Be On Time, Be Likable: Dwayne Smitty Smith on Life as a Touring Bass Player (Episode 60)

Low maintenance / no drama.

Some players get the call because of their chops. Dwayne "Smitty" Smith gets the call because of his chops, his pocket, and the way he carries himself on the road. In Episode 60 of The Career Musician, Nomad catches up with his old bandmate from the Kirk Whalum days. Their first gig together was in South Africa, opening for Mary J. Blige.

Smitty has worked with Anita Baker, Teena Marie, Natalie Cole, Gerald Albright, Jeff Lorber and many more, spent seven years with The Isley Brothers, and has been a mainstay with Boney James. When the 2020 shutdown hit, he was a week away from going out on Boney's summer run. If you want to know how a touring bass player builds that kind of career, here is what he shared.

If it's in your heart, go for it

Smitty is from Washington, D.C. After high school he joined the Air Force, auditioned for an Air Force band, and toured with it for three years. Back home, he joined one of the hottest fusion bands in town and quickly realized something: he could play, but he didn't know what the other guys knew.

So in March of 1986 he moved to LA, not knowing anyone, to go to music school. He lasted a couple of days, quit, and jumped into what he calls life school. About a year later, at 24, he landed his first big gig: Anita Baker's Rapture tour.

"If you have that desire in your heart and it's deep and you got the energy, just go for it. Just take the steps. Don't procrastinate."

Dwayne Smitty Smith, 9:29

When you're young, he says, you don't have the fear, and you have plenty of time to fail.

Bring your own groove to the jam session

How do you get on the scene? Smitty's answer is the same one Nomad used when he moved to LA: go to the jam sessions. Take your bass. I know that song, I want to play. Come on up and let's see what you got.

What made Smitty stand out was where he came from. He started on drums, following the drum section of marching bands. Then, in junior high, the band's bass player showed him the line from Stevie Wonder's "I Wish." He had never touched a bass, played it pretty well on the spot, and was hooked. He found Larry Graham, Jaco and Marcus Miller records, and spent ten hours a day learning songs. He joined his first go-go band at about 16.

That raw, bouncy D.C. go-go feel was fresh in LA. The established players heard him at the jams and started calling. Everything you do is an audition, and a jam session is an audition with your whole background on display.

Be ready when the call comes

His Anita Baker gig almost didn't happen. After his audition, they called to say thanks, but she went with another player. Half an hour later the phone rang again. The other player had decided not to take the gig, and Anita liked Smitty's groove. The gig was his.

The Isley Brothers came in the mid 90s as a last-minute audition. He got the gig on a Tuesday or Wednesday night, rehearsed Wednesday, and was on the road Thursday. He only had to learn the show at first, around 30 songs, and he already knew everything they asked him to play at the audition. A few weeks into the tour, it hit him: he was on stage with the people his parents used to blast in the house when he was ten.

That is Luck = preparation + opportunity. The hours with those records paid off on a three-day turnaround.

On the road: be on time, be likable

Nomad asked for his road essentials. Smitty keeps the gear simple: his trusted road bass and maybe an envelope filter and an octaver. He admits he's an overpacker. His real tips had nothing to do with gear.

"Be on time. Don't miss the flight... Integrity in general. Be on time, be ready, be likable. Keep things cool. Don't create problems."

Dwayne Smitty Smith, 20:16

Show up at the airport early enough that nobody even wonders if you'll make it. Know when to speak, how much to say, and when not to speak. And especially with high-profile artists, learn how to be friends with the artist but keep the respect. Don't cross the line. Watch how the rest of the band acts and take notes. Let the artist invite you into their space.

He also explained why artists have managers between them and the band: it protects everyone and keeps the drama down. If you get a call from the manager instead of the artist, it's not personal. Low maintenance / no drama is how you stay on a gig for seven years.

In the studio, find the balance

Smitty's studio rule: let the producer tell you what they want first, but be ready to be creative and know when to be creative. Give them a little personality from the gate, because they want it, but don't go all guns out unless they say go for it.

He learned that balance the hard way. Coming from go-go, where bass players held one pocket all night, producers kept asking him for more. Once he learned to improvise, he started going for it on everything. It took him a few years to find the middle.

Sub carefully and know when to walk away

If Smitty can't give an artist at least two weeks' notice, he tries not to sub out. The rare exception: he has a single local show booked and Boney calls with ten shows starting in ten days.

He has said no only a couple of times, mostly to avoid a difficult artist or a scene he didn't want to be around. Once, after taking a gig, he asked to bow out, explained why, and told them he would still do it if they couldn't find anyone. They were cool and found someone. Being honest worked out for everybody.

Plan ahead for the next 20 years

His closing advice: be prepared, keep high integrity, be likable, stay out of trouble, and remember this is a profession you should respect and expect to get paid for. Then plan ahead.

"Plan ahead in terms of what do I want to do 20 years from now when the new hot guys come on the scene... because it happens every 10, 15, 20 years."

Dwayne Smitty Smith, 40:18

Work on writing songs, producing, maybe teaching. If you do well while you're young, buy some property. Smitty did, and at the time of the interview his family had rental property in South Carolina. He has also made his own records, which he sees as a duality alongside sideman work, not a replacement. Make Music Your Business.

And take care of yourself. He has been a health nut for 20 years: greens and fish from catering, easy on the sweets, a run or a power walk and some calisthenics to get energy for a job that starts when everyone else goes home.

The takeaway

Smitty's career came from a deep pocket and a simple code: show up on time, be ready, be likable and keep it cool. Go for it while you're young, bring your own sound to the jam, and build something for the years when the new crop comes up.

If you're working on landing that first big tour, start with the free Audition Secrets guide. You can find Smitty at dwaynesmittysmith.com.

Get the gig. Keep the gig. Build the career.

Watch on YouTube or find every episode on the TCM Podcast page.