Local 2026 Grammy Winner Nate Smith Highlights Working With Legendary Artist Michael Jackson

Bandleader, songwriter, producer, and drummer Nate Smith is a GRAMMY-awarded Jazz

musician who has recently taken home 2 Grammy awards for the album “LIVE ACTION” in the

categories of Best Jazz Alternative and Best Live Vocals and Instrumentals. His innovative work

As a recording artist and multi-genre performer, he has made him a prominent jazz and drumming artist

artist in the music industry.

Smith, who was born in Norfolk, Virginia, and had been a dedicated music student since he was

a teenager, was a part of the marching band at Indian River High School and James Madison

University. In addition, he was offered a percussion performance scholarship at JMU. This

allowed him to foster relationships with performing professionals that helped guide his career.

Through these relationships, he was able to curate his own professional career and name.

“When I met the great Betty Carter, she introduced me to other individuals, which was the first

time for me seeing people my age performing at a high level. It was very inspiring for me. That is

what I think was my on-ramp to playing jazz at a really high level.”

Smith's discography is filled with legendary artists, from Michael Jackson to touring with Childish

Gambino. At the age of 20, Smith joined Carter on the drums at New York's Blue Note. In 2001,

Smith made his commercial debut as a songwriter and producer with Michael Jackson's

"Heaven Can Wait."

In an exclusive interview with Nate Smith, he gave some behind-the-scenes notes on the

making of the song.

“The Headline, I never got to work in the studio with Michael. The song happened over a course

of four years. I had a track that I gave to a producer, which was given to another producer, who

gave it to the legendary Teddy Riley. He was the one pitching songs to Michael Jackson for the

"Invincible" album.

With Quincy Jones, Nate Smith designed his most recent album, LIVE ACTION, as a

producer-led endeavor. Smith shares,

“On my record, I really wanted to invite these artists to really do what they do. And make space

for them to do what they do. I also didn't want to change the overall sound of the record. So the

The task was to bring in an artist like Lalah Hathaway to do this cover of “The Pointer Sisters’ song.

automatically. I really wanted her to be herself and use her rich, low tone. I really wanted her to

be Lalah.”

As the recent Grammy winners have been announced, Virginia natives Clipse, Mad Skillz, and

Pharrell takes home the wins in their respective categories. Smith shares the experience of being

in the winning collective of Virginia talent.

“I think there has always been great talent in Virginia. I know so many great musicians who

didn't or haven't gotten their shine yet or are due yet. It was really, really great to see Skillz win. I

just recently met him and got acquainted. He has a lot of Richmond in his record, so a win for

him is a win for Richmond.”

As the interview concluded, Smith shared tips for aspiring college musicians.

“The number one tip I would say is always have fun. It has to be fun. That is the thing that is

going to keep you going when things get a little tough. And when things get a little tough its

always important to remember why you're doing it. The other thing is to always be a student of

music. Always try to learn something new, even if it's just asking a friend for a new artist to listen

to.”