Mr. Vegas

Biography

Clifford Smith, 1975, St. Andrew, Jamaica, West Indies. Smith spent his adolescence nurturing his soccer skills, and his tackling proficiency led to the nickname of Vegas, a reference to the twisting skills of the go-go dancers at the local Las Vegas Club. Smith began his musical career in 1986 when he visited a recording studio in Kingston. His recording career was put on hold until he completed his education, and by the time he was 21 he was singing his interpretation of Roberta Flack’s ‘Killing Me Softly With His Song’ at Freddie McGregor’s Big Ship Studio. The DJ/producer Don Yute brought him into the studio to work on the song, and the session led to a further collaboration for a version of Az Yet’s ‘Last Night’. At this point Yute suggested the addition to his name of ‘Mr.’, to give the artist and his sound more authority. Up until 1997, Vegas was primarily a reggae singer, although his career changed course when...

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