Jovan Smith (born January 25, 1983), better known by his stage name J. Stalin (also stylized as J Stalin or J-Stalin), is a rapper from the Cypress Village housing projects in West Oakland.[dead link] In 2007, he signed to Zoo Entertainment Production Company run by artist Mekanix, who described his style as a variant of Hyphy known as "Go".He is also the Owner of Livewire Records, President of Town Thizzness ENT, which is a sub-division of the late Mac Dre's Thizz ENT.