Minnesota folk musician Kelley Smith recently released her first record, Moon Child, just after her 40th birthday. Raised in the woods by musicians, she always had music in her bones, but it wasn’t until her late 30’s that she attached to her guitar and began songwriting. She did so as a practice in freeing herself from social anxiety. “I was tired of being tongue-tied,” she says, “…I just wanted to paint little word pictures of what was in my head with no pressure to be profound, or correct or catchy. Just me, my soul, coming out.”

Smith is a guitar picker with an old-timey voice. Her first record, Moon Child, comes across as a mid-life coming-of-age story. As an insomniac, Smith wrote this first batch of songs by moonlight. They evoke a sense of belonging, juxtaposed with escapism, as she croons about long-term love, grief, and her draw to the night sky. Adventures in Americana says, ”Her authentic, rootsy sound, falling somewhere between country, folk, bluegrass and old-time music, is a pitch-perfect vehicle for the themes she explores in this five-song EP.”

In a short while, Smith has become a regionally recognized folk artist, sharing stages with Minnesota greats like Charlie Parr, Dave Simonett of Trampled by Turtles, Drew Peterson, Turn Turn Turn, and Wild Horses. The Current's Radio Heartland included her album Moon Child in their “best of 2022” list, and it was nominated for album of the year by Blues and Roots Radio. She has also been featured on PBS Backroads, and The Great American Folk Show with Tom Brosseau.

“Kelley has performance sparkle that’s simply youthful. It belies innocence without being sugary...Kelley is similar in tradition to New Zealand’s marvelous Jenny Mitchell. Ladies who don’t adhere to the path of showboating yet exhibit extraordinary songwriting & performance skills.” - John Apice (Americana Highways)