PureVolume

Greetings! I am Keaston Smith. I was born on December 9th, 1989, to the parents of Sonya Smith and Wiley Davis. My long term goals are to graduate from Winthrop University with a Bachelors in Music Production and Music Performance. My community involvement consisted of being a Youth Counselor with 4-H, having the leadership position of Band Captain on the Marlboro County High Mighty Marching Bulldogs Band, and participating in the Psalm 150 Mime Team. Some of my accomplishments include achieving the status of Band Captain, making the National Honor Roll, graduating in the year of 2008 and becoming a Triple Crown Winner. I have several hobbies of interest. Some of which includes composing music, singing, playing an instrument, playing football, and fixing electronics.
I was raised Right by Sonya and Kevin Taylor. I was also raised by my uncles Martin and Oliver Smith. At times a father figure was not present, so whenever my uncles could help, they would. I attended Wallace Elementary Middle School until my second grade year. I then moved to Detroit, Michigan where I attended Beacon Elementary/ Middle School. During my fourth grade year, I moved back to Bennettsville and enrolled in Wallace Elementary/ Middle School once again. During my sixth through eighth grade years, I attended the Marlboro County School of Discovery (MCSOD) where I furthered my knowledge at a higher level of learning. From ninth through twelfth grade, I attended Marlboro County High School. My favorite subjects were Music and English/ Language Arts.
Everyone has a weakness of some sort that has hindered them from the path of success or a goal. My weakness is my loyalty. In some cases I have been too outgoing to help others. In the past, I have tried my hardest to please others, whether it was financially or on some other need or want basis. My mistake in these efforts is that in some cases, the same people I worked hard for and give my last to would not do the same for me, and it really feels like a slap in the face. I have learned from these mistakes and I am still a true loyal friend to this day, but I choose my friends wisely.
In addition, my life went on many different paths. Some good and others were not so positive. People in my community always leant a helping hand though, and many of them had a dramatic impact on my life. Gary Rogers had a very large impact on my life by helping me with different decisions and situations. He was an outstanding role model. Mr. Rogers always gave me great advice on anything, from my personal life up to my school life. He never let me down with any situation and was always there to make sure I did not do something I would regret in the future. I also had help through my band director, Mr. Sinkler. Mr. Sinkler helped me better my knowledge of musicianship and also helped influence me to strive to be the best musician I could be. Mr. Sinkler is like the godfather of music to me. He really helped me to understand my responsibilities as a musician, as well as a student, son, and brother. Last but definitely not least, my uncle, James (Oliver) Smith helped me along the path of being a real man. He always explained to me exactly what a real man was, since my dad and step dad were not always around. Even though when I got in trouble at school, he was the first one my mother called, I still respected him. Even though I knew what was coming, I knew where he was coming from and why he was going to do it. I knew he was doing what he was about to do because he loved me and did not want to see me in the same situation as many other so called Men in this world.
Furthermore, I was involved in various community activities, such as Media Literacy and the 4-H program. Media Literacy is a program which helps students to further their knowledge in the large field of media. I participated in trips such as the Governor's Inauguration and a long exhausting trip to Washington D.C. to interview Joe Wilson, a member of congress. The 4-H program was a program that was made to give younger students something positive to do during their summer vacation. I worked as a counselor and coordinator of the program. During the program, youth did various activities and group projects to build teamwork skills as well as social skills and a positive attitude. Extracurricular activities were marching on the MCHS Mighty Marching Bulldogs Band and being part of Jazz Band, Concert Band, and the Brass Ensemble. I also participated in a church mime team referred to as "Psalms 150". In this group, youth expressed their love for God through "Tribal Dance". I eventually lost interest in this, and began focusing more on music.
In addition, I achieved the status of Band Captain by showing respect and advanced knowledge in music, including site reading, reading notes, transposing, playing by ear, and knowing all of his scales. I made the National Honor Roll by holding a GPA of 3.56 in 2005-2006. Soon after, I began receiving college applications in the mail. One last example of an achievement I made was becoming a Triple Crown Winner, which is when a student shows satisfactory in all fields of the HSAP. The next step towards success for me was graduation in June. I am now in the process of applying for different colleges and I have received two acceptance letters from Winthrop University and Berklee College of Music.
In conclusion, after graduating from high school, I plan to attend Winthrop University, where I plan to major in Music Production and Music Performance. I have been interested in these fields since the seventh grade. I love music to this day and I also love to express myself through music and wish to pursue a career in music so that I can spread my gift to any child that has a love for it. I plan to pursue a career in the music industry, specifically production. I also plan to pursue a career as a high school band director. In addition, I plan to eventually start my own recording label focusing on the younger crowd of todays music world.