Doc Brown

Doc Brown

Doc Brown is the stagename of Ben Bailey Smith, a UK rapper born in 1977. He is from Kilburn, in North-West London, and is also known as a comedian, actor, screenwriter and voiceover artist.

Background and style

His music draws on his mixed family background: his mother is from Jamaica and his father is English. He is described as combining a deep, emotional voice with precise language. His songs are usually political and patriotic, and they also use humour.

Rap career

He begins as an underground rapper and works with artists including De La Soul and Mark Ronson. He later steps away from rap in 2008 after working as a slang consultant on the BBC Radio 4 sitcom Rudy's Rare Records.

Comedy and screen work

Encouraged by BBC producers and writers, he performs his first stand-up gig in February 2008. Later that year he reaches the final of the Edinburgh Festival's annual So You Think You’re Funny? competition. From October 2008 he works professionally as a stand-up comedian, becoming a headline act. He also writes comedy, with credits on BBC Radio 4's The Now Show, and acts in CBBC's Big Babies, Channel 4's The Inbetweeners and Ben Miller's film Huge.