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What happens when you get a Master’s degree in Oceanography? You become a national children’s entertainer, of course! After working and teaching (and playing lots of music) on a marine research vessel, Shana Smith decided to take a leap of faith and formalize her creative talents in singing and songwriting. Shana discovered and developed her incredible joy of writing songs for children first as a touring folk musician when children were in the audience, and then on the grounds of her mother’s preschool. Over the years, she became nationally known as “Shana Banana” and earned a reputation as one of today’s top children’s entertainers, with a voice that still delves into blues, jazz, and folk as well.

Performing at major festivals and performing arts centers across the United States, Shana Banana has earned many prestigious awards along the way, including: two first-round Grammy nominations, Parents’ Choice, iParenting, NAPPA, Kids’ First Coalition for Quality Children’s Media, and “Best Children’s Song In the Country” by the Just Plain Folks organization for her most requested song: I Want to be a Dinosaur. She has performed at the White House, Chicago’s Lincoln Park, the Houston Children’s Museum, Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center, Broward Center for the Performing Arts, Seattle’s Whirligig, the Florida Folk Festival, Merlefest (in honor of Merle Watson), and many more. Her favorite “gig,” however, is as mom to her two young children.

Shana Banana continues to develop a variety of live themed shows, CD’s, DVD’s, books, study guides, and workshops for teachers, parents, and of course, kids! She also continues her efforts with children’s hospitals and school outreach programs to assist in her long-term mission of making a positive difference in the lives of children, motivating and cheering them as they grow. She has been endorsed by a local PBS station to create a new television series, called “Banana Bread,” has just completed a bedtime transitions CD called “Banana Bedtime,” and is currently working on her fourth CD, an ocean-themed treasure called “Banana Beach Party USA.”