Today we’d like to introduce you to “Mama Jan” Smith.
Hi “Mama Jan”, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
I never really thought much about the fact that I was “first starting out” … music was just something I did naturally from before I could talk until now. While things were certainly different then and not every 15-year-old kid was a singer-songwriter, it had always been my “normal,” so recording was just the next natural thing to do in that progression of being an artist. I will say this, being musically gifted as a kid presented its own challenges, especially during adolescence when teenagers are trying to belong. I didn’t fit in very well because I was pretty different. Fast forward to today, I am sought after because I’m different, so God always brings things around full circle. You gotta love that! Never really planned on being “Mama Jan – vocal coach of the stars” so I’d have to say by chance, though I really believe it was a “God thing,” I was approached by a guy who ran a rock-n-roll guitar school to help one of his students who was really struggling vocally. I agreed to help, and well, thirty-plus years later, I find myself operating a state-of-the-art vocal coaching, production, and artist development facility with credits that include some of the top charting artists in the music business today. And all the while, I was just pursuing my own climb up the ladder as an artist. There you go.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
There’s always a struggle when you’re building a business and most especially when you ARE the business. My formal education is in the Behavioral Sciences/Psychology, which helps me a whole lot in dealing with people, but not so much in business administration, advertising, and being responsible for driving income sources for a full staff. Doing the actual work with clients in production, recording, coaching, touring, and performance — that’s the easy part!! Running a nationally renowned business and keeping it that way is the hard part for sure!!
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I’m grateful to have a track record that speaks to having delivered bankable results over a period of years and with highly visible clients. I don’t think what I do is rocket science, but if it wasn’t working for folks I wouldn’t be in business. I guess how the world at large knows us is by the vocal work we do – everything from coaching, tour prep, recording and production, performance coaching, rehab for damaged voices, and basic artist development. Everything we do at Jan Smith Studios is individually tailored to each client, so I think that’s the main thing that keeps us “specialized.” While there are many things that might be universal for all vocalists, such as breathing work, warm-ups, cool-downs, etc., people are all different and certainly artists are as varied as the day is long. And so, we pride ourselves on meeting people where they are and helping them to achieve excellence in their vocal pursuits. The thing that probably sets us apart is the lineage of major artists, actors, and celebrities we’ve had the history of working with and the honor of their continued relationships.
How do you define success?
Success to me is two things… helping other people to be better in their own pursuits, and doing what I love for a living. I get paid for being who I am and in that process, I get to help other people be excellent. I think that’s pretty well the definition of success.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.jansmith.com
- Instagram: @mamajanmusic
- Facebook: @mamajan
- Twitter: @mamajanmusic
- Youtube: @mamajanmusic
Image Credits
Mil Cannon/ImageMil Creative
