Music Beat Q&A
Beat Q&A: Cam Smith reflects on his musical journey and experience performing in Athens
Avery Freeman
Feb. 9, 2024
Cam Smith, a second-year accounting major, talks about his upbringing around music and the journey of performing at venues in Athens, Georgia on Feb. 6. (Photograph/Avery Freeman)
Cam Smith, a student at the University of Georgia from Macon, Georgia, brings country music to Athens with his self-written songs and acoustic guitar.
Q: Can you describe a little bit of how you started making music or how you got into what you do?
A: From a really young age, I’ve been involved in church, like worship team. Choir, that was really the first time I sang in front of somebody. And I think I picked up a guitar, maybe in seventh grade. Around that time. Started playing, didn't really take it seriously, so I didn't really pick it up fast. Took me a while to actually start to progress. I think maybe around freshman year was when I really started to take it seriously and start playing. And then, I’ve always loved singing, so I started writing songs.
Q: How do you start writing a song?
A: I think the first song I ever wrote was kind of all together. Played the guitar. Wrote the words all at the same time. That's how I've written a lot of my songs. I’ll get a melody in my head. I’ll record the memo, like a voice memo on my phone of me humming a melody. Or I'll have a line that pops up, or I'll have, just in conversation, someone will say something I'd be like, that'd be a great title for a song. Or that'd be an awesome thing to write a song about. And so there’s a lot of different ways that I go about it.
Q: How is the process of opening shows or booking [shows]?
A: That’s still something I’m trying to get a hang of. It's definitely hard in Athens because there are so many people who play music. Country music is not really as appreciated here, I don’t think. I’m starting to learn, which is hard. There's not as many bars that just want a guy playing with an acoustic guitar. Flanagan’s has been a place that I've been able to play at a lot of times. I'm starting to get there once every other month, which has been really good.
Q: Have you gained any big pieces of advice that you’ve taken throughout your music journey that you can think of?
A: Don’t take no for an answer. That's something that I'm having to teach myself because I'm definitely one to, I wouldn't say necessarily no, but I've gotten a lot of, I don't even get an answer. I think I'll reach out, and I will not get a response. And I'm starting to teach myself f to continue to follow up. You have to keep your head down. You have to grind, and I’m trying to teach myself to be gritty with this kind of stuff. You got to fight for it, because there's a lot of people trying to do it.
Comments trimmed for length and clarity.
Why I Wrote the Story:
During my reporting class this semester, I was put on the music beat to interview and report on upcoming events and musicians. The Q&A was my first writing assignment in this class on my beat. I learned many valuable skills throughout this process. I had to create many possible angles that would interest readers and provide quality content. Much research occurred even before the interview process to find a source. I was able to get in contact with Smith because of his known involvement with on-campus ministries. I contacted many people within his close circle before finally reaching him personally. Then, I had to conduct more research on Smith himself. I went to his social media pages and online music platforms to gain an understanding of who he was and the types of questions I needed to prepare for the interview. This process has taught me that there is a lot of research needed to prepare for interviews and form questions. This assignment has better prepared me for my role in public relations by introducing me to the research process. If I understand and am knowledgeable of the building blocks and reputation of clients, I will be better equipped to handle duties. This assignment has strengthened my ability to research sources, form questions and interview sources.