George Nooks, aka Prince Mohamed, (born in  Kingston, Jamaica) is a reggae singer who initially found fame as a deejay. Nooks started his musical career in the youth choir at his church, and moved on to perform at school concerts and talent shows. After first recording professionally in 1974, Nooks first found success performing under the name Prince Mohamed, as a deejay on discomix tracks for producer Joe Gibbs, notably on Dennis Brown’s 1978 hit “Money in my Pocket”, and “How Could I Leave”, as well as “Light Up Your Spliff” for producer Prince Tony Robinson. He moved on to work with other producers such as Alvin Ranglin and Bunny Riley. His first album, a joint effort with General Echo, People Are You Ready, was released on the United Artists subsidiary Ballistic in 1978. This was followed by African Roots, recorded the following year for producer Linval Thompson.

He had a hit in Jamaica with “Forty Legs Dread”, and the increasing violence in Kingston prompted Nooks to record a version of Little Roy’s “Tribal War”, now singing rather than deejaying, and released under his real name, which he followed with a cover version of Errol Dunkley’s “Darling Ooh”. Nooks would subsequently concentrate on his singing, releasing the Today album in 1981, although he reverted to Prince Mohamed in 1982 for an album with June Lodge. His singing gained comparisons with Dennis Brown, who he would later pay tribute to with a double album of Brown covers.

It would be 1997 before Nooks released another album, his self-titled collection resulting in three Tamika Reggae Music awards, but since 1997 he has been quite prolific, releasing a string of solo albums, as well as albums shared with Glen Washington, Roland Burrell, Singing Melody and Lukie D. He continues to perform and record, mixing reggae and Gospel.
Nooks also works as a producer, and has run his own Total Records label since the early 1990s.

Chris Smith is a singer/songwriter inspired by his family’s extensive travels around the world and intoxicated by the wonderful music he was exposed to as he grew up. Chris’s music is a blend of various influences including pop, jazz, soul and world rhythms.

To date, Chris has released four albums. His most recent, Let The Ball Roll, was released on June 30, 2009. Back To You was released in 2006, Real Thing was released in 2004 and his debut Room Inside My Heart was released in 1995.

In the company of such successful artists as Michael Bublé and Diana Krall, Chris has been nominated for nine Canadian Smooth Jazz Awards including Best Album, Best Song and Best Male Vocalist.

Early Years

Born in England, Chris Smith was the second son to a Swedish mother and English father. The family travelled extensively throughout Southeast Asia, the Far East and Europe.

Growing up listening to jazz, blues and anything by The Beatles, Chris cites myriad influences, including his older brother, Peter, who became a successful musician in his own right.

He discovered his songwriting talent at a young age and recorded a demo before enrolling in the Jazz programme at Humber College in Toronto. Upon graduating, Chris formed The Graduates with three fellow Humber students performing Chris-Smith originals.

Chris’s next project, Regatta, won the nationally recognized Q107 Homegrown contest and caught the ear of BMG Records who signed the band to an international record deal.

Despite Regatta’s success, Chris knew his future lay in jazz and pop. He leapt into a solo career in 1995 with the release of his debut, Room Inside My Heart and, following that, began an enduring creative association with Greg Kavanagh. Subsequent albums, Real Thing, Back To You and Let The Ball Roll have increased his fan base, achieved critical acclaim and gained industry recognition.