Celebrated across Canada for her powerful, rich vocals and electrifying live performances, immensely talented R&B singer-songwriter Reeny Smith is an undeniable talent at the top of her field. Born and raised in a music-oriented family, which includes Wallace Smith Sr. and Jr. from The Gospel Heirs, Reeny honed her exceptional singing abilities from childhood through to her enrollment at the distinguished Music Arts program at St. Francis Xavier University. Throughout her career, Reeny has received an impressive number of accolades including two ECMA awards, four Music Nova Scotia awards, and two Best of Halifax awards from The Coast. The immensely talented artist was named one of CBC Music’s Top 10 Searchlight Finalists in 2019 and has also been covered by major media outlets such as the Toronto Star, CBC News, and SOCAN Magazine. An unforgettable performer who has captivated audiences across Canada with her natural charisma and confidence, Reeny has opened for Grammy Award-winning singer Lisa Fischer along with American rapper and singer Anderson Paak at the Halifax Jazz Festival, performed with classical pianist Dinu Wijeratne at the Prismatic International Festival, and sang for the Lieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia at his induction ceremony.
In collaboration with music arranger and producer Kevin Fox (Justin Bieber, Avril Lavigne), Reeny has just released her brand new single “Amber Lights” on September 28, 2022.
A truly unique songwriter who embraces the power of music to overcome language barriers, Reeny has written three musically diverse songs for sensational Taiwanese rapper and singer J. Sheon on top of numerous popular tracks for several artists in Japan. On top of spanning the globe and reaching international audiences, Reeny’s music was included in the popular TV sitcom Workin’ Moms as well as the 2020 film Love By Accident. A hands-on artist who is involved in all aspects of creating her music, Reeny ranks among the 2.4% of female producers in Canada, and this Fall the multi-faceted artist will be opening for East Coast rapper, Classified. Tour dates below!
About “Amber Lights”:
A relatable R&B/Soul tune about meeting someone new, Reeny Smith’s latest single “Amber Lights” expresses the concerns felt when a relationship is progressing too fast and displaying telltale signals that it may not work out. Inspired by an online video clip of an unfortunate collision as a result of a driver ignoring the cautionary amber traffic light, Reeny Smith’s “Amber Lights” uses the metaphor to clearly illustrate the dangers of ignoring warning signs. Self-described as soulful, dramatic, and playful, “Amber Lights” features organic, live instrumentation, and an expert blend of modern and old school R&B elements, delivering Reeny’s fresh take on the classic genre. Penned nearly three years ago, the singer took her time producing the track to ensure its musical composition matched her artistic vision, and now considers the song to be one of her favorites she ever created. Showcasing the strength of Reeny’s voice accompanied by silky background vocals, the song also credits Reeny and her brother Wallace Smith as the only instrumentalists on the track, marking the siblings’ first professional collaboration. Weaving pieces of her personality and sense of humour into the song, the multi-talented artist is credited as the writer, producer, and keyboard player on the track, along with mixing, mastering, and recording it herself.
As Reeny embarks on her national tour with East Coast rapper, Classified, the talented artist is gearing up to release her first Christmas EP this December. A soulful combination of classic Christmas tunes with her brand new originals, Reeny’s Christmas project offers yet another side of the multi-talented artist, and will be sure to delight both her current and new fans alike.
Quote:
“The song has taught me to always be cautious, to take my time. Don’t be in a rush.”
– Reeny Smith
Tour Dates:
Friday, September 23 – Rollo Bay, PE – Tickets
Friday, October 14 – Peterborough, ON – Tickets
Saturday, October 15 – Midland, ON – Tickets
Sunday, October 16 – Hamilton, ON – Tickets
Tuesday, October 18 – Winnipeg, MB – Tickets
Wednesday, October 19 – Saskatoon, SK – Tickets
Friday, October 21 – Moose Jaw, SK – Tickets
Saturday, October 22 – Calgary, AB – Tickets
Sunday, October 23 – Red Deer, AB – Tickets
Monday, October 24 – Fort McMurray, AB – Tickets
Tuesday, October 25 – Fort Saskatchewan, AB – Tickets
Friday, October 28 – Vernon, BC – Tickets
Saturday, October 29 – Cranbrook, BC – Tickets
Sunday, October 30 – Nelson, BC – Tickets
Wednesday, November 2 – Sidney, BC – Tickets
Biography: Singer, songwriter, and producer Reeny Smith trades in a sophisticated blend of groove-heavy R&B and heart-wrenching soul, deeply influenced by both her Baptist church choir roots and the ‘90s girl groups she grew up listening to on the radio. But when you strip everything else away, the very heart of her singular brand of pop music is the relationship between her and the piano, a connection Smith has nurtured since she was just five years old, spurred on by a profoundly musical family. From behind the keys, the Nova Scotia-based artist uses her powerful voice to communicate the atmosphere each song necessitates, conjuring the pain of heartbreak during a performance’s lowest lows; radiating tangible joy in the midst of its highest highs; and exploring everything in between.
Her earliest, most significant musical inspirations came from her family—Smith’s mother, Maureen, is also an astounding singer; “Mr. Performance” is what she calls her funk-loving father, Jonathan, who helped shape her charismatic stage presence; and her grandfather, former pastor Rev. Wallace Smith Sr., was a member of two of Canada’s premiere gospel groups, The Gospel Heirs and The Sanctified Brothers. It was in her home community of North Preston, Nova Scotia—the largest Indigenous Black community in Canada—and at St. Thomas United Baptist Church, learning to harmonize in the choir and watching her grandfather preach, that Smith’s artistry began to take shape.
“Family is definitely the biggest influence for me, musically, and my community supports me and shows me a lot of love,” Smith says. “And I just want to go out and represent and make them proud, because most of what I learned from music I learned from back home.”
So far, making her family and community proud is something Smith has managed to do over and over again since she started working on making her own music in her mid-teens. The intricate harmonies she learned in church and her devotion to the piano—“It’s somewhere I can go and just put my hands on something and kind of let everything out,” Smith says—continue to propel her musical career forward. Recently, her music has been heard in TV shows like CBC’s Diggstown (“Goodbye,” “#4”), Amazon’s The Lake (“The Warmup”), and Hudson & Rex (“Lovers Like You,” “You Got It”). She has travelled to Japan to write and cut songs with artists like J. Sheon, FEMM (Avex), and XPXP. And she’s shared the stage with Grammy Award-winning artists like Anderson .Paak and Lisa Fischer.
And that’s not to mention her awards and accolades. Early on, Smith won the prestigious Portia White Award for Excellence in Vocal Performance and the Nova Scotia Talent Trust Scholarship. Since then, she’s received three African Nova Scotia Music Awards (Up and Coming Artist, Rising Star, and Artist of the Year), has twice been named Music Nova Scotia’s African Canadian Artist of the Year, and been nominated for numerous East Coast Music Awards.
While recent songs like the string-swept “Amber Lights” and sultry, futuristic “Goodbye” meld Smith’s love of classic R&B with modern sounds, the songs she’s working on currently promise to push the envelope further, incorporating more hip-hop elements, concocting new sounds in-studio, and exploring sonic territory she hasn’t ventured into yet. Smith’s distinctive production style—building songs from the vocals up and utilizing heavy experimentation—has already made an impact through her sister Haliey’s 2022 single “Fall In Love,” and will continue to shape Smith’s own work going forward.
Connect with Reeny:
Website: https://iamreeny.com/
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/0ImBa7o4FaSZKrdqAbbvn5
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/iamreeny/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/reenysmith/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/iamREENY
