Smile High is the solo project from veteran pianist and producer Ben Silverstein. Honing his talents as a musician by playing the keyboard for funk-soul-rock fusion band The Main Squeeze, Silverstein has more than a decade under his belt of experience in the industry. With The Main Squeeze, he’s toured across the world, performing on some of the biggest stages and festivals in the US and Europe like Bonnaroo and Electric Forest, and touring with impressive names such as George Clinton & Parliament Funkadelic, and The String Cheese Incident, and now he’s ready to reintroduce himself with The Vibetape.The name “Smile High” is a portmanteau of Silverstein’s personal nickname “Smiley” (which comes from his “resting smile” face) and the Smile High Club, a concept that represents the low-pressure atmosphere of the jam sessions he’s now curated for over a decade, and the tight-knit bond between its members. These casual sessions, which Smiley now hosts at his residence (AKA The Squeeze House), became a way to break the pattern of excessive seriousness that comes from the business side of the music industry, which he began observing at concerts and scheduled studio sessions. While on break from touring, Smiley took a step back, examined the demos that emerged from those jam sessions with friends, and realized there was more than enough to flesh out a full-length project.“I’ve always found the most joy in collaborating with others and combining what I do best with what other people do best, and just being pleasantly surprised with the end result,” he explains. “That’s always been the essence of what I’ve been doing, and The Vibetape is truly the culmination of that.”Since there was no sheet music or preparation, these sessions would go wherever the music’s vibrations took them. As such it’s only appropriate that Smile High’s official debut would be named The Vibetape. With the help of his Main Squeeze bandmates and over a dozen featured artists including 6LACK, Chuck Inglish of The Cool Kids, Felly, and Tiffany Gouché, Smiley has specially curated a laid-back vibe for the album, fusing hip-hop, funk and R&B to create an easygoing project reminiscent of a dinner party with friends.