By Chris Spiewak
Plácido Domingo, Luciano Pavarotti and Lauritz Melchior are three of the best tenors to ever step foot on a stage and artists like these are a marvel to listen to. One can only wonder about the effort needed to achieve this level of success. Their talents are a rare gift and it takes years, nay, decades to reach their prime.
These superb vocalists can also come from anywhere in the world, even from our own Two River area. Singer/songwriter David Smolokoff of Fair Haven is one of those specially gifted artists with a voice that has the power to mesmerize. At the young age of 29, he may not have reached his full potential yet, but two decades of training so far have given this humble man a good start to his career.
Smolokoff’s parents realized early in young David’s life that he had a high level of talent. As the character Curly in his third-grade production of “Oklahoma,” he was asked to sing the national anthem after the show in tribute to those lost weeks before in the 9/11 tragedy. He accepted the last-minute request and delivered a great performance to a standing ovation; mom and dad were very proud. Vocal lessons were then scheduled and the seeds to his future were planted.
As a freshman at Shore Regional High School, his character of The Beast in the school presentation of “Beauty and The Beast” won him a Basie Award from the Count Basie Theatre (now the Count Basie Center for the Arts). The next year as a sophomore he was accepted into the prestigious Juilliard School in Manhattan in their pre-college program. After high school he continued at Juilliard and obtained his degree, now officially trained as a classical tenor. Seeking more training, he was off to Indiana.
Upon completing voice performance studies at the Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University, he returned to New Jersey in 2019 to start putting his talents to work. Focusing on his operatic talents all of these years, and becoming fluent on the piano and harp, he continued to have patience, growing not only as an artist but also as a person. He mentions that a classically trained opera tenor may not fully reach their ultimate potential until they are 35 or 40 years of age. A self-described perfectionist, Smolokoff strives to evolve and become the absolute best vocalist that he can be. Just as athletes spend years building their bodies and minds to excel in their sport, musicians must also do the same to deliver their best performances.
He was soon welcomed as cantor at The Church of St. Gabriel in Marlboro where he performs every Sunday and also at weddings and funerals. His beautiful voice soothes and brings comfort to all who are fortunate to hear it.
In March of 2020, when the world paused, Smolokoff was suddenly home every day and not sure what to do about it. With some songwriting experience, he decided to compose, but not opera music. Listing Lady Gaga as one of his favorite contemporary artists, he thought he would try his hand at something more modern. He would require a new persona for this project, and thus King David was born. Since there are several artists with that moniker, he has come to be known as King David *KD* for his new style of music. Smolokoff chose this name because he associates his life to the life of King David of Biblical times; an imperfect man who learned from his past and then conducted his life with humility and compassion for his fellow man.
There have been two singles released so far by King David. “Ghost” is an upbeat song with a techno-pop vibe to it, and “Be There” is a gorgeous ballad that truly showcases Smolokoff’s vocal range and timbre. He credits Chelsea Amoroso and Andrew Kluger of EOTI Studios for their assistance in the videos for these songs.
A new single will drop Feb. 11 entitled “Mine,” so visit kingdavidsings.com and check his Facebook page for updated info. You may also reach him on Instagram @thehausofdavid (The Haus of David is his production company). A real highlight this year will be his lead role as Rodolfo in “La Bohème” at the South Orange Performing Arts Center March 27. His voice teacher, Andrea DelGiudice, also known as “The Voice Whisperer” due to her work with many opera stars, will produce this show which should certainly sell out.
Starting out as an operatic prodigy, David Smolokoff continues to embrace his humble beginnings as well as expand his horizons into more contemporary sounds. With talent like his, there’s no way but up for this exceptionally gifted musician.
Chris Spiewak is a 40-year veteran of the Shore music scene.
