Corey Smith (musician)
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Corey Smith is an acoustic musician from Athens, Georgia. He is part of the Athens Rock scene and has become a success in many parts of Georgia, South Carolina and Alabama.
[edit] About
Corey Smith graduated from the University of Georgia in 2001 and took a break from performing after getting married. He taught high school classes until 2003, when he returned to writing and performing music again. He released Undertones in 2003, which brought him into the spotlight as an emerging musician. In 2004, he released his second album, In The Mood. This served to further popularize his music and expand it to a greater area. In 2005, he released his third album, The Good Life working with Jason Kenney. In 2006, Smith began touring and began selling out a number of shows throughout the southeast, regularly performing at a number of venues.
[edit] Personal Life
Corey Smith grew up in the small town of Jefferson, Georgia. He attended the University of Georgia--going to voice and guitar lessons in the day, and at night he spent his time playing gigs. Smith played at coffee houses, restaurants, and local bars to earn some money. He began to produce, “a reputation as an up-and-coming original artist…” by playing popular songs, and some of his own as well. Once Smith graduated from UGA he married his girlfriend from college, Shannon. He used his spare time to study music, but he took a break from performing professionally, to teach high school Social Studies at Suwannee, GA. Smith wrote songs “as a way to cope with the pressure of settling down and transitioning from the college life.” Certain songs such as “What Happened,” “In Love with a Memory,” and “Twenty-One,” were created while Smith adjusted to this new way of life. In 2003 he found himself returning to the music business, making his genuine music. “He won a songwriting competition that allowed him to record his first album, Undertones.” This competition was held in Cheetah Marie’s Café in Monroe, Georgia. Smith’s audience for this first album sold mainly to friends and family, although his songwriting capabilities showed and were greatly anticipated. His live energetic performances caught the attention of many students looking to have a good time. Smith created a new album, “In the Mood,” in 2004. “The songs contain the sincerity and attention-to-detail which characterize all of Smith's work.” It is clear by his testimonial lyrics, that Smith is trying to “make it big”, in his own way. 2005 opened many new doors, and was a year of growing for Smith. The birth of Aden Ryan, Smith’s first son, “provided a powerful new source of motivation and inspiration.” That fall he started working strongly with Jason Kenney, which resulted in a new tour to promote “The Good Life,” Smith’s latest album. In early 2006 Smith “was back on the road as a full time musician.” With a sold out show at the Georgia Theatre under his belt, Smith’s standing as a "party-in-a-song phenom" is spreading quickly. This rapid growth is greatly owed to an amazing Internet presence. Smith has a MySpace account which consists of 22,000 “friends”, and he has accumulated “over 800,000 MySpace plays.” With over 20 concerts sold out in the Southeast--most selling out before hand, and others selling out at the door, Smith has made quite a name for himself.
<http://www.coreysmith.org/about.cfm>
