With influences as wide ranging as Elvis Presley, Dire Straits and Lucinda Williams, the Mason Smith Band serves up Americana/Rock & Roll Music in that old-school style. The many different kinds of music the band has encompassed include alternative country music, roots music, americana music, and southern rock.

The core of the Mason Smith Band are singer/songwriter Kelly Mason Smith, drummer Ned Lavengood and guitarist Jay Thigpen. Kelly Smith is a native of Wilson, North Carolina and started his path to song writing by partaking in countless "back porch" jams, with his friends and neighbors sharing, playing and talking about good music.

As teenagers, Kelly met Ned at one of these sessions and began playing together as a way to share their appreciation for the Americana/Rock & Roll music they enjoyed. A few years later, Kelly met Jay, former guitarist for the regionally successful "Earth Murchants".

The three of them, together, bring life to the music that Kelly eats, sleeps and dreams about. Kelly casts a little sunshine on today’s often cloudy music horizon; Jay adds a spontaneous spark with a versatile array of guitar and bass talent at his finger tips; and Ned’s solid groove provides the backbone for Kelly’s heartfelt creativity.