Sohayla Smith

By Marni Walsh



Shelburne band Sohayla Smith & the Smith Brothers has been nominated for the Best in Country at the Toronto Independent Music Awards. (TIMAs)

The annual competition was created in 2004 to support independent musicians across Ontario, celebrating songs in a variety of genres “without regard to recording quality, industry affiliation or sales history.”

The TIMA is a coveted award shared by independent up-and-coming musicians like Sohayla Smith & the Smith Brothers. Well known in Shelburne for her hard work with her community arts group Troupe-Adore, Sohayla Smith says she has been writing songs since she was 12 years old.

“I was recorded for the first time when I was 15 at Skylab Studio Q107 with Robert DiGioia.”

“I’ve never submitted to the TIMA’s before this year,” says Ms. Smith. “I’ve always noticed the buzz when it happens, and knew some musician friends that were nominated, but just never felt I had good quality recordings to enter until this year.”

Between 1995-2008, Sohayla played a large number of open mics, little venues all over the GTA, weddings, festivals, and busked. She released her first CD in 2008, and that same year she was noticed by Jane Harbury Publicity, and played the Jane Harbury Presents Discoveries Series at Hugh’s Room.

In 2009, Sohayla formed a trio with the Smith Brothers, guitar players and singers Adrian and Nathan, from the band “The Pedestrians.” Together, they began recording more original music together, including some worship songs.

From 2010-2016, the Americana-Pop-Rock-Alt-Country band played at venues such as Free Times Cafe, The Black Swan, The Great Hall, Tivoli House Concert and many more.

In 2016, their song “Bridges” qualified the trio for the Collingwood Live & Original songwriter showdown, where they took 4th place along with a feature at the Arts & Culture Awards that year. The band recorded a CD with Red Room Recordings and their EP – The Red Room Recording Session is now for sale; their music is distributed world wide through sites such as iTunes, Apple Music, Spotify, and Deezer.

Early in 2017, the band shot a music video for their song “The Breakdown” inviting local talent including dancer Madison Walsh, Josh Oatman on camera and lighting, and Wes Lomond as stage manager to be part of the project.

In April, “Bridges” took #1 in Americana on Ourstage, as well as Roots Finals Grand Prize Winner, and was featured on Amazing Radio and Salford City Radio in the UK. Locally, the group was included in the main exhibit at Dufferin County Museum and Archives: “True Grit,” where they performed for the grand opening.

This year, saw Nick Ovington, a drummer from Orangeville join the band, along with bassist Devon Eichhorn from Shelburne…and now they are five.

Sohayla says with their first small hall concert at Simcoe Street Theatre, “Music for a Sunday Evening,” approaching, the band has been working hard to prepare, as well as recording new singles and releasing them – with plans for a full band album next.”

The Simcoe Street Theatre is located at 65 Simcoe Street in Collingwood. Tickets can be reserved for the October 15th concert at 705-888-8502.

Prizes at the TIMAs include custom prize packages to help independent musicians to “network, attain tools for success and be discovered,” such as radio promotion, recording and consultation.

Sohayla Smith & the Smith Brothers are nominated in the Country category along with Tianna Woods, Dani Strong, The Argues, Alessia Cohle, Cheryl Casselman, and Campbell Woods.

“Every time I enter a contest I don’t go in with expectations,” says Sohayla, “I just hope to enjoy the experience if we happen to get noticed.” But she says, “Getting the nomination email was awesome… I read ‘Congratulations’… then I got excited.”

She says, “A TIMA nomination in the recorded material category is a high achievement according to Dani Oliva the Executive Producer and Founder of the Toronto Independent Music Awards. A nomination means that after round one of judging – our song(s) received top scores in their genre category in the areas of: Lyricism, Musicianship, Uniqueness, Songwriting Skills, and Hook/Addictive Factor. Now, it’s off to round two of judging, where they will be evaluated by the TIMA Grand Jury.”

The winners will be announced live at the 13th Annual Toronto Independent Music Awards Gala and Festival presented by 94.9 The Rock’s Generation NEXT on Friday, October 13 at Revival in Toronto.

