Jared Braden A healthy obsession with pop music!
In a new interview with Fader, 22-year-old British vocalist Sam Smith has revealed that his debut album, In the Lonely Hour, was inspired by his love for a man. The record, which will be released in America on June 17th, is currently on track to top the Official Albums Chart in the United Kingdom. According to the latest Official Charts Company sales data, Sam is currently outselling the reigning chart toppers (Coldplay) by nearly 20,000 copies.
“I’ve never been in a relationship before,” Smith tells the website in the exclusive interview. “I’ve only been in unrequited relationships where people haven’t loved me back. I guess I’m a little bit attracted to that in a bad way. In the Lonely Hour is about a guy that I fell in love with last year, and he didn’t love me back. I think I’m over it now, but I was in a very dark place. I kept feeling lonely in the fact that I hadn’t felt love before. I’ve felt the bad things. And what’s a more powerful emotion: pain or happiness?”
Smith went on to say that the man who inspired his debut album is fully aware of the role he played in shaping the record. “I told him about it recently, and obviously it was never going to go the way I wanted it to go, because he doesn’t love me. But it was good as a form of closure, to get it off my chest and tell him. I feel better for it. I feel almost like I signed off this part of my life where I keep giving myself to guys who are never going to love me back.”
He added: “I am comfortable with myself, and my life is amazing in that respect. I’m very comfortable and happy with everything. I just wanted to talk about him and have it out there. It’s about a guy and that’s what I wanted people to know—I want to be clear that that’s what it’s about. I’ve been treated as normal as anyone in my life; I’ve had no issues. I do know that some people have issues in life, but I haven’t, and it’s as normal as my right arm. I want to make it a normality because this is a non-issue. People wouldn’t ask a straight person these questions. I’ve tried to be clever with this album, because it’s also important to me that my music reaches everybody.”
Sam Smith recently premiered the music video for his new single “Leave Your Lover,” a new track off his debut record. The song is available now on iTunes as an instant download when fans pre-order In The Lonely Hour.
