Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Lily Smith. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Lily, appreciate you joining us today. Did you always know you wanted to pursue a creative or artistic career? When did you first know?
My junior year of college at Northwestern University was the moment I realized opera was going to be my life’s endeavor. Like many undergraduates, I decided to study abroad during the fall semester. I chose an opera program in Milan, Italy, and went there for four months. I lived with a host family who only spoke Italian, and took lessons with a professional opera singer, an Italian soprano. My classes were about the history of opera, deep dives into famous works, the lives of renowned composers like Verdi and Puccini and their legacies. We performed recitals in different parts of the city and attended operas at the Teatro alla Scala – one of the oldest and most prestigious opera houses in the world. The whole experience made me fall in love with opera and decide that I wanted to commit fully to making this my life’s pursuit. I got back to Northwestern all guns blazing, and have stayed in that mode ever since! I now have a Master’s in Music from the Thornton School of Music at USC, and spend all of my time working on opera, performing, and auditioning.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you please tell readers about yourself, how you got into your industry/craft, what types of product/services you provide, what problems you solve for your clients and/or what you think sets you apart from others, What are you most proud of and what are the main things you want potential clients/followers/fans to know about you/your brand/your work/ etc. Please provide as much detail as you feel relevant as this is one of the core questions where the reader will get to know about you and your brand/organization/etc.
My name is Lily Smith, I’m a French-American soprano. I was born and raised in Paris, France, and later moved to the United States. I do not come from a musical family whatsoever – my parents are writers and my brother is the founder of Lengo, a startup in West Africa. The four of us are very close and have a lot in common, but to put it bluntly, musical talent is not one of those things! I always had an affinity for singing and began taking voice lessons at a young age. Over the years, I focused in on opera for various reasons: it felt powerful, beautiful, unique, and I was particularly good at it.
I’m now 25 years old, living in Los Angeles. I moved to California three years ago for my Master’s Degree in Voice Performance. Prior to that, I earned a Bachelor of Music and a Bachelor of Arts degree at Northwestern University in Chicago. Now that I am finished with grad school, I spend all my time auditioning for young artist programs, creating ways to perform as often as possible, and honing in on my technique and musicianship.
The opera universe is extremely cut throat and competitive. You have to invest a lot of time and money into your training, education, and auditions before seeing any return. In many ways, being an opera singer is similar to being a professional athlete – but unlike athletes, opera singers reach their peak later in life (around 40 years old). This is partly due to the fact that the human voice is not considered fully developed until well into our 20’s, and as your voice changes, you have to adapt your technique and repertoire to your instrument. Because of this, most opera singers spend four years at an undergraduate conservatory, and then go on to do a two year Master’s degree. The undergraduate years serve to learn about music theory, discover repertoire, build the discipline of daily practice and the technical foundations to ensure a healthy instrument. Then in grad school, the focus is on performance – principle roles for the big opera productions that teach you about acting, staging, working with a conductor and other singers…
The two music programs I attended are some of the best in the country. The next step for me now is to apply to young artist programs. These are professional, paid contracts where young singers perform some smaller roles in productions put on by big opera houses. Some of the most prestigious young artist programs include the Lindemann at the Metropolitan opera, the Domingo-Colburn-Stein at L.A Opera, the Ryan Opera Center at Chicago Lyric… Each fall, thousands of singers from all over the world audition for these programs in the hopes of getting one of the five to ten available spots per house. While doing these auditions, singers also participate in competitions throughout the world, network, pay for voice lessons, coachings and recordings, and more often than not, work a part time job to afford it all. You have to really want it.
As an opera singer, the most obvious service I provide is entertainment for audiences who buy tickets to the opera. However, as a young entrepreneur, I’ve taken on far more!
Because I absolutely love performing, I constantly try to find and create as many opportunities to do so as possible. In that spirit, I’ve been working on an exciting project for 2024 – a series of opera recitals in LA, Paris, and Chapel Hill! Each recital will take place in a beautiful venue suited to opera singing and will consist of a 90-minute program of alternating arias and songs in different languages and styles with live piano accompaniment. The concerts will also be recorded and live streamed so people can attend from anywhere. I’ve created a campaign to pre-finance the upfront costs (venue, pianist, recording) by selling tickets ahead of time. I am hopeful that this project will attract people from all over who are looking to experience beautiful music and support a young artist.
Apart from the recital series, I also offer private recitals. This past spring, I went to Normandy to sing in a chateau owned by a wonderful Swedish couple. They had invited their friends, family, and neighbors, and we put together a beautiful event. I’m a big believer in bringing opera to people, which is why I occasionally sing in the streets and frequently share my recordings on social media. I think a lot of people don’t necessarily think about opera in their daily lives, but once you bring it to them, you remind them that this beautiful art form is ready and available to embellish their lives, upcoming events, celebrations, or whatever it may be.
I am proud of all the work I’ve put in and continue to put in every single day. It is a difficult task to find the discipline to wake up every morning and create a schedule that will make you better. Again, it’s very similar to a professional athlete – 4 to 5 hours of daily practice, discipline to maintain your voice and your body in top shape, and a whole lot of competition… You can be very good but that’s still not enough – if you to live a comfortable life with opera, you have to be one of the best in the world.
It’s difficult to work tirelessly and not get any financial reward or security in return. It’s difficult to get turned down from auditions and find the motivation to look forward and work on the next one. A lot of it is difficult. But the feeling that I get when I share this music with others and witness the power that it has to touch people so deeply is irreplaceable. That gives me the drive to do what I do and to love what I do.
In your view, what can society to do to best support artists, creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem?
Having an open mind and being willing to try new things is the best way that society can support up and coming artists. For instance, I know that when people think of opera, they often think of words like old, outdated, expensive, out of touch with reality, long, exclusive… I do understand why these feelings about opera exist, but you have to give young artists a chance to change your mind! Every so often, I’ll go out in the street and sing my favorite arias. I do this because I need to remind myself, and others, that opera CAN be appreciated by ALL kinds of people. Not just your grandparents, but also the construction worker, the skate boarder with tattoo sleeves, the guys playing pick up basketball, the brewery owner across the street, the little baby in his stroller and even the dogs out on walks! Some of this music is unbelievably powerful, beautiful, and healing. And in order to experience opera, you don’t need to buy a suit and spend half your rent money on a ticket. IF you have the luxury to do that, by all means – go to the opera, it’s a wonderful experience. But that’s not for everyone, and that shouldn’t mean it can’t exist in other realms. My dream is certainly to sing in big opera houses all over the world, but I also want create new and different opportunities to bring opera into people’s lives. That’s the idea behind the recital series I’m currently organizing! But the only way I can bring my ideas to life is if people are willing to come, participate, support, and spread the word.
What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?
For me, the most rewarding aspect of being an opera singer is performing. A performance is when all the hard work, sweat, and tears you’ve put in finally comes to fruition. It’s the chance to stop over thinking the infinite technical details you’d like to get right, and simply enjoy the music. It is also a moment where I can share my passion with others, let them into my universe, and witness them experience the beauty of the music. To me, there is no better feeling in the world than pouring my heart and soul into the music I connect with and seeing the effect it has on the audience – whether it makes people cry, laugh, reflect, grieve, heal, escape… whatever it is, it’s beautiful and it’s the fuel I need to get back to work and plan the next performance.
Contact Info:
- Website: lilyksmith.com
- Instagram: lily.kika
- Facebook: Lily Smith
- Other: Link to my 2024 recital series: https://www.ulule.com/lily-smith-opera/ E-mail: [email protected]
Image Credits
Patrick Robert Taso Papadakis Sakari Viika