English R&B pop sensation Sam Smith (born 19 May 1992) rose to fame before his first proper release. Smith provided vocals for the electronic duo Disclosure’s extremely successful single “Latch” but later came into his own with his critically and commercially acclaimed solo release “Lay Me Down”.
Smith would go on to make another guest appearance, which would prove important to his career. He showed up on Naughty Boy’s single “La La La”. This track rose all the way to number 1 on the UK Singles Chart in 2013. The same year Smith put out his first EP, which was entitled “Nirvana”. The EP contained an acoustic version of Disclosure’s “Latch” as well as “Together”, which was another Disclosure related effort and also a work containing a contribution from Nile Rogers of the disco group Chic.
This EP was followed by Smith’s much anticipated full length album “In the Lonely Hour”. This album contains the immensely popular hit “Money on My Mind” and Smith’s most successful single to date “Stay With Me”. The latter song has made it into the top 10 single charts in 12 different countries including a number 1 spot in the UK and a number 2 spot on the US Billboard’s Hot 100. Smith has performed this song on several television shows including Saturday Night Live, Good Morning America and on the David Letterman show alongside Mary J. Blige. Blige also appears on an alternative version of the single. This single has also been herald by many other performing artists and has been covered by Chris Brown, Charli XCX, FKA Twigs and even Vin Diesel. In promotion for “In the Lonely Hour” Smith embarked on a American headlining tour in the Spring of 2014, playing to multiple sold-out venues.
Apart from being third cousins to Lilly Allen, Smith had a musically rich childhood. He honed in on his singing and songwriting skills under the instruction of British Jazz pianist/songwriter Joanna Eden and attended the Youth Music Theatre UK, starring in their production of “Oh! Carol”. While Smith was a student at St. Mary’s Catholic School he was a part of the Bishop’s Stortford Junior Operatics and also strengthened his vocal skills in the Cantate Youth Choir. Despite Smith’s classical style voice training he gravitated towards the music of R&B legends Whitney Houston, Mariah Carey, Amy Winehouse and mega pop stars such as Beyonce and Lady Gaga. The influence of emotive soul and pop balladry remain an integral part of Smith’s style.
Samuel Nicholson
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