To learn more about Sohayla Smith and the Smith Brothers visit: www.sohaylasmith.com. - Shelburne free press

By Peter Richardson



True Grit opened at the DCMA on Saturday evening, and no, it was not either of the motion pictures by the same name. Rather, it was an outstanding exhibition of Dufferin County pioneers and community builders, both past and present.

It is a unique exhibit consisting of split displays, highlighting both a past example of the subject matter and a current one. Each of the past representations is comprised of numerous photos and artifacts from the museum archives, while the current subjects are represented by wonderful portraits, taken by local photographer Pete Paterson and items from today.

The exhibit was curated by Sarah Robinson, of the museum staff and is well worth a visit to experience her efforts, first hand. There are examples of many different aspects of life and existence, in the County and they are all fascinating to view. One such, is the past and present of firefighting in Dufferin.

One half this display is comprised of the Orangeville Fire Department of the late 1800s, while today shows the Rosemont District Fire Department, in all their modern gear, which is a far cry from that of their predecessors!

Another display showcases Pete Paterson and photography then and now, and another the art of brewing beer, featuring Tom Smellie, the co-founder of the Hockey Valley Brewing Company, a well-known Dufferin County business.

At the opening, Sarah was quick to point out that it was only possible due to the efforts of the entire staff at the Museum, from the Director to the volunteers. She spoke at length of the many people in Dufferin who had helped with the project and some of whom were a part of it.

One such person, was local Shelburne musician Sohayla Smith who, along with her band, The Smith Brothers, comprised of her husband Adrian and brother-in-law Nathan, played for the assembled guests.

Also in attendance, were brothers Spencer and Emerson Horner who live and breathe hockey.

Both play for the Honeywood Hurricanes and aspire to play in the NHL.

Although only 8 and 9 at the moment, both boys are, nevertheless, determined to achieve their goals, just as Aaron Downey of Melancthon had done before them. Aaron played for the Detroit Red Wings when they won one of their many Stanley Cups.

Sharing their display, is a photograph of the 1919 Shelburne Flyers, which just happens to be the oldest hockey photograph in the museum archives.

True Grit took over a year to compile and it will be mounted until December 31 of 2018.

In all, there are 26 displays to be viewed and each one reveals a slice of how Dufferin County has evolved over the years. It is both entertaining and informative and is well worth an afternoon at the DCMA. - Shelburne Free Press

Name: Sohayla Smith
Founded: 1994 is when I became a songwriter officially, but this representation of the music (this group of musicians) started working together in 2009 onward. We have gone through some member changes and additions, but the core of the group remains the same.
# of Albums: 1 album was released officially on itunes – The Red Room Recording Session.
Latest Release: The Red Room Recording Session – EP. It represents the final days of our trio, as shortly after recording it we acquired a talented drummer and more recently a bassist. Songs on this EP are I Miss You, Let Go, Make-Believe, One Sweet thing, The Man You Are.

Latest Video: Our second attempt at a home-made music video was for The Breakdown. It was a lot of fun making it. We involved many friends and family as well, and that made it very special. It is a good representation of who we are as people.



Bio

Diverse and talented Canadian singer-songwriter Sohayla Smith has been writing and performing her original songs for twenty-three years and has no intention of stopping any time soon. Her songs are catchy, with smart lyrics and a unique sound all her own. Sohayla Smith is accompanied by Adrian Smith and Nathan Smith on guitars, Nick Ovington on percussion, and Devon Eichhorn on bass. They have a large catalogue of music, and are now starting to release singles that are gaining airplay on local and international radio. Sohayla Smith’s Americana-Pop-Rock-Indie band is set to release more singles and a live EP later this year.

Latest Single

An indie-rock version of Let Go is being released very soon for streaming, digital download, and we’re hoping it gets picked up by radio stations across Ontario. It’s our first indie-rock release, so we’re very excited. But our current main releases were Bridges, released last year, which has done really well (check out the indie-spoonful review here: https://www.indie-spoonful.com/single-post/2016/11/16/Sohayla-Smith—Bridges), and The Breakdown which has also been getting a lot of play overseas in the UK. Both are available for digital download on our reverbnation page here: (http://www.reverbnation.com/sohaylasmith)

Favourite Restaurant

Il Gatto Nero, Nova Era (for coffee & Portuguese pastries), and Folly Brewpub (best fish tacos in town!)
Mrs.Mitchell’s in Mulmur, Ontario – finest of fine food!

