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She helped cultivate the Nu-Soul sound for over a decade and defied categorization with her compelling live performances. This is a must-see show.
On March 27 Toledo School of the Arts (TSA) welcomes Sy Smith, an R&B/Nu-Soul artist who has worked with, Whitney Huston, Macy Gray, Shelia E, Chaka Khan and Usher just to name a few. Kim Buehler, who works with the school as an Annual Giving Manager, helped bring Smith’s Master Class tour to Black Box at TSA after hearing the singer in concert.
Toledo School of the Arts
Buehler (a singer herself) first heard Smith during Covid. While watching a virtual fundraiser, she saw Smith sing On My Own with Michael McDonald. Buehler said, “Who is this female singer? Luckily, we were able to reach out and ask if she would work with our kids at TSA because at the time everything was virtual. She did eight weeks of weekly classes with our kids on everything from songwriting to what it’s like to be in the business, her background, and how she got started. She was a real joy to work with.” After Covid Buehler went to see her play in Indianapolis and was floored by her live performance, something she says just can’t be experienced seeing Smith in a video or a recording. She wanted to get Smith to perform at Black Box but was worried the venue would be too small. It was Smith who was equally enthused about performing at the school and getting to see both students and school in person.
Meet Sy Smith
Based in Los Angeles, Smith is a singer, songwriter, and producer who’s helped cultivate the underground nu-soul sound and artists over the last decade. She’s released five studio albums and is known for her incredible range ability to move seamlessly between musical styles. Recently she’s toured with jazz trumpeter Chis Botti. When asked about her work with aspiring singers and musicians, she said, “I started working with kids during the pandemic because that’s when life forced me slow down a little and I got opportunities to work with kids, which I’m really grateful for. One of the wonderful things about sharing what you know is that you also learn a lot. I don’t get to do it as much as I would like to because I’m on the road so much. When I get the opportunity to do a master class it’s a gift for me because kids are so profound — they ask great questions and make you think about things you haven’t thought about since you were a kid.” When asked about how she interacts with students Smith says, “I like to do a couple of songs that are different in style so they can hear a range of material and then discuss a few points. For example, how I choose to curate a show, performance technique, and then take questions. I might think some things are important to cover but they might be thinking about something completely different that I haven’t covered or didn’t occur to me.”
An Artist Who Defies Categorization
Nu-Soul is a term that blossomed in the late 1990’s with artists like Maxwell, Macy Gray, Erykah Badu, and Lauryn Hill. It might be best described as a throwback to 70s soul —sophisticated, with elements of jazz and R&B. When asked where Smith sees the evolution of a genre she’s been so closely associated with she says, “That was used as a marketing term to help record labels categorize and budget artists. I was put into that bracket because when I came out I didn’t fit into the Ashanti’s of the world, and that’s fine. People like to have familiarity, which a category gives you, but as artists, a lot of us don’t want to be boxed in, so there’s a tug of war between artist and consumer. I’m just about making art and whatever the listener wants to call it is ok with me. I know that along the continuum of black music I kind of ride the whole line and each album that I do is going to be a little different from the one before and the one after. I like trying to see where I can go sonically, ancestrally, whatever the spirits are telling me to say. I don’t want to get bogged down in categorization; I want to get bogged down in art.
Sy Smith will be playing at Toledo School of the Arts Black Box on March 27. https://app.arts-people.com/index.php?ticketing=tsart
