For those who have never heard his work, Smith characterized his musical style as “country music that’s evolved.”
However, he said, his sound is always changing. In his four most recent albums he’s produced, Smith said he has slowly started to approach the exact type of music he imagines when he writes. He said he wanted to create music that combines the crisp sound created within a studio with the energy that can only be achieved live on stage.
“It’s kind of an ongoing challenge,” he said. “The best we can do is meet in the middle.”
Smith said his goal is that there will be someone that leaves one of his shows and says, “Wow, that sounded just like I wanted it to, but better.”
Earl Dibbles Jr., Smith’s “alter ego,” will also perform Thursday night.
Dibbles Jr. first came about as a way for Smith to get closer to his fans. He posted a video of himself acting as the comedic “ultra-country boy,” on YouTube, and it went viral. Smith described the Earl Dibbles Jr. videos as snapshots of “Earl moments” or “Earl antics.”
“We have a blast,” he said. “It’s a fun alternative to what we do.”
Smith said social media was the key to his success. His YouTube channel has about 25 million unique views and he has more than 2.6 million social media ?followers.
“Social media is a big platform we stand on,” he said. “We’ve been on YouTube for 10 years.”
While he and his group were figuring out how to construct their Internet presence, Smith said he was initially influenced by early Lonely Planet videos.
He wanted viewers to look at his work in the same way they did the ex-Saturday Night Live group. Smith said he wanted people to stumble upon his work and think, “Who is this guy,” and “Hey, I like his work.”
“That’s the chain of events that we wanted to happen,” Smith said.
For new musicians to the world of country music, he recommended a similar path.
“Start with your home town,” he said. Learn the audience and then grow big.
Smith warned people against touring at the start.
“Performing at the same bars won’t cut it,” he said. Instead, take advantage of social media. Grow an internet presence, he said.
The concert is 21 and up.
