Grant Maloy Smith is an Americana indie artist who lives in Rhode Island. I first met him as a member of the online indie Grammy®  community this past fall. I was impressed with how he seemed to know everyone. Online pictures of him kept popping up collaborating with other musicians I knew, like Jody Quine and Ricky Kej/Wouter Kellerman, performing live or playing on their songs in the studio. For a guy based on the East Coast, he sure seemed to show up at LA recording sessions a lot!

I finally met Grant in person in February of this year at The Soiree, a showcase of indie Grammy artists at the House of Blues in LA, where he and I played backup for one of our mutual friends, nominee Paul Avgerinos. Grant was just as much fun in person as he is online.

I’m always interested in artists who

1. Write and perform their own original music
2. Collaborate with other artists often and outside both their own genre and immediate geographical area
3. Have retained a sense of humor, and more importantly, a sense of purpose and vision for their music, in an industry that seems very opaque and anonymous
4. Have had careers in other fields, where they have acquired strong business and social skills which they apply to their music careers
5. Have over ten thousand Twitter followers

I think you’ll enjoy this interview with Grant, and learn some practical tips as well.

Q1: I saw some pictures a few months ago on your Facebook page of you at the Royal Albert Hall in England – did you perform there? What was the gig and how did that come about?

A friend of mine, Perry Margouleff, is an amazing producer from New York. In fact he will be producing my next album. He had recently produced an album of soul classics, i.e., the cool stuff from Otis Redding, Ann Peebles, etc… in the Royal Studios in Memphis, using the original Hi Rhythm Section who played on so many of those classics. He produced this for his friend Paul Rodgers to sing. Although he is better known as an English rocker (Bad Company, Free, The Firm, etc.), Paul grew up on that soul music from the USA, and his life long dream was to make a record singing them. The record came out really great, and Paul was booked at the Royal Albert Hall, as well as on the season finale Jools Holland show the next day. So I was along as an assistant to Perry. It was such fun and an honor to work with Paul and get to know him a little bit. He even shared his french fries with me one day when we overloaded a restaurant in London and they messed up all the food orders. It was a thrill to spend a day at the Albert Hall, and my dream is to be the headliner next time I go there!

Q2: Tell me about your recent SXSW performance. What was that like? How did that gig happen and what did you think of the experience?

I was invited by a promoter to perform at one of the showcases on 6th Street, right in the middle of the “madness” that is SXSW. I have to say that although it was only 10 days ago as I answer this question, it still seems like a dream to me – and a very good one. The crowd was great – the sound was great – and it was such a great vibe all around. I got to be friends with some of the other bands that I met in the green room, especially a group of rootsy rockers from my grandmother’s home state of Kentucky, called The Whiskey Riders. I was invited to come back in 2016 and play several showcases, so I guess it went well. Up on the stage it sure felt great, and it was really a thrill to be there.

Q3: I saw that you were scheduled to perform recently at Kulak’s Woodshed in LA. Tell me about that gig.

Kulak’s is a  very cool little place, which is dedicated to giving songwriters a safe haven. On Mondays they have a completely open mic, and you get all levels of ability and experience, from absolute beginners to Grammy winners, and a lot in between. On Tuesdays they offer a cool thing where for just a little money you can do two songs and they will give you an MP4 video file of your performance, which you can immediately drop on Youtube. They have a multi-camera setup and a broadcast quality video output, so it’s well worth it if you want some demos of your live act. I did both of those, and then they invited me to play a 2 hour show there — and again the whole thing would be video recorded.  I immediately thought two things:

1. I want to do it, but
2. Even my own mother doesn’t want to watch me sing for 2 hours

[Tweet “”Even my own mother doesn’t want to watch me sing for 2 hours””] So I got the idea of putting together a variety show, where I would be the headliner – but I would weave in and out some talented friends of mine from the LA area to perform as a guest artist. The idea worked really well, and I had great performances from the brilliant guitarist Ciro Hurtado, trumpeter and master showman David Longoria, incredible violinist Rocio Marron, Jazz singer Toni Jannotta, and the multi-talented Vito Gregoli both accompanied Toni on guitar and performed one number on the sitar. I was happy that Rocio, David, and Toni played on some of my songs, and on each others’! The feedback I got afterwards was that it was eclectic and never boring, so mission accomplished. I got the video files and am now editing my stuff down into individual songs. Also I will give each of the guest artists their own video clips, so that they can do whatever they want to with them. This was so much fun that I would love to do similar shows with other friends of mine around the USA. That would really be a blast, and something I am seriously contemplating now.

