I was one half of nineties band Kriss Kross – I‘ve swapped music for art after death of bandmate

AMERICAN hip-hop duo Kriss Kross became successful at a young age with their gold and platinum albums at just 12 and 13.

Their debut single Jump spent an impressive eight weeks at the top of the Billboard Hot 100 and their debut album Totally Krossed Out reached the top spot on the US Billboard 200.

They also had albums including Young, Rich & Dangerous and Da Bomb.

But their time in the spotlight was short-lived, with subsequent releases failing to match the hip-hop stars’ early triumphs.

Second album Da Bomb (1993) and third and final collection Young, Rich & Dangerous (1996) didn’t even chart in the UK – and sold far fewer copies than their debut in the States.

Kriss Kross consisted of Chris ‘Mac Daddy’ Kelly and Chris ‘Daddy Mac’ Smith, but sadly in 2013 Chris Kelly died.

Kris Kross played their final gig at the Fox Theatre in their Atlanta, Georgia, hometown in 2013.

And tragedy struck later that year on May 1 when Kelly, aged 34, was found unconscious in his Atlanta home following an overdose of cocaine and heroin.

The star – who’d had “an extensive history of drug abuse” – was pronounced dead at 5pm.

Reflecting on his music partner and friend’s death, Smith revealed in 2014: “It’s like very hour I’m thinking about Chris and I know that he would want me to continue doing what we love and what he loved.”

He continued: "Ever since that day my life has never been the same. The world is different for me. You start looking at things really differently.

“You kind of put everything in perspective. You just hold onto the memories, though; that’s what kind of keeps me going in the studio.”

Since the death of his bandmate, Chris Smith has made a move into visual art instead.

He runs an art and lifestyle brand in Atlanta named Urbane Muse and on his company’s website he displays his original art, short films, and journal.

Chris also has a retail line that offers women's and men's clothing, footwear, accessories, and curated art prints.

The social media page for the brand has garnered over 45,000 followers and Chris regularly posts photos of his impressive artwork.