Luciano (born Jepther McClymont on October 20, 1964) is a Jamaican Roots Reggae artist. He first began recording in 1992 under his first name Luciana, with his debut single “Ebony & Ivory” on the Aquarius Record label, followed by his debut album ‘Moving Up’ for RAS records in 1993. Luciano is the seventh of nine children and was born to extremely spiritual and musical parents while growing up in Daveyton, a small district in the central parish of Manchester, Jamaica.
His first releases as Luciano included the hit single “Give My Love a Try”, produced at Castro Brown’s New Name Studio, followed by others produced by Brown, Freddie McGregor, Blacka Dread, and Sly and Robbie, including the 1993 no. 1 UK reggae hit “Shake It Up Tonight”.
He started working with Philip “Fatis” Burrell, releasing the singles “Chant Out” and “Poor and Simple”, with the album Moving Up following in late 1993. In 1994, he cut singles for Musclehead and Louie Culture before returning to work with Burrell for a series of successful singles and the album One Way Ticket, which saw Luciano at the forefront of the “Rasta Renaissance” in dancehall music. The renewal of Rastafarian influence in dancehall music in the early 1990s began with artists such as Tony Rebel and Garnett Silk. After Silk’s death in late 1994, many looked to Luciano to continue consciousness in reggae music. Of Garnett Silk, he stated, “Garnett was more like a brother, a father, a tutor, a forerunner. When he moved on I knew the work for me had become harder still.”
The following year brought the smash hit album Where There Is Life to Chris Blackwell‘s label Island Jamaica. It contained such hits as “It’s Me Again Jah” (a no. 1 single in Jamaica), “Who Could It Be”, as well as the title track. He recorded a second album for Island Jamaica in 1996 entitled Messenger (largely compiled from his hit singles), whose title track earned him his enduring nickname.
By 2001, Luciano had released two live albums as well as two compilation albums alongside Sizzla and Anthony B after the split with Xterminator. That year saw the release of two new albums of material, Great Controversy on Jet Star and A New Day on VP Records. The latter received a nomination for Best Reggae Album at the 2002 Grammy Awards and was executive produced by longtime saxophonist and touring partner Dean Fraser. The album received additional production from Sly & Robbie and was backed by Fraser and the Firehouse Crew.
He was awarded the Order of Distinction in the rank of Officer on 15 October 2007, in recognition of his contribution to reggae music.
In July 2009, Luciano paid his respects to fellow musician Michael Jackson by releasing a reggae tribute (on Lioni Records) of Jackson’s iconic USA for Africa charity song, “We are the World“.
Luciano’s album Zion Awake was nominated for Best Reggae Album at the 58th Annual Grammy Awards.
In 2023, Rolling Stone ranked Luciano at number 143 on its list of the 200 Greatest Singers of All Time.