J-Wonn

J-Wonn was born Jawonn Smith and raised by a single parent in Jackson, Mississippi. He grew up in church singing in choirs, and his love of the blues came from his mother and grandmother singing at home. He started writing his own music at 13, and in high school a hip-hop group he sang in earned an artist development deal.

His debut single, I Got This Record (2013, produced by Big Yayo), became a regional hit. SouthernSoulRnB's Daddy B. Nice ranked it the No. 1 Southern soul song of 2013 and gave it Best Ballad, Best Male Vocalist and Best Debut. It was also voted Best Southern Soul/R&B Song at the 2014 Blues Critic Awards. He shared Best Male Vocalist with Tucka at the 2017 Daddies.

His albums include I Got This Record (2014), The Legacy Begins (2016), Making Love To Your Mind (2018), My Turn (2019), Mr Right Now (2022), The Foundation (2023) and The Young OG (2026). He recorded Feel Me with Keith Sweat and has written for other blues and soul artists, including Lenny Williams. Daddy B. Nice wrote that he "sings it like an angel."

On stage he works the national Southern soul circuit: the Blues Is Alright Tour and the Motor City Blues Festival at Detroit's Fox Theatre, the Blues Is Alright show at the Tupelo arena (March 2026) and the Waterview Casino in Vicksburg (June 2026). Emerald Tiger's own intro video presents him as "one of the most recognizable voices in modern Southern soul."