Description Joseph Lorenzo Jr. Welbon, known by the stage name Joe Smooth, is an American house music producer and DJ who gained international acclaim during the late 1980s and early 1990s. By the new millennium he held the reputation of working with acts like Destiny's Child, Ludacris, New Order, Whitney Houston, and many others across genres. He is often credited as essential to the creation of house music as a genre and became an influence to major groups like Daft Punk, who often remixed Smooth's music during early live shows. Smooth has earned gold and platinum record awards for his work. In 2015 he started his own record label, Indie Art Music, focusing on producing pop in all genres and all areas of the music industry.