* En anglais uniquement
With a distinctive vocal style and slippery, lyric-focused flows, Toronto rapper
Smiley makes tracks that simmer with intensity but also bounce along with enough charisma to entice mainstream listeners. He experienced a huge boost in exposure when he collaborated with
Drake on the 2021 single "Over the Top."
Smiley started sharing his slick, often sinister trap songs in 2018, beginning with his Buy.or.Bye mixtape. He was on fellow Toronto rapper
Drake's radar that early, with
Drake using lyrics from
Smiley's song "Free Baby" in his first public statement addressing his beef with
Pusha T, and also citing Buy.or.Bye as one of the albums that inspired him while he was recording
Scorpion. In 2018,
Smiley also released A Tape to Remember, and from there continued issuing new songs and collections like 2020's
YYZ-LAX. In 2021, he moved from street cred and self-releasing his music to working with
Drake's OVO family of artists, sharing new songs "In My Zone" and "Moving Different" before releasing "Over the Top," a pulsating and slightly creepy track featuring multiple verses from
Drake. ~ Fred Thomas