Favourite band as teenager

Odds was by far my favourite band. I’m pretty sure I had them on repeat back in the day.
Beck, Cat Stevens, Leonard Cohen, The Pixies, Prodigy, Billy Joel, Janis Ian, Pink Floyd, Beastie Boys, Above the Law… contemporary popular music, as well as classical music were also in my collection. I listened to a lot of music when I was a teen, but I stuck to my favourites when it came down to what was on repeat in my cassette player. (Odds or Billy Joel usually).

Sohayla Smith

Favourite band now

hmmm… My taste in music doesn’t change a lot, so all of the afore mentioned, also including Blue Rodeo, Ed Sheeran, Adele, Loreena McKennitt, and many more.. Too many to choose from. I enjoy various songs for different reasons.

Guilty Pleasure Song

Meghan Trainor – Like I’m Gonna Lose You ft. John Legend

Live Show Ritual

I get nervous, so i tend to need quiet time beforehand, and I just stay focused, remind myself to breathe – get through the first song, and from there on in, everything is usually groovy. We also always take a band ‘selfie’ before or after a show for kicks and camaraderie (and for social media).

Favourite local artist

Blue Rodeo is my favourite, but many of my talented friends, The Pedestrians, Josh Oatman, Jeff Alan Greenway, Devon and the Darklight, Ed Roman, Brianna McGowan, and Kasey Carruthers deserve a shout out!

Sneaky Dees nachos, Hey Meatball spaghetti or a superfood salad from Fresh?

Sneaky Dees nachos. Nachos rule! I love salsa.

Queen or College St?

College – my old stompin’ ground. I loved my old apartment at College and Ossington so much that I named my kid after the intersecting street where I lived, Roxton Road. True story. We call him Rocky for short, and we find it pretty funny that his dad’s name is Adrian!

Trinity Bellwoods or Highpark?

Trinity Bellwooods I frequented often because it was close to where I lived, but I love Highpark too. The feeling of forest in the big city is a wonderful thing.

EP or LP?

Either or. Every collection of music – short or long – is a wonderful experience.

Early bird or night owl?

Both! Up at the crack of dawn with the birds, and still up well into the next morning-night.

Road or studio?

Road. I dream of the road – we’re planning a tour out east for next summer, but we’re currently focusing on an upcoming show in Collingwood for the Music for a Sunday Evening concert series at Simcoe Theatre. We’ve been working hard in the studio to record so we can put together more EP’s or a couple LP’s. Each process has it’s ups and downs, but it’s all part of the journey.

Swiss Chalet or Roti?

Roti – never look back. - TorontoGuardian

Canadian singer-songwriter Sohayla Smith is back in Collingwood.

Smith, along with her bandmates Adrian Smith (Shelburne), Nathan Smith (Toronto), Nick Ovington (Orangeville) and Devon Eichhorn (Shelburne), will return on Oct. 15 at the Simcoe Street Theatre for Music for a Sunday Evening, a series that supports emerging artists. This is the first full band concert for this roots-country group, whose trio performances in the Collingwood Live & Original Showcase in 2016 landed them in fourth place in the competition.

The band will have CDs available at the show for $10.

Tickets for the performance are $15, and are available at Blue Mountain Music on Hurontario Street in Collingwood, at the box office (705-888-8502) or online at eventbrite.com. - Simcoe.com

Sohayla Smith - 'Bridges'
November 16, 2016
|
Sylvie Marie

Canadian, singer-songwriter Sohayla Smith, along with her performance band-mates, the Smith Brothers (Adrian and Nathan), released a new single titled “Bridges” that is a spectacular introduction to this incredibly talented singer and her band. As a matter of introduction, Sohayla Smith and the Smith Brothers opened the Collingwood Arts & Culture Awards, playing live for thousands and placed in the same events L & O (Live and Original) Songwriter Showdown. The group has been in radio rotation, both locally and internationally, and boasts an extensive song catalog of radio-ready singles for release. Fans of Americana and folk will definitely love Sohayla's newest single, "Bridges."


