McKenzie Smith

Drummer, Producer, Mixer.

     

     Grammy Award winning Drummer, McKenzie Smith, was born and raised in Houston, Texas.   Surrounded by a musical family, his household was filled with the music of Frank Sinatra, Buddy Rich, Aretha Franklin, Chuck Berry, The Mamas and the Papas, The Beatles, Chopin, and Beethoven and so much more.    McKenzie was inspired by his older brother who had decided to pursue the drums, which quickly led McKenzie to follow suit and pick up the sticks himself  at the young  age of  5.  It was then that his musical trajectory was set.   Later, he was accepted into the prestigious  High School for the Performing and Visual Arts, where he was surrounded by other likeminded individuals that fostered his growth as an aspiring musician and  deepened his desire to pursue a life of music.   After graduating, he moved to Denton, TX, where he became a member of the Grammy Award winning One O' Clock Lab Band at the University of North Texas.  It was during this time in Denton that he met the other members of Midlake and helped form the band in 1998.  Since signing to London based Bella Union Records in 2003, the band has released 4 albums and  toured extensively in the U.S. and abroad.   Some of their career highlights include being awarded "Best Live Act" by MOJO magazine, performing on the BBC program, "Later...With Jools Holland," and being invited to play at the renowned Sydney Opera House as part of the Vivid Festival in Sydney, Australia.   

     In addition to being a member of Midlake, McKenzie has worked with many other notable artists including St. Vincent, Regina Spektor, Nelly Furtado, Father John Misty, First Aid Kit, John Grant, Gungor, Sarah Jaffe, Sondre Lerche, Thao & The Get Down Stay Down, Elvis Perkins, Astronautilus, Maria Taylor, Isreal Nash, Derek Webb, Alpha Rev,  The Fieros, Alejandro Escovedo, John Congleton and The Nighty Nite,  Snowbird , Ormond, The Texas Gentlemen, and many many more.  He has performed on Saturday Night Live, The Late Show with David Letterman, The Jimmy Kimmel Show, The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson, and Good Morning America. 

    In 2012, Smith and long time friend and band mate, Joey McClellan decided to open Redwood Studios, a hub for their production and mixing work.   After finding the right location, they decided to make their long talked about dream of owning a studio a reality.   Since opening the doors to the public, McKenzie has produced and or mixed records from Sarah Jaffe, The Birds of Night, Kaela Sinclair, Bethan, Seryn, Basko Believes, Dark Rooms, Field Division, Crystal Yates, Tomkat,  Sarah Tolar, Matthew McNeal, Mon Julien, Brave Young Lion, Submarine Lights, Helena Ruth, Exit Glaciers and many many more.    

     McKenzie is now drumming for a new project with some of the members of Midlake called,  "BNQT." Volume 1  features Alex Kapranos of Franz Ferdinand, Ben Bridwell of Band of Horses, Fran Healy of Travis, and Jason Lytle of Grandaddy.  The debut album was released in April 2017.   

     When not doing music, McKenzie is either hanging out with his beautiful wife and daughter, walking his dog, watching a Dallas Cowboys game, or out and about enjoying the fine town of Denton, TX, where he calls home.