Q4: You seem to travel a lot for your music. Is that a recent thing or have you always traveled to perform?
It’s recent – not because I didn’t travel – but because I was doing only studio work for the last years. I jumped back into performing in 2015. It’s been so much fun, and also satisfying to get better the more I do it. My singing stamina was about 2 songs back in November when I started rehearsing, and now I can sing for 2 hours. It’s profoundly improved my guitar playing, too. It’s only natural because I practiced literally every day since nearly 5 months now.
Q5: What has your most exciting or fulfilling experience so far been performing for an audience? 

I did a show in Connecticut a few months ago, where some of the people knew my songs — and I could see them singing along with me. For a song writer, that is really the greatest thrill. I can only imagine what it would be like to perform in a huge venue and hear hundreds or even thousands of people singing along. If that ever happens to me I will probably faint from excitement. Or cry. Maybe both.
Q6: Will you be touring to support your upcoming album, Dust Bowl?
Yes for sure. I was going to release Dust Bowl in the Spring – like very soon. But I have recently changed my mind. I am going to completely redo the entire album. Not because it was bad, but because it was good. However, it needs to be great. It’s the best concept that I ever had for an album, and I don’t want to put it out unless it’s the best thing that I ever did, and not by a little.

Q7: You went to art school – tell me how that experience influenced your musical career.
I was always going to be an artist – probably because it was my most noticeable talent. I could always draw and paint. At the same time I could also play by ear on the piano, whatever music I heard or remembered. But at the end of high school I got bitten hard by the music bug. I saw a friend of mine playing an acoustic guitar and singing right in the outdoor courtyard at my high school. You have to understand that this was the nicest but also the SHYEST kid in the school. Scott could barely work up the nerve to even say “HI” to a girl — and yet there he was singing. My 17 year old male brain did not miss the fact that the shyest boy in the school was sitting there playing and singing — and he was surrounded by girls. Like 20 of them, all smiling sweetly at him. Well, that made an impression on me. A few weeks later I was at a yard sale and someone had an acoustic guitar for 15 dollars. I messed with it that Summer and took it to art school with me. In the next 2 years I spent every minute that I wasn’t doing my school work teaching myself to play the piano and guitar and to read music, and I started writing songs. At that point the musical virus had completely taken over my system, and I left one of the best art schools in the world to pursue music. Stupid? Maybe. But I have not regretted it very often. I get more joy performing my songs in front of people than I ever got from drawing or painting.

Q8: In addition to your musical career, you are also the president of Dewetron, a Rhode Island company which manufactures data acquisition instruments for the automotive and aerospace industries. Tell me about your “day job” and how it meshes with your music career.

Well, it allows me to travel quite a bit. So by day I am like Bruce Wayne except not rich or handsome — and by night I put on my cowboy hat and play music. It’s not a bad combination. But I sold Dewetron 8 years ago and agreed to stay on for 10 years and run it. So in 2017 I will be doing music 100% of the time.

Q9: I seems like you have successfully combined a more conventional career in business with your musical career. What tips would you offer other musicians like yourself for balancing a two-career lifestyle?

Be the boss. Otherwise, it will be a constant battle. Seriously, it would be difficult otherwise. But everyone has to find their own way, because every set of circumstances are different.

Q10: What are your goals for your musical career? Where do you see yourself in a few years, ideally?

I don’t want to be rich or famous or win shiny little statues. My first goal is to write great songs that are still around and listened to long after I am gone. My second goal is to perform and record them well enough that I make people happy, so that I can make enough money to keep doing music as long as I am physically able to do it. I love both studio recording, where you get this amazing chemistry with other musicians…. and I love performing because I get a completely different chemical buzz from the audience – large or small. Both experiences are addicting and wonderful.

Q11: Tell us about your home studio. What kind of equipment do you have?

I have a Pro Tools set up on a Mac Pro. For A/Ds I have both the RACK 003 and some Apogee stuff. But the real vibe comes from the mics and the preamps… so I have invested in good mics from AKG and Neumann – as well as some very warm analog preamps that give me that NEVE saturation. This is what works best with acoustic instruments like guitar, banjo, mandolin, fiddle, stand-up bass, and of course, the human voice.

Q12: You have several movie score credits in IMDB. Tell me about your experiences writing for film and how that differs from writing for your CDs. It’s way easier, because a movie informs you of what it needs… and you know what mission each piece of music has to fulfill. I really enjoyed doing movies, and I probably did 20 of them over the years. I even acted in some of them, which was also fun and a completely different experience. As the composer, I would sit in front of a monitor and spend weeks and even months scoring … so by the end I felt like I knew the actors personally. I saw their takes but also their off camera moments, and out takes, hundreds of times. So it was always odd to go to the premiere and walk up to the cast smiling — and they had no clue who I was. Therefore it was much more fun when I was in the movie or TV pilot or whatever, because then I wasn’t like a stalker at the premiere!

