Interview: Michael W. Smith of BALSAM HILLS PRESENTS CHRISTMAS WITH MICHAEL W. SMITH at Orpheum Theater

Did you grow up with music in your house? Who were some of your biggest influences musically growing up?

I grew up in a musical family. My grandmother was my piano teacher and she actually lived with us pretty much my whole life until I moved to Nashville. I remember going to Davidson's Record Shop in Huntington, West Virginia and getting the the single to Let It Be and I Want to Hold Your Hand by the Beatles. I especially fell in love with Billy Joel and Elton John. I gravitated towards the artists who are piano players, because that's what I play. I wrote my first song at five which I will not play for you because it was awful. I remember playing Hey Jude for my mom and dad before they was sheet music for it, and my mom and dad wondered how I did that. I told them I heard it and just figured it out. I played by ear. But yeah, for a while I wanted to be a baseball player. I was a good athlete, and then 15 years of age I realized this is what God wants me to do. Long story short, that ended up taking me to Nashville in 1978, and a 1981 I met a girl named Amy Grant and the rest is kind of history.

Did you have any idea the impact you and your music would have when you began? And what has that been like for you?

I had no idea. I mean, you know, people all around the world singing your songs? That's just pretty crazy. I was always optimistic because I had always felt like this was my sweet spot and what I was called to do. As for how that played out successfully, no. I had a feeling the wind was at my back for every project, and I thought I might be able to do it for a while. The audience kind of dictates that to some degree because if they didn't buy the records and didn't like the songs then it should've been over along time ago, and it could've been. And that happens to most artists. Some start out and have a 10 year run in and then they're done. And the fact that this has been four decades now is mind-boggling. I'm just grateful. I just take it one project at a time and live in the moment. I kind of go with what I feel like I'm supposed to do next and just hope that it connects and people get it. And I've written my share of not so good songs, but for the most part I've been able to bounce back and have written a few good ones. I think as a songwriter you hope you can maybe have 2 to 3 that can stand the test of time, So I'm just grateful. I've been up here with Amy and sharing the stage with her these last five or six shows and it's been incredible. And I wouldn't be doing this if it hadn't been for her. It all started with me being her opening act in the fall of 1982.

You've won countless awards throughout your career, including a Grammy, Dove Award, and American Music Award. Is there one award that means the most to you?

I think if I had to pick one, because I don't really like award shows, I think the one that meant the most was probably the American Music Award because that was voted on by the people. This is back when there was no gospel award for the American Music Awards. I won and I was just in shock. I felt like it was legit because the people voted and they voted for me, which is crazy. So that's the one that I probably remember the most.

How do you approach the idea of worship vs standard performance in your concerts?

You know, it used to be a lot tougher. It just kind of is what it is. You're playing instrumentals and I guess you're performing, but I think it all comes down to what your posture is. Are you humble? It's all about humility and how you posture yourself on stage. Before I go out on the stage every night, I always say, "Lord just let me be humble and let me posture myself where this is not about me." When we do these shows, to me it's all about all of us. We all are taking part in this evening as an experience so it's more than a concert. I want people to leave with a greater sense of hope that God loves them and that they feel like they can get through whatever adversity or trial it is that they might be going through.

Any special experiences on road while traveling?

Every night. It's like every night we see it with people weeping in the audience. You just see miraculous things and you see the atmosphere change in the room. Obviously there are big highlights like in Abu Dhabi or Bahrain, or with 50,000 kids on the beach in Brazil singing Agnus Dei in Portuguese. It's like whoa! Big audiences in Holland just start singing your songs in their language. It all just takes your breath away and I start crying. I especially love traveling overseas and seeing that sort of thing. Never in your wildest imagination as a kid do you think about being in Budapest and they're singing your song. It's pretty overwhelming.

How do you approach the art of creating new songs? Do the lyrics or the music come to you first?

Music always comes first almost every time. Friends is an exception. Most of my favorite things I've ever written have always been music first. I wrote a piece of music for a new Christmas song on my new EP, and that was an exception where I just sat down with a lyric, and the melody just kind of came out of the sky and I caught it. And every time I try to sit down and write something it's pretty much a disaster. I don't sit down and think I'm gonna write a hit song today at 10 o'clock. It never happens. But usually I just feel something in my heart and I just feel like something is going to happen; and so I create the atmosphere, which for me is in my studio, and I sit at the piano. Some days it happens and some days it doesn't. But when it happens you know it. And once I get that music I usually go to my poets, my friends who write these amazing lyrics, and I convey to them that I think there's something special there and ask if they can help me articulate what I'm feeling inside. And I listen to a lot of different things.I also try to extend my mind a little bit and listen to things that are maybe some things I wouldn't normally listen to. But I keep my ear to the ground. My kids kind of feed me what the latest things are. I've learned a lot from them.

