Born Cleve Laing in Spanish Town, he began by singing after his idol Dennis Brown, but by 1983 was dee-jaying on local sound-system Django, then City Light Discotheque, Lightning Super Mix, and finally Stereo One, where his reputation was eventually to flourish. His style wasn't the only thing to change in the early days. His first stage name was Ranking Citrus due to a love of fruit, and later became Ranking Noseworthy after a popular Jamaican radio programme! His principal influences were Brigadier Jerry and Ranking Joe at that point, although by the time he won the Dee-Jay Championship of St Catherine in 1983 his lyrical originality and rapid-fire delivery was already firmly in place.