Q13: Who are the members of your dream band?

Wow. That’s a great question. But I have two or three people in mind for each position, and I don’t want to offend anyone that I know by not naming them, so I won’t. But suffice it to say that they are great musicians and great, generous and nice people… a perfect combination.

Q14: You mention your publicist, Al Gomes, on your Yellow Trailer album. I also note that the music video for Old Black Roller is very professional. Tell me about Al and the rest of your supporting team. Who are they, how did you find them, and what advice would you give other musicians for finding a good team of people to help them advance their careers?

I basically do my own publicity, however Al has been extremely helpful to me in two ways: first, back in 2011 he put my album onto the Grammy ballot. I was shocked about that because I had no idea that was even possible. A year later I started making friends among the “indies” at the Grammys, and a whole new world opened up for me. I have made so many great friends from within this community that it has literally changed my life. Second, I was talking to him a few years ago, and he told me that my songwriting was more country than pop, and that I should consider switching to American Roots. At first I resisted that idea, but then I came around. I grew up on a diet of Beatles pop and my Kentucky grandmother’s bluegrass. As a younger man the pop/rock was in my veins. But finally the roots has come to the forefront, and I am so glad about that. This music is more satisfying to me. It’s more honest and lets me write deeper songs.

As far as finding the right people, I believe that you make your own luck. I wouldn’t know Perry Margouleff, who is now a friend and mentor to me, if not for the G Party, and the fact that I took it upon myself to find the NARAS members who were near me and force them to have lunch with me! LOL. But seriously, those connections happened because I went outside my comfort zone and reached out to a lot of my fellow academy members. Also my film experience led to me know which film makers I wanted to work with when I made my music videos. Ten years ago I was co-starring in an indie movie – a comedy farce called EXTRA CREDIT…  I was playing a Steve Irwin-like Aussie. And the Director of Photography was Christian De Rezendes. We hit it off really well, and not long afterwards he invited me to write some music for one of his films. I quickly discovered that he was an award winning documentary film-maker, and I hired him to shoot the documentary about the making of the Dust Bowl record. He is now editing that documentary. So when I wanted to have a music video for Old Black Roller, I simply took some of the footage that he shot of me in the recording studio, and mixed it together with some footage and still photos of the actual dust bowl from the 1930s. So I actually made that video myself, because I had the raw ingredients, and 20 years of experience with film editing. It took me several days, however — next video I will get Christian to make!

Q15: You do a great job of getting your name and your music out there online with interviews with podcasters and internet radio stations. Do you have any thoughts on publicity for Americana songs in general? What, in your experience, works best?

Engagement. It’s a people business — so you need to connect with people in a way that shows that you really care about them. Also, although it is natural to use Twitter and Facebook to promote what you’re doing, you have to also be entertaining — otherwise you’re just a boring guy yelling LOOK AT ME all the time, and that’s no fun for anyone else. Engage and be entertaining. I like silly, funny things – so I like to post those things, too. I also advocate for musicians’ rights, and for the better treatment of women. What about those missing girls in Africa? We have a short attention span.

Q16: Do you have any plans to promote your music on terrestrial radio?

Yes, I am going to start that this Spring. It’s expensive — but necessary.

Q17: What do you think are most important marketing and publicity activities, online or offline, for an indie artist to put their time and money into to break through and be heard, and to gain a real following?

I would not propose that I am any kind of expert on this, because I just got back into the arena myself, and I am learning all the time. But so far I believe that making cross-connections is very important. For example, when people come to see me perform I try to give them an easy way to connect with me on-line, and to stay connected with me. Making that personal connection at a show is your chance to make a permanent impression on someone, because then they feel like they know you. When I came off the stage at SXSW I didn’t head back to the green room to celebrate with the other musicians… instead, I went through the entire crowd and gave everyone my card that has my picture and my social media links on it. I also had my Yellow Trailer CDs and I gave a bunch of them away, autographed for each person. I always have a stash of little plastic horses, too, which is kind of a symbol of mine, which people like. Make a real connection in person and then make it stick. Engage and be real. When people message me on twitter or facebook, I answer them. I don’t have anyone doing my social media for me — I do it all myself and try to make real connections with people.

[Tweet “I do it all myself and try to make real connections with people.”]

Q18: Tell me when you started getting into social media. You have a presence on a lot of social media platforms. How much time do you spend on social media on a daily basis? What do you see is the most important thing about social media for musicians?

