| Biography | Jorja Smith (born June 11, 1997) is a British singer from Walsall, West Midlands. She has independently released numerous singles and one extended play, Project 11 (2016), and is most known for her guest appearances on the songs "Jorja Interlude" and "Get It Together" from Canadian rapper Drake's album More Life (2017).
Jorja was brought up on a blend of Trojan Records boxsets, Curtis Mayfield and Damien Marley and was classically trained as a vocalist during secondary school. Jorja was part of a music collective, OGHORSE, and began releasing music online.] Smith's father was born in Gloucester, UK and was part of a neo-soul group called 2nd Naicha.
Jorja's first release, "Blue Lights", was uploaded to SoundCloud in January 2016 when she was 18 years old, followed up by "A Prince" featuring Maverick Sabre and "Where Did I Go?", which artist/rapper Drake chose as his favourite track of the moment in an article which featured in Entertainment Weekly. To close out 2016, Jorja released her first body of work, Project 11 (2016), a 4-track EP covering a variety of matters and musical styles. "Blue Lights" was nominated in the Best Song category at the 2016 MOBO Awards. Smith supported Canadian rapper Drake on his UK tour at a show in Birmingham and London.
In March 2017, Jorja appeared on two tracks on Drake's album More Life (2017). That same month, she released the single "Beautiful Little Fools" on International Women's Day. The title is a reference to The Great Gatsby, and the video features Smith singing at the Rivoli Ballroom in London, playing characters from different levels of society.
Jorja's influences range from Mos Def to Lauryn Hill to The Streets.] Her soulful and jazzy vocal style has been compared to Amy Winehouse, Rihanna, Lauryn Hill and FKA Twigs. |