Vaughn Lee "Von" Smith (born June 15, 1986) is an American singer and internet personality. Smith gained success via his YouTube videos. These garnered national attention, which led to an appearance on '' The View'' in February 2007. He soon signed a recording contract with Kon Live Distribution. In 2009 he auditioned for the eighth season of ''

American Idol ''American Idol'' is an American singing competition television series created by Simon Fuller, produced by Fremantle North America and 19 Entertainment, and distributed by Fremantle North America. It aired on Fox from June 11, 2002, to Ap ...

'' getting into the Top 36. In 2012 he was featured in the season finale of the ''

Opening Act A opening act, also known as a warm-up act, support act, or supporting act, is an entertainment act (musical, comedic, or otherwise), that performs at a concert before the featured act, or "headliner". Rarely, an opening act may perform again a ...

'' reality talent show.

Career

In 2009 Smith auditioned for the eighth season of ''

'', with mixed reviews from the judges. However, they accepted him for the Hollywood Round. During the Hollywood Round, Smith's version of "If the Rain Must Fall" caused

Simon Cowell Simon Phillip Cowell (; born 7 October 1959) is an English television personality, entrepreneur and record executive. He is the creator of ''The X Factor'' and ''Got Talent'' franchises which have been sold around the world. He has judged on t ...

to call it "indulgent nonsense". The other judges overlooked Simon's comment, and accepted Smith into the Top 36.For Some, American Idol is a Second Chance at Fame
Yahoo News, February 4, 2009 He was eliminated on March 4, 2009, after singing "

You're All I Need to Get By "You're All I Need to Get By" is a song recorded by the American R&B/soul duo Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell and released on Motown Records' Tamla label in 1968. It was the basis for the 1995 single "I'll Be There for You/You're All I Need to Ge ...

", but was brought back to wild card performance on March 5, picking "

Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word "Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word" is a song written by English musician Elton John and songwriter Bernie Taupin. It was recorded by Elton John and released in 1976, both as a single and as part of the '' Blue Moves'' album. It was John's sec ...

" as his next song, but was eliminated once again. In the fall of 2010 he appeared in the concert revue for the Record: Quentin Tarantino in Los Angeles, presented by ROCKLA for Show at Barre. It ran from August to October and also starred

Jenna Leigh Green Jenna Leigh Green (born August 22, 1974) is an American actress and singer best known for her performances as Libby Chessler on the television show ''Sabrina the Teenage Witch'', as well as for roles on tour in the musical ''Wicked'' and later ...

Autumn Reeser Autumn Reeser (born September 21, 1980) is an American actress. She is known for her roles as Taylor Townsend on the Fox series ''The O.C.'', Lizzie Grant on HBO's ''Entourage'', Katie Andrews on ABC's ''No Ordinary Family'', and Leslie Bellcamp ...

Ty Taylor Ty Taylor (born January 5, 1969, in Montclair, New Jersey) is an American musician best known for being the lead singer of Los Angeles soul rock band Vintage Trouble. He is the voice of character Lester Grimes on the HBO series ''Vinyl'' create ...

, and

Audra Mae Audra Mae (born February 20, 1984) is an American singer and songwriter from Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. She is the great-great-niece of Judy Garland, and a great granddaughter of Garland's sister Jimmie. Since arriving in California in 2007, she has ...

. Then from November 2010 through January 2011 Smith starred in Show at Barre's For The Record: John Hughes. Also starring

Barrett Foa Barrett Conrad Foa (born September 18, 1977) is an American bari-tenor singer, dancer, and actor, with over a decade in Broadway theatre shows. He has played many leading characters in off-Broadway and regional theatre productions. He has appe ...

Tracie Thoms Tracie Nicole Thoms is an Emmy-nominated American television, film, and stage actress and singer. She is known for her roles in ''Rent'', ''Cold Case'', '' The Devil Wears Prada'', ''Death Proof'', and the short-lived Fox television series ''Won ...

and

. In 2012 Smith was featured in the season finale of the ''

'' reality talent show, performing as the

opening act A opening act, also known as a warm-up act, support act, or supporting act, is an entertainment act (musical, comedic, or otherwise), that performs at a concert before the featured act, or "headliner". Rarely, an opening act may perform again a ...

Lady Gaga Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta ( ; born March 28, 1986), known professionally as Lady Gaga, is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. She is known for her image reinventions and musical versatility. Gaga began performing as a teenag ...

's Brisbane, Australia, show on June 14, 2012. Smith has also been involved with

Postmodern Jukebox Postmodern Jukebox, also widely known by the initialism PMJ, is a rotating musical collective founded by arranger and pianist Scott Bradlee in 2011. PMJ is known for reworking popular modern music into different vintage genres, especially early ...

, performing covers of popular songs re-imagined into vintage genres including

Magic! Magic! (stylized in all uppercase) is a Canadian reggae fusion band based in Toronto, Ontario. The band is composed of lead vocalist, guitarist/producer Nasri Atweh, guitarist/keyboardist Mark "Pelli" Pellizzer, and bassist Ben Spivak. Active si ...

's reggae styled, "

Rude Rudeness (also called effrontery) is a display of actual or perceived disrespect by not complying with the social norms or etiquette of a group or culture. These norms have been established as the essential boundaries of normally accepted beha ...

", which was arranged into a 1950s sock-hop version with backing by Robyn Adele Anderson and Jen Kiple.

Career

References

External links