Sam Smith gives further details to Beats 1’s Julie Adenuga about his just-announced exclusive live streamed fan event in London and and short film On the Record: Sam Smith - The Thrill Of It All, available worldwide beginning Friday, November 3rd ONLY on Apple Music.
He talks about the people who feature in the film, including Yebba, the director Barber, his upcoming live-streamed performance, and more. Further details and transcript are below.
On the new album
S:“It was a really scary experience basically making this album an I found it really hard to let this one go. ‘In The Lonely Hour’ I could just let it go, but these songs are so personal to me and I’ve got such a deep relationship with each song and I found it so difficult to let it go this time.”
On working with the director of ‘The Thrill Of It All’
S:“With this film, I have an amazing guy called Barber, who has been friends with me and management for a long long time, he’s basically been following me, he did my first trailer for my first album, he’s just been with me in the studio, just a friend of mine as well. He’s managed to get some really intimate and amazing footage and I just wanted people to just get a little bit of a taste of what my life has been like for the last year and a half and it’s been so beautifully boring and normal. “
On the new film about ‘The Thrill Of It All’
S:“This ‘doco’ is a real celebration of the music and finding out how I make my album and I think a lot of people will be surprised because I do make pop music, I think people might assume that I maybe don’t or I’m not as involved as some other artists, but I’m there everyday and it’s a really authentic way of recording, we’ve been doing the whole album on tape with live musicians and you really get to see that."
On the people who feature in the film
S:“Isn’t it unreal, when I saw that footage back I was just like woah. It’s mad it’s weird watching lot’s of people chat about you. It’s strange [J: Did you get emotional when you were watching it back?] I really did yeah, theres a moment in the doco where Yebba, who I’m doing a duet with talks a little bit and I cried my eyes out when she spoke. Just because to me, she’s a really big part of this record for me, you know, as an artist I just adore her so much and I’m so inspired by her and what she stands for, and she’s such a beautiful soul, so yeah that bit really got me.”
On what his fans will love about the Documentary
S:“I think they’ll like to see me have a good time, everyone thinks I’m just sad and lonely and cry everyday, but I really have a good time. I think there’s some elements where you get to see my humour a little bit which is good.”
On his live streamed performance on Apple Music
S:“I’m going to perform quite a lot of songs, and there’s a special guest as well, I’m so excited. It’s going to be a really, really special show.”
On forgetting lyrics
S:“[J: You’re not not in a place where you might forget the words are you or do you know them off by heart by now?] Oh god, I had it the other day actually, I was rehearsing and I forget the words ‘Too Good at Goodbyes’, thank god I didn’t forget it live. [J: Like live whilst it was happening?] It’s difficult, sometimes you do. “
On singing old and new songs
S:“I still love singing the old songs as well, and they fit quite well with these ones when we perform them live, but I’ve had to change them up a little bit as well, I’ve changed ‘Stay With Me’ a tiny bit, it gets a bit monotonous singing it again and again in the same way.”
On how many times he thinks he’s sung ‘Stay With Me’
"S:I can’t even give it a go. I’d say thousands and thousands and thousands. "
On his music
S:“It’s my heart.”
On singer ‘Yebba’
S:“I was in LA, and my friend sent me a video of Yebba singing a song called ‘My Mind’ and at the time I was going through a breakup and the song just took over my life. Vocally I don’t think I’ve heard a singer sing like that, it’s unreal to me she’s in the top three best singers I’ve heard in my life. She’s just incredible and on top of that she’s such a soulful authentic real person and I’m so honoured that I got to work with her and I’m so excited to see her grow as an artist. I’m so excited for the world experience what I have.
“If I’m going to be completely honest, the minute I heard her voice, I was like I want to sing with her, just because I felt like she captivated what I was trying to do as an artist for this album, when I heard that song, I was like I wish I’d written that song, I wish I had that voice.”
On when Sam & Yebba met
S:"She flew to London and it turned more into a hang out which is amazing. [J: It wasn’t straight away let’s make music?] She came to London and we actually wrote a song on the first day we met, it just felt like sitting with my girlfriend smoking a cigarette and talking about life.”
On Yebba’s new single
S:“I’ve heard it, it’s absolutely amazing and her voice is so soulful and yeah I’m a massive fan.”
