July’s Final Friday with 91.3 WYEP was a full circle moment for Rachel Smith, Catalpa Place. She performed just minutes from her home with a Pittsburgh indie band.

Founded by her college friend, Alex Stanton, townsppl is known for its rotating lineup and pop-folk sound. “It’s casual,” Smith said, noting the band rehearses just a few times a year.

Stanton started townsppl in 2013 and asked his friends, including Smith, to contribute to the first album. Since then, he’s produced two more albums, Beyond the Garden Wall being the most recent.

Townsppl performs at venues and festivals all over Pittsburgh, from Club Café and the Northside Music Festival to the amphitheater at Clearview Common.

“I was hyped because I don’t get to play that close to home that frequently,” Smith said. Plus, she loved that the concert was early enough for her 3-year-old daughter to attend.

Stanton, who appreciated the opportunity to perform at the WYEP event, added, “I’m a big fan of the radio station for a long time, and our music kind of fits nicely into what they’re doing. They’re great champions of local bands.”

Outside of performing, Smith is a music educator, with a BA in music performance from Duquesne University. She teaches strings at Carlow University’s youth music program, which she launched in 2019, serves as adjunct faculty at Carnegie Mellon University for non-major cello students and offers private cello lessons. Whether she’s teaching a kindergartner or a retiree in their 70s, she helps them master the foundations and techniques before figuring out their own style.