Kamryn isn't new to performing. For 10 of the 14 years she’s been alive, she's done competitive dance at her hometown studio in Ahwatukee. But singing and acting is a different challenge, she says.
Season 1 of "Yo Gabba GabbaLand!" premiered on Apple TV+ in August 2024, and being the only young person on set can sometimes feel isolating. But Kamryn promises that the cast is supportive, welcoming and inclusive.
“I basically do have friends, even though they are adults,” she says.
Kamryn got her first taste of the live "Yo Gabba Gabba!" experience during the cast's appearance at Coachella in April 2025. The popular opinion was that Smith and the rest of the "Yo Gabba Gabba!" crew killed it at the festival.
Blunt Magazine wrote, "Yo Gabba Gabba! didn’t try to be cool. They didn’t need to. They just leaned in and let it get weird. It was pure chaos. Loud, surreal, strangely cohesive chaos. It shouldn’t have gone this hard — but it absolutely did."
The Coachella performance in April ripped the Band Aid off for what to expect on tour, both for Kamryn and her mother, Adriana Smith.
“I mean, it's been an out-of-body experience for me,” Adriana says. But knowing so many people loved the original, she's is grateful for the acceptance of her daughter’s character.
“I think for a lot of people, it resonated really well because she was a little younger and more relatable,” Adriana says.
“I mean, it's been an out-of-body experience for me,” Adriana says. But knowing so many people loved the original, she's is grateful for the acceptance of her daughter’s character.
“I think for a lot of people, it resonated really well because she was a little younger and more relatable,” Adriana says.
The "Yo Gabba Gabba! Live" tour kicked off on Aug. 1, and Kamryn only had four days to memorize her lines and rehearse.
"The whole singing and dialogue thing is way, way different,” she says.
Remembering her choreography and keeping the energy up is familiar territory, but now she has to take care of her voice, remember her vitamins, drink tea and stay calm.
“There’s only one of me, so there can't be an understudy, I guess,” Smith says. “So, like, if I do get sick, or if something happens, I have to rest differently."
Kamryn's favorite part of the live shows is interacting with kids during "The Beat of the Day," a segment in which a child from the audience comes on stage.
“It's really fun because you get to see all the kids, and they're so cute,” Kamyrn says. She wants her performance to inspire her audiences to feel confident and to try their best.
“It's really fun because you get to see all the kids, and they're so cute,” Kamyrn says. She wants her performance to inspire her audiences to feel confident and to try their best.
Like many a grown-up, Kamryn sometimes has trouble juggling her many commitments.
“To be honest, I’m not really good at staying on top of the schedule,” she says, but the tour has helped with her time management. Performances are typically around 6 p.m., leaving time to get ready and shoot promos before showtime; that is, as long as her schoolwork is done.
Like many students, if Kamryn had the option, she’d “never do school again,” but she gets her learning done before 4 p.m. Currently, she’s taking an online program through Basha High School. This program lets her do other activities at Chandler High School, such as pom, where she gets to cheer on her brother this football season.
If she could bring anyone on tour with her, she wishes it could be her dog, Cali, and their matching Kammy Kam costumes. But she's got the love and support of Adriana, who is along for every moment of the ride, including the tour bus bunkbeds.
Kids' television was not part of Kamryn's planned career path, but playing Kammy Kam on "Yo Gabba GabbaLand!" ended up being the perfect opportunity to aim her future trajectory even higher.
“I wouldn't say I needed to do (the job) … but it felt good for the soul," she says. "It was something that I really wanted to do.”
"Yo Gabba Gabba! Live!": 6 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 30. Orpheum Theatre, 203 W. Adams St. Tickets start at $25.