I think I answered most of that in the previous question, but basically social media without a real emotional connection is a waste of time. That’s why you need to show your real emotions and what’s in your heart. That doesn’t mean to post about every little thing — that’s boring. “Just broke up. SOB.” or “Burned my toast again… I hate this toaster.” Be interesting. Remember that you are an entertainer — not a soap opera. About when I started getting into  social media, it was just about 4 years ago — when the private groups for NARAS members came into being. That is what unlocked a whole world of new musical friends and fans for me. As far as spending time on social media, it’s probably about 90 minutes a day — but that is comprised of 15 seconds here and 1 minute there. Normally the most time I spend in blocks is answering questions in private messages from fans and fellow musicians.

Q19: You have a lot of followers on Twitter. Tell me when you joined Twitter and how you gained so many followers. What tools or processes did you use to increase your following on Twitter and would you recommend to other musicians?

It comes from outreach at shows, and word of mouth. Everyone knows that you can buy twitter followers, but that isn’t real… I joined Twitter about four years ago, but I wasn’t really that active until last year. Unless you’re famous, people aren’t going to look for you on Twitter, so you have to follow people who are interesting to you, and a percentage of them will follow you back. I also strongly recommend to find the right hashtags that suit what you’re doing, and use them in every post. I used the word engagement a lot in these answers, but that’s especially true in twitter, which can be like trying to drink out of a firehose. I recommend to be funny but honest and nice… and stand for something. In my case I love horses, advocating for the rights of musicians, and for the better treatment of women around the world. Those are things that I really care about – and a few other important things, too. But one thing I will NEVER do is get into politics. I hate it when actors and singers do that — and it doesn’t matter whether they are left or right — I don’t think it’s cool to advocate for a politician or a political party. That’s not my job. I want to write great songs and make people happy, not split my audience down the middle with silly temporary politics. If I ever make jokes or statements about politics, it is with a multi-pronged skewer that pokes them all, regardless of party or political persuasion.

Q20: You only recently joined NARAS (Grammy’s, The Academy). What moved you to do so? What has been most significant about your membership and interaction with other NARAS members and the organization so far? 

As mentioned, Al Gomes submitted one of my albums in 2011, and that opened that whole world to me. The most significant thing has been the friendships that I have made with fellow musicians all over the USA and even the world. If the pure joy of knowing these people wasn’t enough, I have been lucky enough to play on some of their records, and they have played on mine. My Dust Bowl record will have guest appearances from vocalist Jody Quine (Vancouver), Grammy® winners Wouter Kellerman (South Africa and Australia) and Ricky Kej (India), the amazing finger-style guitarist Peter Janson (Boston), and more. How lucky could I be to work with people like this? And we have a great time when we see each other. Two years ago this was unheard of — but now whenever any of us are anywhere, like at SXSW last week — we make it a point to meet up and share a coffee or a meal, and we support each other. At SXSW I had breakfast with fellow NARAS members Dale Edward (Oakland), Jimmie J-Metro (Houston), and Katie Garibaldi (San Francisco). Hours later Jimmie and Dale both showed up to watch me play (Katie was playing across town at the same time). That’s love.

Q21: You have written and performed a lot of different types of music over the years. Do you have recordings in genres other than your more recent venture into Americana with Yellow Trailer? I only did pop/rock music until I switched to American Roots at the end of 2012.

Q22: Thanks so much for being a good sport and answering all these questions, Grant! Where can my readers find your music and interact with you online?

Before I give you the whole list, I wanted to say thank YOU for writing about me – you are a talented musician and I am honored that you would do that. As you know I follow you on Twitter and I have liked and retweeted you many times. I enjoy what you do, too! And thanks to everyone who took a few moments to read this. I hope you will connect with me! Send me a message or an email using the links below. I just started a special signup for fans on my website where they can register now to get an autographed copy of Dust Bowl when it comes out. And they will also get a signed photo right away just for signing up. You can sign up for that and other freebies and other special things at this link:

http://www.grant-maloy-smith.com/Contact/index.php

 

And now here are the other links:

Official website: www.grant-maloy-smith.com Twitter: https://twitter.com/grantmaloysmith Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/americanrootsgrant Facebook: www.facebook.com/americanrootsgrant Google+: https://plus.google.com/+Grant-maloy-smith/about Reverbnation: www.reverbnation.com/grantmaloysmith Instagram: http://instagram.com/grantmaloysmith LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/grantmaloysmith SingerUniverse: http://bit.ly/19tX2gb Tumblr: http://grantmaloysmith.tumblr.com CD Baby: www.cdbaby.com/Artist/GrantMaloySmith iTunes: http://bit.ly/1AjbRej IMDB: www.imdb.com/name/nm0808358/ Amazon: http://amzn.to/1BjNlgf About me: http://about.me/grantmaloysmith