Xochitl Jacques-Smith: Big Bert’s Wife, Career, Family, and Life in Ocala
Xochitl Jacques-Smith is an Ocala business and arts leader who is also known as the wife of music producer Robert “Big Bert” Smith. Her work has touched music, brand work, publishing, and the local arts scene. She and Big Bert also have a large blended family. The couple have five children together, and his daughter Sy’rai Smith is part of the wider family.
Her public story starts well before NOMA Records. In 2013, Ocala Magazine named Xochitl Jacques-Smith to its “40 Under 40” group. She was 36 at the time. The magazine listed her as president of Studio Rock-It and founder of Ocala Princess, a children’s event business.
Building a Creative Life in Ocala
Ocala Princess was built around themed events for young girls. The aim was simple: give children a fun day built around dress-up, play, and special care. The project showed an early mix of business sense and creative work.
The same profile also explained how she came to Ocala. Her husband had a home there before they married. The couple often drove up from Miami for weekends. She said the city felt peaceful, and she later made it home.
Xochitl Jacques-Smith is married to Robert Anthony Smith, better known as Big Bert. He is a producer, writer, and musician. Ocala Style has linked his work to major artists such as Michael Jackson, Beyoncé, the Spice Girls, Jennifer Lopez, and Toni Braxton.
From Studio Work to NOMA Records
Their careers later came together in a new way. In 2020, Big Bert helped launch NOMA Records in Ocala. By 2021, Ocala Style named Xochitl Jacques-Smith as the label’s chief marketing officer. The magazine said she brought skill in brand work, media ties, and public outreach.
That role gave her a clear job in the company. Big Bert brought years of studio and song work. She helped shape how the label, its artists, and its ideas were shown to the public.
NOMA Records was built with David and Lisa Midgett. The group wanted to help new artists and writers grow their work. They also wanted to use new tech and new ways to reach fans.
Ocala Style reported that the team secured a Dolby Atmos link for the studio. The setup let the label work with a more immersive form of sound. It also gave the small Ocala company a link to a wider change in the music world.
For Xochitl, the work was not only about ads or press. Brand work in music can shape an artist’s look, message, and public voice. It can also help a song or project find the right group of fans.
A Wider Role in Publishing and the Arts
By 2023, her title had changed again. Ocala Style called Xochitl Jacques-Smith the chief operating officer of NOMA Publishing. The same story also named her as a former gallery director at The Brick, a well-known arts center in Ocala.
That report came in a feature on artist David D’Alessandris. She praised his work and his value to the local arts scene. Her words showed a close link to visual art as well as music.
This gives her career a wider shape. She has worked in small business, music, brand work, publishing, and local art. Those jobs are linked by one theme: helping creative work reach people.
Marriage, Children, and a Blended Family
Family is another big part of the public interest around Xochitl Jacques-Smith. Big Bert had a past relationship with singer Brandy Norwood. They share a daughter, Sy’rai Iman Smith, who was born in 2002.
People reports that Sy’rai has five half-siblings from her father’s later marriage. The magazine also notes that Big Bert is married to Xochitl. That makes the Smith home part of a blended family.
Sy’rai has built her own path in music. She has put out solo work and has sung with her mother. People has also written about the strong bond she has with both parents and the wider family around her.
Xochitl Jacques-Smith is Sy’rai’s stepmother, but the public record does not support turning that tie into drama. The clearest fact is that Big Bert and Xochitl have five children together, while Sy’rai remains part of the wider family.
The family link also shows how two parts of Big Bert’s life meet. One part is his past with Brandy and their daughter. The other is his later marriage, children, and work in Ocala.
More Than a Music Industry Spouse
Xochitl has had a long tie to Ocala beyond NOMA. Her 2013 profile already placed her in local business. Later stories linked her to the arts, music, and local projects.
In 2022, Ocala Style quoted her in a story on wellness travel. The detail was small, but it showed that she was known as an Ocala resident in her own right.
A year later, the magazine named her as NOMA Publishing’s COO and a former gallery director. That gives a clear public path over more than ten years.
The 2013 profile also gave a small look at her goals at that time. She spoke about a future PhD in psychology and the hope of writing a book. Those were goals, not finished claims, so they should be read as plans she had then. The same profile also described faith as important in her life.
Her path later stayed close to creative work. Moving from a children’s event company to a music label may look like a big change, but both roles depend on ideas, planning, and how an experience is presented. Her later work at The Brick adds the same kind of link to local art.
The move from chief marketing officer to chief operating officer also points to broader duties over time. A COO role deals with how a company runs from day to day. In a small creative firm, that can bring business plans, people, projects, and public work into the same job.
Her work in Ocala also connects with a wider effort to grow the city’s arts scene. NOMA’s local partners spoke about creating more chances for writers and artists. Xochitl’s jobs placed her inside that local push rather than only beside her husband’s career.
Age and Other Personal Details
Her age is also a common search. The best dated local source says she was 36 in July 2013. Her exact birthday is not widely confirmed by a strong public source, so a current age should not be stated as certain.
The same care applies to claims about school, net worth, and the exact date of her wedding. Many short bio sites give exact answers, but those details are not all backed by strong sources.
What is clear is more useful. By 2013, she had started Ocala Princess and led Studio Rock-It. By 2021, she was chief marketing officer at NOMA Records. By 2023, she was chief operating officer at NOMA Publishing and had also served as gallery director at The Brick.
A Career Built Around Creative Work
That work gives Xochitl Jacques-Smith an identity apart from her husband. She is not only linked to a music producer. She has her own record in business, arts, and music support.
Her marriage to Big Bert also became a work partnership. At NOMA, his main strength came from music and studio work. Her role focused on the brand, the business, and how projects met the public.
That split made sense for the label. A song still needs a plan after it is made. Artists need a clear story, good press, and a way to reach fans. Her work sat on that side of the business.
Ocala also became more than a place to live. The city gave the couple a base for family life and new work. It also gave them a local arts scene where music, small business, and culture could meet.
A Life With Its Own Public Record
Xochitl Jacques-Smith is still often searched because she is Big Bert’s wife. Yet the best local sources show a much fuller life. She has led her own projects, held senior roles in music and publishing, and worked in the arts in Central Florida.
That record is stronger than the thin details often repeated on celebrity pages. Her known story is about work, family, and a long link to Ocala.