Beckford was born in Rochester, New York on December 19, 1970 to Chinese-Jamaican mother, Hillary Dixon Hall and Afro-Jamaican father of Panamanian descent, Lloyd Beckford. Soon after he was born, his mother took the family back to Jamaica, where they lived for seven years before returning to New York, finally settling in The Bronx. During his school years, Tyson was often teased about his looks.\n', '

\n', 'In 1992, he was recruited to hip hop magazine The Source by a talent scout, Jeff Jones, who has been credited with \'discovering\' Beckford in New York City.[citation needed] In 1993, Beckford was recruited by Ralph Lauren as the front model for the company\'s Polo line of male sportswear.

Beckford was named "Man of the Year" in 1995 by the cable television music channel VH1 and one of the "50 Most Beautiful People in the World" by People magazine. He is represented by Soul Artist Management in New York City and D\'management Group in Milan. He was ranked at #38 on VH1\'s 40 Hottest Hotties of the \'90s.\n', '

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