The song opens up with a pure display of talent. One of the first motifs heard is a harmonica solo played by Adrian and it gives the track an instant Americana and down-to-earth feel. This motif is accompanied by what is called a "train-track" rhythm which keeps the song driving along from beginning to end; it is absolutely the perfect rhythm choice for a song about bridges. After sixteen beats, something amazing happens - Sohayla starts singing. Her voice is clear, warm, sweet and inviting. "Sometimes bridges get washed away in the flood. It seems you can't go backwards even if you want. They say there's always a reason, a season for every turn, but who are they anyway and why is it their concern."

The melody is instantly catchy. The lyrics are simple, yet sophisticated and elegant. Sohayla paints her messages with metaphors using nature. "Some days tall trees bend at the mercy of the wind. Seems they're almost prayin.' Gettin' down on both limbs." The song talks about times when all the pieces don't fit quite right, when you turn up just a little short on your luck, and even if you want to turn around, the only direction you can really go is forwards. This message is universally appealing.

Check out this wonderful video performance of "Bridges."


Mid-way through the song "Bridges" there is a very tasteful guitar solo that plays off the main melody of the song. The guitar solo is played in the lower-range of the guitar with a nice warm tone giving it a full bass-like sound. Throughout the song, the Smith brothers present tight musicianship and the song has great production and mix.

Sohayla Smith along with the Smith brothers are a delightful find in the Americana arena offering memorable, poetic folk songs that deeply resonate with beautiful and lovely vocals, tight musicianship and an overall inviting sound that is down-to-earth and moving.
Sohayla Smith and the Smith Brothers are currently in the studio completing more singles for radio, streaming and digital distribution in the upcoming year. They are planning a few new music videos as well as an Ontario tour. Other singles are also available including "All I Can Do" which is on itunes, amazon and other major digital retailers worldwide. As a special treat, there is a free download of the song "One Sweet Thing" on Reverbnation! You can also visit Sohayla Smith's website. - Indie-Spoonful.com

Sohayla Smith Comes to Captains Corner This Friday

November 15, 2016

Shelburne singer-songwriter, Sohayla Smith has a multitude of outlets for her creativity. When she is not writing new songs or performing with The Smith Brothers, Adrian and Nathan, she does voice-over work in broadcasting, designs web sites, makes custom paintings, portraits and toys, and writes e-books.

She writes songs and always has because she has to. “I don’t think there was ever a choice,” she told Brock Weir of the Shelburne Free Press earlier this year, “ I need to do it. I am not talking about needing to be successful, but I need to write. I need to write for me, for my peace of mind, happiness and well being.

“Because I write, I feel I should share because a lot of other people probably go through similar things and probably don’t have the same coping mechanism. I love music and should be shared. Even though some of the songs are fairly personal, I do think that if you don’t put them out there it is kind of a shame.”

Sohayla’s band is a family affair with her husband and brother-in-law
Sohayla has made a consistent effort, along with being a wife and mother (her husband Adrian is in her band) to get her songs out. She entered and won, with her original songs, a Battle of the Bands competition before she turned fifteen. She released an album “Love a Little Less” in 2008 and an independent EP called “Sohayla” in 2011. From her home in Shelburne, she has made regular forays to the north and south, including the Discovery Series at Hugh’s Room, appearances and interviews on CIUT, the University of Toronto campus station, participating in Collingwood’s Live & Original Songwriter Showdown and performing this year at the Collingwood Arts & Culture Awards.

David Yano of Canadian Music TV has called her songs “Awesome and captivating, entertaining and beautiful!”.

