Today we’d like to introduce you to Deanna Smith.
Hi Deanna, so excited to have you on the platform. So, before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
From a young age, I have always loved escaping into the world of stories. As a kid, I spent just about all of my free time drawing and writing stories, but it wasn’t until high school that I found my true passion for composing music. Some of my fondest memories from that time are sitting in the car with my mom and playing my latest composition on the car speakers for her. My family is huge on movie music, especially — we have a game that we play on long road trips where we listen to a massive playlist of movie soundtracks and try to guess before anyone else which movie the song is from. As soon as I started composing, I knew that that’s what I wanted to do: I wanted to write music that stuck with people and had them talking about the feelings it gave them long after they were done listening. I wanted to be the person whose tune people tried to guess! This is what birthed my musical brand: Smithuoso. My goal in life is to tell stories. Music is the only universal language that can communicate to anyone from any background and any walk of life without a single word. To take that music and then help tell the story of a movie, show, game, or podcast is truly such a fulfilling feeling.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle-free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
I am of the mindset that there is no such thing as a smooth road. We all have struggles that we endure on our paths; it’s only made harder by how we react to them. Though my journey is still in its beginning steps, I have had to endure the trials of loss throughout my college years and through the difficult times of these COVID years. I struggle with physical health issues, including chronic pain in my wrists that forced me to stop playing violin after ten years of falling in love with the instrument. I’ve had to endure some serious lows in my life. But I have never let these tear me down. If anything, it makes me proud to see all that I had to fight through and know that I made it through to the other side in one piece. I am beyond blessed to have a loving and supportive family who has walked with me every step. For every battle, a new door of opportunity opens. Music composition was my saving grace through so much, strengthening my firm belief that it saves lives. My resolve has only solidified that music can tell entire journeys, and it’s my dearest wish to use that power to help tell stories of the most creative minds and the true stories that deserve to be heard.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
Whether it be through film, games, or podcasts, it’s my job as Smithuoso to make sure that the feelings of any and every project I have are enhanced through the compositions I create. No matter the genre, I am willing to work and learn to ensure that the pieces I provide are exactly what my client wants. While the big story is the most important thing by far, I also love to focus on the details to make sure I’m absolutely pinpointing the proper tone and feel for whatever project I’m working on. Creating memorable music that helps a project stand out and leave a lasting impression is my passion.
Currently, I am the lead composer of the podcast “still…” by The Reporter’s Notebook. It’s a fantastic podcast that covers the stories of unsolved murders and missing persons cases, and I am truly honored to be writing the music for these cases that deserve to see the light of day finally.
Have you learned any interesting or important lessons due to the Covid-19 Crisis?
COVID-19 has been a monster of a time. My last year and a half of university was spent in front of a computer locked away for hours. But with that, I learned how to communicate beyond meetings in person for my work. While it is a terrible tragedy to live through, there have also been so many positive things to have come out of this crisis. Zoom enables creative persons to communicate across the world. Last June, I was accepted into the NYU Film Scoring Workshop, where I got to work with noted composers Mark Snow (X-Files, Smallville) and Michael Levine (Cold Case, Siren), as well as the NYU/BMI TV Scoring Workshop with a full-ride scholarship working with noted composers Sean Callery (24, Homeland), Mac Quayle (Mr. Robot, Feud), Nathan Barr (Carnival Row, True Blood), and Blake Neely (Arrow, Riverdale). All was made possible through Zoom, and I was able to meet other fantastic fellow composers from across the United States, as well as a couple in England and even China. Though we are all separated, it feels as though the creative community has never been more united, able to connect in ways we never would’ve thought of before today.
Contact Info:
- Email: officialsmithuoso@gmail.com
- Website: https://www.smithuoso.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/smithuoso/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/smithuoso/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/smithuoso
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCGK-o-Oi0hOnM36S9e2VoOA
- SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/smithuoso
- Other: https://open.spotify.com/show/