Amy Grant had a bike accident this past summer which caused her to lose recall of lyrics at times. She had this to say in a recent interview: "Last week was my first time back on stage, and I can't think of a more gentle way to get back into the limelight than doing a Christmas concert with my dear friend Michael W. Smith." What does it feel like hearing those words? And how did it feel having the opportunity to support her at the 2022 Kennedy Center Honors, where she was recognized for her work in the industry?

Man! We are like brother and sister. We are so close. We've been best friends for 40 years, and we develop and make music together. We just pinch ourselves every night on stage. Every night we look at each other and go, "Can you believe it? Can you believe we get to do this?" We say that every night, and it's just been beautiful. And then to be able to be there in DC for the Kennedy Center Honors and to be on that stage and be a part of her tribute... I mean, whew! It was emotional. I'm just so proud of her. She's held her head up high and she's had some bumps in the road like we all do. We're very fortunate that she is with us after the accident, and that first night was a little emotional. We started the Christmas tour a couple weeks ago, and that was emotional because I think there was a part of her that was unsure if she was going to be able to do this. And I just told her it was going to be ok and that she was going to be great. I was just throwing wind at her back at that point. She got through that first half and she looked at me, and I could just tell she knew she could do it. She's back to her old Amy and just killing it every night. I just sit there and watch her and think "Wow, this is pretty extraordinary."

Of all the songs you've written, is there one you are most proud of?

Oh gosh... I think one of my favorite songs I've ever written is a song called All Is Well. I feel like I give the same answer but I get that question a lot. There's just something about that song that has stook the test of time and we're still singing it today. I did it on my very first Christmas record, and then Carrie Underwood and I did it together in 2014. That's probably my favorite. I also get to sing Friends for the rest of my life and I love singing it. I love seeing what it does to people.

Something not everyone may know about you is that you have a few film credits to your name. Do you want to do more acting on film?

You know I love it. I have a couple things coming out this year, or probably after the first of the year. I actually love acting! I was a part of the thespians in high school and I feel like I sort of have a knack for it, but I'm not gonna pick up and move to Hollywood. I'm not gonna do that. Music is my first love. But I'm selective. I don't just want to be a part of a bad film just to be in a movie. I played a pastor in a movie called "Pardoned By Grace" because I love what happened to this kid. He was arrested 33 times and spent 20 years off and on in jail, and his life was just a wreck. But then he had a massive turnaround and had a massive encounter with the Lord, and his pastor had a significant place in his life and helped him kind of walk this thing out. I just love that story and what happened to him. I played his pastor. But I'm not really looking for it right now. My team kind of knows what I want to read or look at, but I say no to most of it.

You were a part of the televised musical The Passion in 2016. Would you like to do more musicals like that?

Absolutely! As a matter of fact, all my kids are screenwriters and filmmakers or are orchestrating, and my daughter Anna has got the knack for the musicals. She's just killing it and you just know it's gonna happen. So I'm helping her. I actually have helped her write one musical and we are working on another one now, which is getting a lot of attention. I love writing that stuff and would more than likely end up writing more so than being in a musical, but I'm not opposed to it. I remember I got invited to do a 10 week run in Les Mis and I think it would've been a great opportunity but I didn't do it because I just didn't feel like I was supposed to do that. I looked back on it and I think sometimes I would've really enjoyed it and I wonder what would've happened if I had, but I just felt like it might've been a detriment to my career at that time. I was already working on a new project. But I am open to anything. We'll see what offers come down the road.

Is there one thing you are most proud of in life? Or what kind of legacy do you want to leave?

I think if there's anything to be proud of, and again you have to balance that because I know who I am and I know that I'm a human being and make mistakes and we're all on this journey, but I am proud that I have survived success. A lot of people don't. It's a tough road and you just have to really set up a lot of parameters and make sure that you are on point, and you can't fall off the cliff. I've been married to my amazing wife for 41 years and we have these amazing kids and grandkids, and that's the joy of my life. I hope I can just be an example to this next generation. Some of them are doing well and some of them are not. I get a lot of people who come up to me and ask me how I did it. They wanna know how I kept the family together. And I can sort of help direct and guide a little bit, and I can tell them not only all the right things that I did but also maybe the bad decisions that I've made as well. When I was younger I got the big head and head the whole pride thing, but you realize as you get older it's not about you. It's just not about you.

Are there any Christmas traditions you and your family have that you are excited to get to this holiday season?

You know what? We just do the same things every year. There are certain things with my family regarding traditions that they love and you can't change it. We all wear the same pajamas. On Christmas morning we do the Christmas story and we do the countdown and have all the kids run in. We all sing to the Andy Williams Christmas album. It's just stuff like that and it is so awesome.

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