Kent Paul (born 24 August 1961) was an English music producer and talent manager who was well-known for spawning hit musicians such as the heavy metal band "Love Fist" and the acid house band "The Gurning Chimps". Paul was also known for his interactions with criminals during the 1980s and 1990s, being a friend and associate of Miami crime boss Tommy Vercetti and Los Angeles gangster Carl Johnson.
Biography[]
Early life[]
Kent Paul was born in 1961 in Kent, England, and he moved to Miami, Florida, United States in 1982 at the age of twenty one. According to police files, "Kent Paul" was likely to be an assumed name, and his Immigration and Naturalization Services papers were not in order. Paul was known for being a man who was good with gossip, as he met several influential people such as the lawyer Ken Rosenberg, the biker gang leader Mitch Baker, and the Scottish band "Love Fist". He was often in the company of "Love Fist", which eventually made him their manager.
1980s[]
Kent Paul in 1986
During the 1980s, the Miami Police Department began to collect files on Paul due to his ties to criminals, and he was reported as having contacts in some SWAT divisions, while also being a heavy drinker and a suspected cocaine addict. Paul was often found at bars such as the Malibu Club, where he was first encountered by the crime boss Tommy Vercetti, who was sent by Rosenberg to find out the person that crashed his drug deal, in 1986. Paul and Vercetti had a rough relationship, as Vercetti had little time for Paul's humor and often physically attacked him, but Paul would consistently be a source of information for Vercetti and his gang.
Gurning Chimps manager[]
During the late 1980s, he returned to England to look for a new band to bring to the United States for success, and he met "The Gurning Chimps", an acid house group. In 1992, Paul arranged for the group to head to Los Angeles to have them noticed, but the group became stranded in remote Bone County, where all the band members, except for lead singer Maccer, went missing. He was rescued by the Grove Street Families gangster Carl Johnson, and Paul became good friends with "CJ". Paul would be in his company when he was in Las Vegas and back in Los Angeles, and their business relationship would allow for CJ to meet other employers, such as Ken Rosenberg.