9 minute read
G Smoove/King IV
gSmoove/ King iv
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Q. Tell everybody who you are and what you do.
A. I am G Smoove. I am a radio personality. Singer, songwriter, and filmmaker.
Q. Well, tell us a little bit about your journey and how you got to where you are today?
A. So, my journey is an interesting one because I am kind of a child of the industry. I grew up basically in the industry. My uncle was a producer by the name of Gene Griffin. And he’s more known for New Jack Swing with Teddy Riley and all of those New Jack Swing artists. But he and Teddy Riley had a company together called G.R. Productions. And under that, they produced people like Bobby Brown, Heavy D, and the boys.
Q. Let’s talk about your single and the motivation behind it.
A. So my music, being a songwriter, I never really had the intention of putting out music as an artist. But I wrote this song, a very honest song, it’s called “The Life of Me” It’s a message to the Black Woman. I wrote it for my wife. This was when we were dating. And what I’m saying in the song is very much so how I felt about her, how she made me feel, and what I felt like, wow, this is something that more black women need to hear. And they need to hear it from black men.
There’s this idea out there that black men and black women are enemies. And there’s always some wedge being driven between us to not trust each other and not think that each other is good enough, or whatever. And we have to understand that it is by design. And it breaks up black families and black households and stuff. So, I just really wanted to insert some positivity into the music industry. I don’t knock what other artists do. I’ve got other types of songs as well but I wanted to release that because it was a very positive message and just a message of love.
And I hope that other brothers if they have their woman and they can’t quite put it into words, put that song on and let it speak for you.
Q. Well, let’s also talk about you being a radio personality, and how that experience has been so far?
A. Well, as a radio personality, I went to school, I’m one of the few people that actually went to school for radio. I attended Morris Brown College in Atlanta, Georgia. And I got a degree in Mass Media Arts with a concentration in radio, TV, and film. I started my career at V-103. I started out as an intern, and then I actually, got hired before I graduated as a producer. And so, while producing I got the opportunity to voice commercials and stuff like that. But then I was able to fill in for certain personalities. And that really helped me to develop finding my own voice and everything. Like right now I’m on the radio in Columbus, Georgia. And this is my 22nd year in radio. I have worked on another station Foxie 105. I was even a producer on a classic rock station at one point. I just love music. I love radio. But right now, I feel most at home doing what I do now, I’m on K-92.7. We play the best R&B and throwbacks. And it’s really my lane of music, that grown folk’s music and stuff, the 80s, 90s, some 70s but mostly 80s, 90s, 2000s. And we do play new R&B but not new hip hop. If there’s any hip hop on the station, it’s that old 90s and early 2000s hip hop that will play.
It’s a journey because radio is one of those things you can fall in love with it, you can fall out of love with it. And there have been times that I’ve taken time off from radio. I was actually a teacher at one point. I taught for about 12 years. And when I came back to radio I started out as a producer for the Tom Joyner Morning Show here in this market. And I ended up getting my own show again about five years ago. So, I’ve been the host of the G Smoove experience for five years, and I just love it. Because it keeps me around music and music is my love. I love music. I love creating music, and I love listening to music. I love playing music.
Q. What do you think is missing in today’s music waves?
A. I don’t want to say talent, but I think work ethic. Hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard. But also, I understand that there’s a lane for everything. And the Internet has opened that up for everyone. So, it doesn’t matter what you do there’s a crowd of people out there that will listen to it. But because I was brought up under the old regime, as it were. I came up in the days of A&Rs, and artist development, and that kind of stuff. So, I grew up in those rehearsal studios seeing artists put in the time to be able to sing and breathe. I got a friend who actually worked for labels for years, and he ran a boot camp for artists. And I would go out there and check him out. He would have artists running and doing all kinds of things that were physically taxing. And have them singing while they were doing, they were jumping rope, they were singing. And if they were a group they would be working out and harmonizing. And so, I’m used to that. That just coming in off the street and just doing something because you made a hot song or whatever. It’s not necessarily my cup of tea but to each his own. But for me, I believe in really developing that talent. That’s why certain artists are just undeniable.
