Sam Smith

Sam Smith is an English singer-songwriter from London, United Kingdom. Born in 1992, they work in pop, soul, R&B and electronic-influenced styles, with their listed genres including alternative R&B, blue-eyed soul, contemporary R&B, pop, pop soul and R&B. Smith is associated with the labels Green Door Studio and SSW Publishing Limited.

Career

Smith first comes to prominence in October 2012 after featuring on Disclosure’s single “Latch”, which reaches number eleven on the UK Singles Chart. They then feature on Naughty Boy’s “La La La”, which becomes a number one single in May 2013. In December 2013, Smith is nominated for the Brit Critics’ Choice Award and the BBC’s Sound of 2014 poll, and wins both.

Their debut studio album, In the Lonely Hour, is released in May 2014 on Capitol Records UK. Its lead single, “Lay Me Down”, is issued before “La La La”. “Money on My Mind” becomes Smith’s second UK number one, while “Stay with Me” becomes an international hit, reaching number one in the UK and number two on the US Billboard Hot 100. “I’m Not the Only One” and “Like I Can” both reach the UK top ten.

Awards and recognition

In the Lonely Hour wins four awards at the 57th Annual Grammy Awards, including Best Pop Vocal Album, Best New Artist, Record of the Year and Song of the Year, and it also receives nominations for Album of the Year and Best Pop Solo Performance. Smith also wins the Golden Globe Award and the Academy Award for Best Original Song for “Writing’s on the Wall”, written with Jimmy Napes for the James Bond film Spectre (2015).

Smith’s second studio album, The Thrill of It All, is released in November 2017 and debuts at number one in both the UK and US album charts. Its lead single, “Too Good at Goodbyes”, reaches number one in the UK and Australia and number four in the US. Smith then releases “Promises” with Calvin Harris, which reaches number one in the UK.

In 2019, Smith releases “Dancing with a Stranger” with Normani, which reaches the top ten in both the UK and US and is nominated for Song of the Year at the 2020 Brit Awards. They follow this with “How Do You Sleep?”, “To Die For” and “I’m Ready” with Demi Lovato, all of which appear on the third album Love Goes.

Personal identity

Smith is publicly gay, genderqueer, and uses they/them pronouns.

Honours

Across their career, Smith wins four Grammy Awards, three Brit Awards, three Billboard Music Awards, an American Music Award, a Golden Globe and an Academy Award.