Cosmopolitan writer Heather Wood Rudulph shares Jan Smith’s story and how she became a world-renowned vocal coach. Below is an excerpt from the interview, be sure to read the full article here!
I started working with Justin Bieber in December 2008. He was cute and talented, but nobody knew who he was. No one screamed when he came in the building. He was a very typical young kid, but he was clearly gifted. Helping to cultivate that is one thing. Helping him to keep his balance as a human being in the midst of the freight train of our industry was probably my higher calling. I did 86 shows with that kid on the road. I helped him get through puberty in front of millions of people. There was nobody on the planet earth who had the same exposure as he had because social media came into its own around him. It was incredibly exciting and also extremely dangerous. I was that person on the tour — that grounding factor — who could put my hands on him and go, “Let’s settle down.” Very clearly, I was Mama.
Helping nurture people and getting them in touch with their talent is what I’ve been doing all along. People may call me a vocal coach, but I’ve always been so much more. I hope my legacy would be that I helped other people to achieve more of who they desire to be, and did so in love, authenticity, and honesty.
