Blake Vance - Blake Vance comes to the Smyth County Jam from his home in Crossnore, North Carolina. He plays mandolin , specifically, but says he can play about everything with strings. Blake is an insurance agent. He says no one in his family plays an instrument. Blake is a member of the band "Ridgeline." He says he used to have a radio show on WECR radio in Newland North Carolina. Doyle Lawson is a talent Blake admires very much.