, me and my wife,鈥� he said. 鈥淎nd when all of that stuff went down, the presidency was up in the air. We're like, 鈥楾his is not a great world to introduce a child to.鈥欌��
Smith expanded the song, restructuring it to be a letter to himself, from himself. It appears on his new album, 鈥�,鈥� which dropped this month.
鈥淲hat I like about my music currently is that it's not emotionally draining all the time,鈥� he said.
Themes on his most recent album center around self-acceptance, experimentation and falling back in love with making music.
鈥淚 am so proud of this album,鈥� Smith said. 鈥淚 just keep thinking back to that point where I really didn't want to do music anymore, and I think about how different my life would be currently and how much I wouldn't want that.鈥�
Smith said he is hopeful about performing again after emerging from a dark place in 2019.
鈥淭o be in the mindset to do it again is a blessing,鈥� he said.
