In this episode, Kelly is joined by Dan Smith! He is a guitarist, Singer-songwriter, performer, and teacher. You've probably seen his “Dan Smith Will Teach You Guitar” posters all over the city!

Kelly asks Dan where he's from. Dan talks about being from Massachusetts, where he first started taking guitar lessons, studying abroad in Paris, playing guitar as a street performer, and ultimately landing in New York to pursue acting.

Dan tells Kelly that the first time he heard the strum of a guitar, it was magical. He then asked his mom if he could learn, and she reluctantly allowed him to learn with a big caveat... No Rock and Roll!

Dan and Kelly talk a bit about the process of learning guitar: Dan can tell what kind of music each student will make based on their initial handshake. He talks about how important breathing is when you are learning how to play, and he tells Kelly that the most important thing that people need to learn is that it's ok to make mistakes.

Kelly asks Dan about the flier campaign. Dan talks about how it started and why he initially wanted to teach guitar. He then talks a bit about how it changed over the years based on the different genres of music that he was interested in teaching. And he talks about some of the parodies and spoofs that have been generated by many New Yorkers because of how diligent he was about putting up fliers.

Dan then talks about where all this has gotten him. He tells Kelly about the HP commercial that he shot in order to promote their new printer and the full-circle moment he had on set that brought him back to his days as an extra on Law and Order. He talks about his time with New York Nico, being interviewed by him during COVID, performing at his film festival opening, and even working with him on the HP commercial!

Finally, Dan plays a couple New York themed songs for us!

But above all else; Dan Smith is a New Yorker.

Dan Smith's Social Media:

@DanSmithMusicNYC

Kelly's Social Media:

@NewYorkCityKopp

Jae's Social Media

@StudioJae170

• (00:00:00) - Intro and welcoming Dan Smith
• (00:01:25) - Dan's path to New York and early teaching
• (00:02:55) - First guitar memories and childhood lessons
• (00:05:14) - Learning rock and roll despite mom's wishes
• (00:06:46) - Chord progressions and intuitive music learning
• (00:08:39) - Teaching philosophy: feeling over technique
• (00:10:12) - Breathing, vulnerability, and decades of teaching
• (00:11:58) - Reading people through handshakes and energy
• (00:12:41) - The Keegan-Michael Key handshake story
• (00:13:34) - Embracing mistakes as a teacher
• (00:16:16) - Connecting with students and Dale Carnegie wisdom
• (00:17:44) - Helping people get out of their own way
• (00:20:05) - Origins of the guitar lesson flyers
• (00:22:17) - Extra work on Law and Order and Jerry Orbach
• (00:24:57) - Evolving the flyer into a brand
• (00:26:40) - Flyer becomes internet meme and parody phenomenon
• (00:28:00) - Not being recognized despite fame
• (00:29:41) - Scale of the flyer campaign over decades
• (00:31:46) - New York Nico collaboration and mask parody
• (00:34:41) - HP commercial and Times Square billboard
• (00:37:26) - Shooting the HP ad and fruit salad full circle
• (00:39:26) - The documentary about Dan Smith's story
• (00:41:25) - Auctioning flyers for Gotham Food Pantry
• (00:43:25) - Flyers as comfort and inspiration for New Yorkers
• (00:43:38) - Dan performs I've Been Everywhere (NYC version)
• (00:46:58) - Dan performs New York Forever
• (00:50:35) - Reflections on persistence and passion
• (00:53:49) - What it means to be a New Yorker
• (00:54:55) - Closing, social media, and shoutouts