Today we’d like to introduce you to Kirk Smith.
Kirk, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
I’ve always been into music even as a young child watching my grandfather play piano. I took a few years of piano lessons as a kid and sang in the school choir all through collage. I kind of went into “sports kid” mode during most of high school and didn’t get the music bug again until college.
I went to U of M to study Religion and Society, and that was cool but music was always my main passion. I would make beats and play piano whenever I had free time.
I eventually found out about a College in town called Visible Music College. I really dove into production during this time. I would make beats for people and even started producing for local bands. From there I toured with a couple of bands and helped start a record label. I was really just learning as I went but I started to understand how the “music industry” worked. At least I understood how the money flowed. I helped TONs of artists develop their sounds and make recordings they were proud of. I loved helping young artists navigate the studio for the first time. It was like they could see behind the curtain and get a vision for what was possible.
Streaming was becoming the main way people listened to music and I was mostly working as a producer for other artists. I loved helping an artist bring their songs to life but I realized that I was like just helping other people build their catalog but not building anything of my own.
So I started to write in the early mornings just as a creative outlet and eventually I had an album’s worth of material so I started putting it out under the name “We Dream of Eden” I think this was around 2018.
The music is uplifting and ambient by nature, I used to lead worship in churches and I would always love the times when we didn’t really want to move on to another song so we would just wait and enjoy the moment, I kind of just dreamed about making a musical project that had that same feeling.
I didn’t even know ambient music was such a big deal at the time but things started to grow and I met other artists and labels and made lots of fun music with people from all over the world. The internet is an amazing thing! Fast forward to today and I have over 2 million monthly listeners across all streaming platforms and I even created a class where I teach people to create and promote their music. www.studio.com/kirksmith
I also write lo-fi beats under the name smplsmth.
I am very grateful and honored to be able to do what I do.
I think being in the choir was really a big factor in learning how to listen and how to harmonize. Even now when I write, I am typically singing the parts either in my head or even out loud. I think if someone can connect their voice to their instrument the music will flow more naturally.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Its never been a smooth road. There have been seasons of momentum and seasons of waiting. I have had so many opportunities that I thought would be my “big break”, my ship coming in, only to realize that it wasn’t going to happen like I had hoped.
I think the main struggle we face as artists is to believe in ourselves, if we don’t believe, we wont do the work with any kind of consistanency.
I think I was waiting on someone to do it for me. I had to realize that I had to show up, trust God, and be faithful to whatever He gave me. It was not going to be my strength or my hustle made things grow, it was going to be God’s Spirit, but I still had to show up everyday and tend to my little musical garden.
There are always setbacks that we can not control, but we can control how we respond to those setbacks.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I’m proud to have made and released so much music. I used to overthink everything and never finish anything. I still struggle at times but I feel like I am in a pretty prolific place right now and its exciting. I have a wife and three young boys so time is limited, but still I feel so much more freedom to create and release music then ever before. Its a massive answer to prayer.
I love the idea that their are millions of people around the world who are enjoying a moment of peace because of something I wrote in my little home studio.
So maybe we end on discussing what matters most to you and why?
Connecting to family. They are the ones who’ll stick around. Being authentic. Life is too short to pretend.
Staying Healthy. I lost my father pretty early and I want my boys to have a Dad who is around and can climb mountains with them.
Growing personally. If you’re not growing you’re dying.
Pricing:
- Ambient Music course $189 on sale for $99
- Other courses at www.gomakemusic.org
Contact Info:
- Website: www.studio.com/kirksmith
- Other: kirk@gomakemusic.org
