Smooth McGroove
{{Short description|YouTube celebrity}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=August 2020}}
{{Infobox YouTube personality
| name = Smooth McGroove
| birth_name = Max Gleason
| birth_place = Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1984|12|5}}
| occupation = {{hlist|YouTuber|Singer}}
| channel_handle = @SmoothMcGroove
| years_active = 2012–2019, 2021, 2023–present
| genre = {{hlist|Music|a cappella}}
| subscribers = 2.7 million
| views = 635.9 million
| stats_update = February 13, 2024
}}
Max Gleason, better known by his stage name, Smooth McGroove, is an American YouTuber known for recording re-arranged a cappella versions of video game music.{{cite web|last=Grubb|first=Jeffrey|title=How Smooth McGroove quit his day job to record acapella versions of classic gaming tunes (interview)|url=https://venturebeat.com/2013/05/18/how-smooth-mcgroove-quit-his-day-job-to-record-a-capella-versions-of-classic-gaming-tunes-interview/|work=VentureBeat|date=May 18, 2013|accessdate=June 1, 2013}}{{cite web|last=Fenn|first=Mike|title=Smooth McGroove: How a bearded gamer became YouTube's next big star|url=http://www.dailydot.com/entertainment/smooth-mcgroove-a-cappella-game-music-youtube-star/|work=Daily Dot|date=May 3, 2013|accessdate=June 1, 2013}}{{cite interview |subject=Smooth McGroove |interviewer=Paul Tamburro |date=September 30, 2013 |accessdate=September 23, 2014 |work=CraveOnline |title=Interview: Smooth McGroove on Becoming YouTube Famous |url=http://www.craveonline.com/gaming/interviews/579091-interview-smooth-mcgroove-on-becoming-youtube-famous |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131002081109/http://www.craveonline.com/gaming/interviews/579091-interview-smooth-mcgroove-on-becoming-youtube-famous |archive-date=October 2, 2013 |url-status=dead }} He typically appears in his videos in a Hollywood Squares-like split-screen featuring multiple versions of himself singing and beatboxing all the parts simultaneously, often complemented by a video of the relevant game being played.
Career
Gleason's musical career began when he was eleven years old and began playing the drums. He eventually started teaching private music lessons to support himself. In college, Gleason began recording some MIDI tracks and posting them on MySpace, but never got much recognition for them. Later, he and some friends of his started a rock band, and in addition to being the drummer, he was responsible for the audio mixing. The band fell apart, and a few years later, Gleason decided to do more music. He began rapping about video games, and he gradually moved to a cappella music.
Gleason has recorded music from many popular video game series, including The Legend of Zelda,{{Cite web|url=http://www.destructoid.com/bearded-dude-performs-amazing-zelda-a-cappellas-247571.phtml|title=Bearded dude performs amazing Zelda a cappellas|publisher=Destructoid|first=Tony|last=Ponce|date=March 3, 2013|accessdate=February 16, 2014}} Super Mario, Sonic the Hedgehog, Final Fantasy,{{Cite web|url=https://www.gameinformer.com/b/news/archive/2013/10/21/smooth-mcgroove-leads-us-to-final-fantasy-7-victory.aspx|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131021211610/http://www.gameinformer.com/b/news/archive/2013/10/21/smooth-mcgroove-leads-us-to-final-fantasy-7-victory.aspx|url-status=live|archive-date=October 21, 2013|title=Smooth McGroove Leads Us To Final Fantasy VII Victory|publisher=Game Informer|first=Mike|last=Futter|date=October 21, 2013|access-date=February 16, 2014}} Mega Man,{{Cite web|url=http://kotaku.com/mega-man-xs-spark-mandrill-theme-in-an-amazing-a-cape-469811258|title=Mega Man X's Spark Mandrill Theme, In An Amazing A Capella|publisher=Kotaku|first=Gergo|last=Vas|date=May 4, 2013|accessdate=February 16, 2014}} Undertale and Street Fighter.{{Cite web|url=https://www.gameinformer.com/b/news/archive/2014/06/19/smooth-mcgroove-tackles-street-fighter.aspx|archive-url=https://archive.today/20140621063202/http://www.gameinformer.com/b/news/archive/2014/06/19/smooth-mcgroove-tackles-street-fighter.aspx|url-status=live|archive-date=June 21, 2014|title=Smooth McGroove Tackles Street Fighter|publisher=Game Informer|first=Matt|last=Helgeson|date=June 19, 2014|access-date=June 20, 2014}} Gleason's videos have garnered millions of views, and he eventually left his job giving private music lessons to focus fully on his a cappella videos.