Sy’Rai Smith is a daddy’s girl! The young adult took to Instagram on Sunday (Oct. 29) to give her father, Robert Anthony “Big Bert” Smith, well wishes on his birthday.
“Happy Birthday to the best Father anyone can ask for,” Sy’Rai exclaimed online. “I love you dada with all my heart,” the rising recording artist shared. “You are such a loving and caring man of God who brings so much light and love to the world. Thank you for teaching me so many values and being such a huge example for me. I love you.”
Sy’Rai is Big Bert’s daughter with award-winning singer Brandy. The young adult follows in her mother’s footsteps as a budding recording artist who released a single earlier this year.
“There is a lot of pressure because we have such big names on our backs,” Sy’Rai said when recently speaking to BET of her mother’s reputation as the vocal bible. “Everyone says I sing like her and I look like her which is something I love,” the young adult shared. “
“It’s hard for people not to compare us,” Smith admitted. “I wouldn’t want to be compared to anybody else but it can be difficult for people to differentiate us because I’ve always been known as Brandy’s daughter so to create a persona for myself and not be tied to her may be a bit difficult.”
Sy’Rai also has the influence of her father, who is a music producer, on her shoulders. “He was a bit more vulnerable than I am,” the young adult said of her dad’s approach to building a name for himself in show business. “His ability to go and perform on stage every night while being honest in his records – I’m not as much of an open book as he is,” the singer admitted.
“I’m comfortable on camera, like I’ve acted in movies and television – acting is where I can be someone else and I think, for him creating the Notorious B.I.G., was sort of his alter ego,” Sy’Rai said of her father. “I would say he was a Scorpio, and I’m a Gemini, I was raised in LA and he was raised in New York so that’s a difference in itself. I can say though, we are very similar.”
Sy’Rai’s single, ‘On My Own,’ was all the rave on YouTube earlier this year. Many compared the budding recording artist’s mannerisms in her music video to her mother’s persona. Sy’Rai plans to release her first EP in the coming months with help from her mom. Fans should be on the lookout for updates surrounding her forthcoming project.
Photo: Sy’Rai Smith/Instagram
