Terrence "Smokey" Ivory Sr. has been playing drums since age 5. Like most musicians and singers of today, Terrence began developing his craft and love for music within the church.
Growing up as a member of Macedonia Church of God In Christ in New Haven, CT, Terrence was exposed to a host of great musicians within the church environment. The organists, drummers and base players within the church would always allow him to accompany them whenever they had an engagement to play so that he would be able to learn the basics of music. On occasion, Smokey would be asked to fill in for drummers who were not able to play and under the guidance of the other musicians, he learned how to stay in the "pocket".
By age 16, his gift matured and the demand for his services increased highly. Churches, groups and choirs from all over began hiring him to play. At this point, he was on his way to being one of the greatest drummers in Connecticut who also had the most humble attitude and was still open to learning new techniques. Although he was being hired, for him, it was all about the love of music and not the love of money. With the help of mentors such as Steve Haywood Troy Council Mike Clemons and Alwyne Smith Sr., Terrence was able to take his craft to a whole other level of greatness.
Constantly practicing and focusing on perfecting one level to move on to the next, he is always being recommended by other fellow musicians to play in live bands at various clubs and lounges. This allows versatility of his craft.
Today, at age 35, Terrence continues to study and develop his craft. He believes that there is always room for improvement and he is looking for any and every way to improve his gift whenever possible.