The Wonky Donkey

Born in Clyde, central Otago, New Zealand, in 1972, Craig Smith grew up living in the scenic South Island tourist town of Queenstown with his mother and five siblings. Craig has worked at a variety of jobs, from cook to ski instructor. As a child he remembers telling his mother, "When I grow up, I'm going to become a musician." Her answer? "You can't do both!" She was right. Although he spends much of his time writing songs for an adult audience, Craig couldn't escape his childish side and was soon writing songs ""or the less mature." In late 2007, Craig released his first kids' album Not Just for Kids. The first track from this album - THE WONKY DONKEY - won the APRA NZ Children's Song of the Year Award in 2008 and ended up making the top 25 songs in the children's section of the ISC International Songwriting Contest - the world's biggest song competition. In 2009, The Wonky Donkey was published as a book with hilarious illustrations by Craig's friend, Katz Cowley. This talented duo is now working on another book and song project - Willbee the Bumblebee - due out from Scholastic next year. Craig now lives in Christchurch, New Zealand, and, when he is not working on his children's music/books, he works as an itinerant musician, playing in restaurants and pubs, at market days and festivals, playing music for young and old.