Lil Joe - Contributed

Singer Lil Joe is hoping to take the hard edge of the industry with a voice that is smooth as honey.

Born Alty George Nunes, and from Vineyard Town in Kingston, Lil Joe has been involved in music since he was a youngster - from that early he took every opportunity to fine-tune his singing voice.

He told THE STAR: "My mom first got me started from a tender age of like four. Basically, when I was a little child, I would sing along to any song that I heard. I could do harmonies really well from a young age."

Professional career

Lil Joe's musical career started when his mother enrolled him in 'Jah Children', a young performing group where he learnt to craft his art and toured Europe among other places.

The dawn of Lil Joe's professional career came, however, when he hooked up with Equiknoxx Music in 2000. A past student of Wolmer's Boys' School, Lil Joe knew Equiknoxx founder Gavin Blair from his days at Wolmer's and later started voicing on his rhythms. Lil Joe recalled his first break: "In 2005, when I entered the JCDC Popular Song competition, I came in third place. After that I hooked up with Gussie Clarke and recorded a song - Not Good At All -which received a lot of airplay."

Soulful

Lil Joe admires the work of artistes like Bob Marley, UB40, Maxi Priest, the younger Marleys and Mavado. Describing his music as being soulful yet steeped in dancehall and reggae, Lil Joe currently has a number of singles working on, including Jah Jah Carry We On, Ayo! and Duffel Bag featuring deejay Aidonia. Mainly working with Equiknoxx Music, Lil Joe hopes to release his debut album soon.

Hoping one day to achieve success, awards and to tour the world, right now Lil Joe is focused on gaining respect on the local landscape. He, however, believes: "My greatest challenge is trying to win street credibility, which is the hardest thing to earn cause no matter how many copies you've sold, you need to be able to gain respect, locally."