Sy Smith has proven throughout her career that an R&B artist can be progressive while remaining firmly rooted in tradition. Foremost a singer with a vocal range spanning five octaves,
Smith began an unending succession of background gigs with
Whitney Houston in the late '90s, and has since worked closely with Grammy-winning trumpeter
Chris Botti and Grammy-nominated group
the Foreign Exchange, among dozens of other artists. After a brief period signed to a major,
Smith established an independent label of her own, an outlet for compositionally solid and sonically adventurous albums including
The Syberspace Social (2005),
Conflict (2008),
Fast and Curious (2012), and the entirely self-produced
Sometimes a Rose Will Grow in Concrete (2018). She's consequently known for being a leading force in post-millennial indie soul.
Born in New York City and a native of metropolitan Washington, D.C.,
Sy Smith was studying piano at the age of seven and continued into her early teens. She started singing in sixth grade, performing in choirs and eventually in classical competitions, and during high school was part of a go-go band called In Tyme. After attending Howard University -- where she earned a Bachelor of Science degree in psychology with a minor in music therapy --
Smith relocated to Los Angeles and soon filled an assortment of touring, acting, writing, and recording roles. The year she hit the West Coast, she landed her first songwriting credits with
Adina Howard's "Swerve On" and
Gerald Albright's
Lalah Hathaway-fronted "Live to Love," and began a long-term recurring role backing
Vonda Shepard on Ally McBeal. Just as significantly, if not more so, she toured extensively with
Whitney Houston, and through the next couple years also worked with the likes of
Macy Gray,
Ginuwine, and
Brandy.
Smith made her solo debut in 1999 with an
Ali Shaheed Muhammad-produced cover of
Edie Brickell & New Bohemians' "What I Am," included on the soundtrack for the animated television series The PJs. Signed to that album's label of release, Hollywood,
Smith issued her first single, "Gladly," later that year. It impacted Billboard's R&B/hip-hop chart, peaking the following January at number 79, and was followed with another single, "Good N Strong." Although parent album
Psykosoul was shelved -- despite the circulation of advance promotional copies and Billboard coverage --
Smith's career nonetheless gained momentum. Her "Welcome Back (All My Soulmates)," which appeared in the televised movie Dancing in September, was nominated for a Primetime Emmy in the category of Outstanding Music and Lyrics. She and
Al Green duetted on the
Babyface-written theme song for the TV series version of Soul Food.
Smith also busied herself with continued work on Ally McBeal and in other background capacities, such as musical director for the BET talent showcase Lyric Cafe and more soundtrack placements. In 2002, she launched her independent Psyko label with One Like Me, an EP of five songs she wrote and produced with input from a small cast including
Curtis "Sauce" Wilson. During the next two years,
Smith was featured prominently on
Brand New Heavies'
We Won't Stop and
Ali Shaheed Muhammad's Shaheedullah and Stereotypes.
In 2005,
Smith began a several-season run as a background singer on American Idol, having reconnected with
Whitney Houston's musical director, Rickey Minor.
The Syberspace Social arrived later in the year as
Smith's second album.
Muhammad and
James Poyser took part, as did
Nicolay, thereby initiating a deep affiliation with the
Foreign Exchange family. Shortly thereafter,
Smith gave
Psykosoul a proper and expanded release as
Psykosoul +. Between proper full-lengths,
Smith also made featured appearances on projects from
Nicolay and
Meshell Ndegeocello, earned NAACP Theatre Awards nominations for her work in the stage productions If You Don't Believe: A Love Story and Body Language, joined trumpeter
Chris Botti's ensemble (through cousin
Mark Whitfield), and put together a live DVD entitled Worship at the Temple. All of that and more preceded the 2008 release of
Conflict. Her third LP,
Conflict was highlighted by "Fly Away with Me," which registered on Billboard's Hot Adult R&B Singles Airplay chart. Featured appearances on material from fellow major-label refugee/indie soul front-runner
Eric Roberson, as well as
Foreign Exchange associate
Zo!, closed out the decade.
Smith anthologized her early Psyko releases in 2010 with Syberselects: A Collection of Sy Smith Favorites, and across that year and 2011 added
Mark de Clive-Lowe,
the Foreign Exchange, and
Sheila E. to the list of artists with whom she has toured. Studio-wise, she appeared on a few songs by
Zo!, including "Greatest Weapon of All Time" and a cover of
Everything But the Girl's "Driving," and on
Phonte's "Dance in the Reign." Early in 2012, she fronted the Docoders' faithful version of
Minnie Riperton's "Inside My Life," replete with whistle register, and a couple months later released her fourth album,
Fast and Curious.
Billy Ocean's "Nights (Feel Like Getting Down)" was updated with guest vocals from
Rahsaan Patterson, while
Smith and
de Clive-Lowe radically recast
Teena Marie's "Lovergirl" as a slinking slow jam.
Smith didn't release another album for several years but between performance obligations greatly enhanced
Zo!'s
ManMade and
SkyBreak,
the Foreign Exchange's
Love in Flying Colors, and
Mark Whitfield's
Grace, among other recordings. In 2018, she released her fifth album, the self-produced
Sometimes a Rose Will Grow in Concrete, contributed to
Chris Dave and the Drumhedz and
John Legend's
A Legendary Christmas, and by the end of the year released her own seasonal title, Christmas in Syberspace. ~ Andy Kellman