{{cite web|last=Cornell|first=David|title=YouTube User Smooth McGroove Talks Quitting His Day Job|url=http://www.inquisitr.com/666575/youtube-user-smooth-mcgroove-talks-quitting-his-day-job/|work=The Inquisitr|date=May 18, 2013 |accessdate=June 1, 2013}} When asked about working with more modern tracks, he sided against it, stating that "music for video games today serve a more atmospheric role with less of a focus on memorable melodies". He noted that the Elder Scrolls series was an exception.{{cite magazine|last=Hilliard|first=Kyle|title=How Smooth Got His McGroove – The Introverted Acapella YouTube Artist|url=https://www.gameinformer.com/b/features/archive/2013/09/09/how-smooth-got-his-mcgroove-the-introverted-acapella-youtube-artist.aspx|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130912045435/http://www.gameinformer.com/b/features/archive/2013/09/09/how-smooth-got-his-mcgroove-the-introverted-acapella-youtube-artist.aspx|url-status=live|archive-date=September 12, 2013|magazine=Game Informer|date=September 9, 2013|access-date=September 11, 2013}}
A Starbound patch known as "v. Enraged Koala" released in early 2014 added a microphone feature including sounds by Gleason.{{cite web | url=http://www.pcgamer.com/2014/02/19/starbound-patch-prepares-for-daily-content-updates-adds-smooth-mcgroove/ | title=Starbound patch prepares for daily content updates, adds Smooth McGroove | publisher=Future Publishing, Ltd | date=February 19, 2014 | accessdate=August 11, 2014 | author=Savage, Phil}}{{cite web | url=http://www.vg247.com/2014/02/19/starboun-updated-one-more-universe-wipe-expected/ | title=Starbound updated, one more universe wipe expected | publisher=vg247 | date=February 19, 2014 | accessdate=August 11, 2014 | author=Hillier, Brenna}}
In 2014, Gleason provided narration for an episode of the video game webseries Did You Know Gaming? covering the F-Zero series.{{Cite web|url=http://normalboots.com/video/f-zero-know-gaming-feat-smooth-mcgroove/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140302011609/http://normalboots.com/video/f-zero-know-gaming-feat-smooth-mcgroove|url-status=usurped|archive-date=March 2, 2014|title=F-Zero - Did You Know Gaming? Feat. Smooth McGroove|publisher=Normal Boots|author=Did You Know Gaming?|date=February 22, 2014|accessdate=February 24, 2014}}
Gleason's cover of the "Gardens" theme from the 2008 video game LittleBigPlanet was included in the 2014 sequel LittleBigPlanet 3 under the title "Secret Gardens".{{cite web |last=Isbell |first=Steven |date=January 13, 2015 |work=PlayStation Blog |title=LittleBigPlanet 3 Sackboy meets the Big Hero 6 |url=https://blog.playstation.com/2015/01/13/littlebigplanet-3-sackboy-meets-the-big-hero-6/}}
Across 2019 and 2020, Gleason was dealing with personal medical problems and had shut down his Patreon and produced no content, but returned to production of his a cappella covers in March 2021.{{cite web | url = https://www.nintendolife.com/news/2021/03/random_smooth_mcgroove_updates_fans_on_where_hes_been_for_almost_two_years | title = Random: Smooth McGroove Updates Fans On Where He's Been For Almost Two Years |first = Kate | last = Grey | date = March 24, 2021 | accessdate = April 26, 2021 | work = Nintendo Life }}
Personal life
Gleason was born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and was raised in Yukon, Oklahoma. As of 2013, he lived in Oklahoma City with his cat, Charl. Charl is a black cat who, as of December 2018, has made appearances in every single one of Gleason's videos since early 2013.{{cite web|url=https://x.com/SmoothMcGroove/status/1069016409122975744|title="Where's the cat? :(" "It's not a Smooth McGroove video without your cat" My cat Charl has appeared in every single acapella video since early 2013. If you don't see him, you haven't won the game yet. Keep looking!|website=Twitter|date=December 1, 2018|access-date=September 21, 2024}}
References
External links
- {{YouTube|user=SmoothMcGroove|Smooth McGroove}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:McGroove, Smooth}}
Category:American Internet celebrities
Category:People from Oklahoma City