Continuing her father's musical legacy, St. Paul, Minnesota native Monique Smaz writes and performs as a vocalist, guitarist, pianist, drummer, and bassist. Beginning with private vocal lessons at age five, Monique developed a love for singing with the piano, which led to private piano lessons at age six. Shortly after, Monique joined the St. Paul School of Rock at age seven where she continued vocal and piano lessons, eventually adding in guitar, bass, and drum lessons by the age of 11. Monique has always had a passion for music and has high hopes and aspirations to build a life allowing her to continue playing and performing forever.
After leaving The School of Rock at age 16, Monique took her love of performing in bands to new depths as she now primarily performs as a solo acoustic act. Monique loves to write her own music as well as cover some of the greats. Monique's biggest inspiration has and always will be her father, but she continues to be influenced by a wide variety of other artists. Monique uses artists such as Janis Joplin, Amy Winehouse, Miranda Lambert, Dolly Parton, and Johnny Cash to inspire her original music. Monique's roots run deep in country/rock/soul, which shines through in her original music. Her covers include music of all genres and decades.
