Neddy Smith: It Wasn't About Being a Mechanical Engineer

Neddy Smith is a professional musician and CEO at NedGJean International. He composes and writes his music, not only in a traditional style, but also by incorporating his vast international experiences. This is apparent in each of his releases.

My name is Neddy Smith, I was born in Montego Bay, Jamaica. My dad, one day, took my guitar and threw it down the stairs. The story began, my musical journey began, at that point. I went to pick my guitar up, and he said to me, "If you make any noise, you are going to pay for it. "You are supposed to study a mechanical engineer." That's not what I wanted to do. I found a boys club, and at the boys club, I decided to take lessons from some of the cats that I knew growing up. It was difficult because I had to steal away to get that lesson, musically. So in effect, what I had to do was to try and hide, get the lessons, and act like it was okay, you know? So my dad decided that, "Okay, so you're gonna make noise? "Then what you need to do is go and learn a scale." I had no idea my dad knew what a scale was. So, in fact, what I eventually did, I went out and bought books that says scale written on them. I studied and studied all the scales that I ever saw. I didn't care what scale it was, what country it came from. All I wanted to do was to study those scales. And I continued and continued, and I continued to press, to learn, so I could prove to him that it wasn't about being a mechanical engineer, but what I wanted, what I felt, what was pulsing deep within my heart to do. And eventually, he came around. I became a professional musician through that perseverance, that way of going forward, and he recognized that. And one day, he decided, "I'm gonna buy him a guitar." But he didn't tell me that he was gonna pay for it. I eventually went out and put my money down, and, in fact, he left a bag of money on the table for me to pick up to pay for my guitar, and that is my story.

Last Updated: September 26, 2021