Success is not an accident. And being that good is not just being born with it. Because it’s one thing to be born with it, and then another thing to sharpen it. You can be born with a talent but if you don’t work on your skills you’ll never be as good as the person who puts the work in.
Q. So how do you feel the internet has made a big impact on the music industry?
A. Well, the internet took away the need for labels. It opened up so much to the artist themselves. Anybody who’s willing to do the work you now have an avenue that is worldwide to distribute, to promote, all of that versus having to go to a label. The label has the relationships, they distribute, and all of that. But now the internet is worldwide, I connect with artists, and DJs that are not even in this country. I connect with DJs over in France and even the platforms that play music. It trips me out all the time that my single has been playing over in Brazil, Japan, and just all these different countries where I haven’t set foot in. I’ve lived in England before, and I’ve been over in Europe. But just for my record to be playing in Germany, Italy, and even in the Netherlands, South Africa, Chile, Mexico, and Canada. It’s just amazing to me that I have that reach myself. And I can take it directly to the consumer and to the listener.
Q. Let’s talk about the movie Entanglement.
A. Yes. So, Entanglement was a labor of love. When I first started writing that record, it was called “Last Night a DJ Saved My Life” after the famous song “Last Night a DJ Saved My Life.” And my inspiration for that was my uncle Gene Griffin, who I spoke about earlier, that was his first hit in the music industry. And he passed away in 2009. And so, in my dealing with his death because of everything that he had poured into me and instilled in me I wanted to do something that was kind of in honor of him almost, although it has nothing to do with him but just that title and writing a script that was underneath that title was a big deal for me.
And so, I started writing it in 2010, and then my life took some drastic changes and I ended up finishing the script in 2017. And then we ended up shooting it, we had it shot, packaged, and everything. And title-wise the distributor ultimately made the decision to change the name of it. Well, number one because just last night it just saved my life wasn’t catching people’s attention like it needed to be. And Entanglement of course, from the famous Red Table, Talk with Will and Jada was.
Q. So what are some of the challenges and hardships you went through building your career?
A. Challenges, everybody has them. Financial challenges, equipment failure challenges, the challenge of being uncertain in your own gift, in your own talents and abilities and stuff. So, there are a lot of challenges that we face with trying to do this kind of stuff. And I would tell anybody who has a dream of doing something, and they’re looking like, man, I don’t know how the hell I’m going to do this. Do it anyway, just start doing it. Because I really believe that’s kind of where God wants you to be. I really believe that God wants you to be in that place where you don’t know how it’s going to happen, but you decide to act on it anyway, just walking by faith, like, well, I’m going to make this thing happen anyway.
I didn’t know when we started doing “Entanglement” where we were going to get the money from, we didn’t know how it was going to get distributed. We didn’t know how it was going to be in film festivals and stuff. Because this movie is taking me all over the country. And had me talking on panels and stuff. We didn’t know it was going to be distributed on Amazon and on Tubi, we didn’t know any of that. But it was just step by step. Just play your position.
Q. What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever received?
A. The best piece of advice that I ever received was that sometimes waiting is the test. Sometimes you’re good enough. Sometimes you’re strong enough, you’re fast enough, you’re bright enough, and sometimes you have all of the answers. Sometimes it’s just not your turn. And sometimes you have to sit down and wait. And that in itself is the test. Sometimes you got it all together but it’s not your turn. Because you see most people quit before they get started. For most people, waiting is what really shakes the tree.
Because when you’re waiting you’re up against yourself. Because now your ego is telling you, man, I’m good enough. I’m better than them. I can do this. Why do I have to wait? I know I’m better than them. And they don’t stay the course.
Q. Tell everybody where they can follow you.
A. You can follow me on social media. My Facebook is full right now. You can follow me on Facebook at George G Smoove McDonald. You can follow me on Instagram @gsmoove3.0 or officialkingiv. I’ve got two accounts on Instagram. And you can also follow me on Twitter @g_smoove.