Her stop at Captains Corner this Friday, playing from 6 to 9, is another step for Sohayla along the way to building an audience for the songs she has no choice but to create. - MeafordLiveMusic.com

BY MARNI WALSH
Congratulations go out to Shelburne’s Sohayla
Smith and The Smith Brothers who finished
fourth in the Collingwood Live & Original Music
Series.
Introduced as a sub-festival of the Collingwood
Elvis Festival, the competition gives singer/songwriters
the chance to showcase their talents
through live performances.
The group played in front of an estimated
5,000 people on July 22 in Collingwood.
“It was pretty cool,” said Sohayla. “It was the
biggest audience we’ve ever performed for.”
She said they played their song Burn It To the
Ground “and we had the entire street clapping
along and cheering by the end.”
It is the second year for the competition, which
held its inaugural performance in the summer of
2015. The focus is “finding musical creativity
and innovation at the grass-roots level.”
Prize money for first place was $5,000. Finals
were held at the historic Gayety Theatre on July
23 where Mike Charette of Sudbury took home
the prize money.
“Although, we didn’t place in the L & O songwriter
showdown contest,” said Sohayla, “it was
a great experience.”
The group was asked back to perform at the L
& O Encore Concert to fill in for the third place
winner, Bernadette Connors, “who can’t make it
on August 6, so we are thrilled to be going back
for another performance opportunity in Collingwood.”
Sohayla said the group was “fortunate to get a
little footage broadcast on the Barrie CTV News
at 6 on July 21,” and received “the opportunity
to record a song for a compilation CD.”
Funds raised from the CD go towards a bursary
for a student going into music as a career
in school.
“Working with Josh Maitland from Red Room
Recordings was a really enjoyable experience,”
said Sohayla, “and the group is excited to get the
mp3 back so they can share it.”
Pleased with the overall experience, Sohayla
added, “We met so many talented songwriters
and have become friends through this process;
we played in front of thousands of people on
the main stage during Collingwood’s renowned
Elvis Festival; duked it out in head to head competitions
– songwriter against songwriter; and
were judged on our overall song writing composition,
lyrics, and performance.”
The group, she says, is looking forward to receiving
the constructive criticism of the judges
so they can continue to better their overall performance
and give it their best shot for the next
competition they decide to enter.
“Overall we had a fantastic four days, and
we are looking forward to seeing the L & O
Songwriter Showdown team again in a couple
weeks,” she said.
Organizers of the event call it Canadian music
scene’s “next big thing.” Details on the Songwriter
Showdown can be seen on Facebook at
Experience Collingwood. - Shelburne Free Press

By Brock Weir



In her song Bridges, singer-songwriter Sohayla Smith shows her growing audiences that when some doors close, other windows open and, in the end, that change isn’t always a bad thing.

But plenty of doors are set to open with Bridges as the music video she created with musical partners husband Adrian and brother-in-law Mason landed the Shelburne performer a spot in the Top 12 of Collingwood’s Live & Original Songwriter Showdown.

The Showdown is a grassroots contest looking for “musical creativity and innovation” aiming to help “unknown artists develop their own individual song-writing ability and performance style” in a competition format. A chance to perform at the Gayety Theatre, reach new audiences, and compete or a share in a $5,000 pot doesn’t hurt either.

Locally, however, Ms. Smith and her band are not quite unknowns, popular at open mic nights and other performing opportunities.

Bridges was the first opportunity they had to pool their creative talents on a bona fide music video and the results were a perfect showcase for just what they can do.

“We have been trying to be more active,” says Ms. Smith of getting herself and her family band out there. “I saw there was a competition and it was relatively close by, we thought we would enter this one. I write for myself and it is sort of therapy. For me, I was dealing with some changes in my life and that is how Bridges came about. It was about changing my perception on how I approach things that don’t necessarily go the way I planned.

“Sometimes things happen that isn’t always what we want, but you have to make the best of it. Sometimes doors close and a window opens, but sometimes doors just close and you have to be able to adapt. It’s not always easy, and that’s okay, but it is important that you do and try to look at it as much as possible from a positive perspective that change isn’t always bad.”

For Ms. Smith, not writing songs was never an option on the table. It is a release and something she always had to do from a young age. First getting a taste of performing – and winning a musical contest – in a Battle of the Bands competition before she turned 15, it inspired her to keep going.

However, before she stepped on that stage, she already had songs she had written just for her.

“My uncle had been diagnosed with cancer and was passing away, and I had difficulty dealing with it and I just started writing,” she says. “I don’t think there was ever a choice – I need to do it. I am not talking about needing to be successful, but I need to write. I need to write for me, for my peace of mind, happiness and wellbeing.

“Because I write, I feel I should share because a lot of other people probably go through similar things and probably don’t have the same coping mechanism. I love music and should be shared. Even though some of the songs are fairly personal, I do think that if you don’t put them out there it is kind of a shame.”

