Moving seamlessly between the constellations of jazz styles and the rich and varied literature of the classical masters, Joel LaRue Smith is one of those rare and gifted pianists who have never had to choose between these two musical worlds, because for him they are not separate. His pianistic skill, musical artistry, and intuitive understanding of each composer he interprets speak directly and intimately to his listeners. He invites them to enter into a unique, personal, and exhilarating musical experience, regardless of the genre.

Touring extensively throughout the U.S., Europe, Asia , Central America and the Caribbean, Joel LaRue Smith has performed at Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center and the Whitney Museum in New York; The White House; Symphony Hall in San Francisco and Boston; The Royal Albert Hall in London; Multi-Cultural Festivals; and various noted jazz clubs like the Blue Note and The Village Gate in New York City. He has performed with the New York Philharmonic at the Apollo Theatre in New York, The Toledo Symphony, The French National Orchestra, Mario Bauza, Kenny Burrell, Junior Cook and Wayne Andre.

He is a recipient of the 2019 Live Arts Boston grant from the Boston Foundation. He is also the recipient of the 2017 Artist Fellowship and Finalist Awards in Music Composition from the Massachusetts Cultural Council, six Meet the Composer grants, a grand prizewinner for the grant in musical composition from the Queens Council for the Arts, and has won the distinguished George and Ira Gershwin Award from ASCAP.

In December 2020, Joel scored the music for a documentary film on the Royall House Mansion and Slave Quarters in Medford, Massachusetts