Life & Work with Tanner Smith of Hollywood

Today we’d like to introduce you to Tanner Smith.

Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
My journey into music as an artist started from that of someone who is obsessed with and who listens to a whole bunch of music. I am the musical equivalent of the “Movie Snob.” I was the guy sitting in class with skull candy headphones in and come to think of it I never really stopped listening to music through high school very much at all. I would spend all day listening to it and then when I was at home, I was discovering new music for the next day. I would say from the age of 7 I knew I wanted to be a musician. It felt larger than life to me. The very first time I heard Linking Park with my dad was what really grabbed my attention. Fast forward to today, I am so glad I decided to journey into music as an artist and not just as a listener because it has taught me more about myself and how to not only live creatively but to see opportunity in everything regardless of if I even like what I am making or not. I think that was a very valuable lesson for me to learn. How to live a creative life!

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Absolutely not. LOL. Financial difficulties, time management, and keeping my social life intact are just a few things. I’d go on to say that almost every artist will relate to this at some point in their career. Learning how to take breaks and do other things that aren’t music have helped quite a bit. Even just giving my ears a break have been amazing for gaining perspective on a specific track. By being a human first and not putting so much pressure on myself as a “producer” I have changed the way I look at music and myself. I’ve learned how to love myself through creative living because throughout my childhood, I didn’t have a very positive/healthy outlook on the world or myself. My obsession with music can be a bit unhealthy at times. I’d go on to say that life as an artist isn’t just dealing with creative blocks but also mental ones. The thought of “Is this really what I am supposed to do” or “maybe I should give up and do something else” or “I suck, this song is horrible” have entered my head for sure. But that’s the problem with it I’d say. Being more concerned with making it into a career that I’d often forget how to just enjoy it and create it just for me. And not taking things to personally too of course. Creating for yourself first helps you connect with other people who listen to your music later anyways! It’s actually through the struggles that I am learning more about myself and becoming more solidified as a person and an artist.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I am a producer if I had to label what I do. My ability to formulate ideas and make sections of a track cohesively blend into each other is something I find I spend a lot of time on and it’s also my favorite part of a song. The core idea must be something I am obsessed with. I always joke to my friends that I’m a “vibe conductor” because I have developed an ability to listen and hear where I think a specific idea should go. That can obviously be subjective too since you can take an idea and completely change the key or the time signature and make it super interesting. There truly are no rules so what you’re left with is creative “taste” as I call it. Just being confident in my decision making when it comes to creating. I’d say what sets me apart is my popular sound blended in with techno and EDM style sounds. It’s less “aggressive” and more about the vibes and the harmonies. I have been really into Deep house, RnB and more progressive style music lately and I’d say I am proud of my ability to pretty much make whatever I am feeling regardless of even genre.

We all have a different way of looking at and defining success. How do you define success?
Success to me is having mindfulness and finding true understanding within yourself.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kingdomsix/
• Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/kingdom-six

Image Credits
https://www.instagram.com/cloaking__?igsh=MTZuNWpvZWF1ZTIzYw==

https://www.instagram.com/coleworldla?igsh=c3FnZjMzZnd0bzM0

Cloaking__ and coleworldla should be credited for the first photo. Sorry I didn’t add this before.