At the moment, however, she has hundreds of original songs on her hard drive just waiting to find an audience. Whether she got an idea for a song “under a bar stool during my more reckless years” which are now far behind her, or sitting at home strumming her ukulele waiting for the lights to come back on following March’s ice storm, inspiration is all around her. Perhaps through Collingwood’s contest, audiences will be as well.

“We have so much more than people even realise,” says Sohayla. We have so many songs we want to finish recording properly, put them together as best we can, put them out there and see if they do something. Whatever they do, it is better than sitting at home on my computer hard drive. When we had our son, we thought we would be able to do everything, but we can’t. We had to basically put everything on hold for five years, but over the last year we have been really trying to push everything.

“People don’t realise it is actually a lot of work to be a musician and actually put out a product and to book the shows, play the shows, get to festivals and do your part – but it is good work!”



For more on Collingwood’s Live & Original Songwriter Showdown, get a flavour of Ms. Smith’s work and the rest of the Top 12, and ways to support our home-grown talent, visit www.LiveandOriginal.ca. - Shelburne Free Press

“On the first warm day this spring, you said just one sweet thing

That it bothered you to know, I could love another so

So I profess my love, and I protest this cove

Where I bury alive, all the love that waits inside

All the love that waits inside, all the love I have to hide.”

How often have I hidden my beauty to protect my partner’s fear? These
lyrics of Sohayla, sung with clarity and honesty, resonate with me, as
does so much of her music. For those who don't have the honour of
knowing Sohayla personally, I can tell you her music reveals who she is.
There is nothing hidden.

I listen to her demo collection of five songs. Each has a different
genre, each with a different swing, but what remains consistent is her
talent and an unadorned heart that speaks through a clear and lovely voice.

Eric Nagler - Eric Nagler

Yowza. Every so often we get a submission for the Big Med Playlist for The Big One that just plain stops us in our tracks.
Sohayla Smith falls into that category and, quite frankly, it’s ludicrous to select just one of her songs for the Playlist however since I’m playing by the rules today, I’ll go with ‘Kettle Corn Kisses’.
Canadian singer-songwriter Sohayla Smith has been writing and performing her original songs for almost seventeen years and is, rather unbelievably, one of our best kept secrets up here in the North Country. Probably not for much longer.
Follow her online at http://www.sohayla.com - Posted by Hal Newman on Mar 3, 2012 in Music, Playlist for the Big One

“The songwriting is exquisite. Sohayla’s tuneful union between lyric and sound is reminiscent of a ‘70s Joni Mitchell or Carly Simon and a pre-millennium Tracy Chapman.” - Reviews by Q

“Awesome and captivating, entertaining and beautiful!” - David Yano of Canadian Music TV

Soles Mojo showed up at an open stage at a Worldfest Concert, and sang her heart out with very personal songs of life and love. Then she left the stage and I never saw her again. I'm hoping our paths will cross again someday, for this is a very special talent. - MaxSound

A few months back when my friends and I was walking along Queen Street W. looking through art galleries, there was suddenly a voice that caught my attention just outside one of the gallery. It was a girl playing a guitar singing a song from her collection. Her voice sounds angelic, so I couldn’t help but stop and listen to her song. After she finishes, I approached her and asked if I could buy a copy of her CD. She told me that she has been singing for 5 hours straight, and appreciates my appreciation of her songs. The CDs all have different artwork drawn by her, and so I asked which CD artwork was her favourite. She picked out the CD with a girl with long hair that covers one of her eyes, which was quite cool in my opinion
Personally I think she has a lot of talent, and after going through her website, I’m determine that she is headed for success
Check it out!
The CD I purchased was called Bakers’ Dozen:
1. Please Forgive Me
2. Bad Boys
3. Whisk Me Away
4. I Wish
5. With or Without You
6. Friends
7. Rain
8. Dumb
9. Discovery - Review by Kyuen

“Coming from the heart of a talented storyteller, the music is perfectly arranged -orchestrated by moody guitar and soulful background vocals. Love a Little Less is pure and passionate” - AV Production World - AVProductionWorld