Sam Smith: I am a very cheesy person - Hindustan Times

If one is a pop star, you’d expect them to be cool. But Sam Smith isn’t. “ I am not a cool person. I am a very cheesy person,” they say, reiterating the ‘happy-being-who-I-am’ vibe they have been talking about ever since they came out as a non-binary individual last September.

“ [At the start of my career] I was very scared. I never expected my first album to connect with so many people. It became harder because, everywhere I went, I had so many people just looking up to me to see me perform.  I felt scared to express my sexuality and my gender. It was quite a scary thing to do that in front of so many people,” they say.

“But times have changed. I have been extremely lucky. I have wonderful friends, family and a team, who love me and support me. Now it’s thrilling and adventurous,” says Smith, admitting they’ve become more comfortable with who they are.

The sense of freedom can be felt in their recently released song, I’m Ready, also featuring singer Demi Lovato, where the 27-year-old Britisher wears what they want, does what they want. “There were no rules and I have decided to sing from my heart all the time. I know I am going to fall short sometimes, but it still feels human at the end of it all. That’s what this song is. It’s a clash of all my passions and all my interests. It’s cheesy for sure! So it feels right,” adds Smith.

Smith became a singing sensation at the age of 21, with the debut album, In the Lonely Hour, and in a span of six years they have already won four Grammys and One Oscar award for the song, Writing’s on the Wall for the Daniel Craig-starrer Bond film, Spectre (2015).

Times have surely changed for Smith, who was one of the stars at the recently concluded virtual Global Citizen concert, which also featured a host of stars such as Eddie Vedder, Lady Gaga and Priyanka Chopra Jonas. . And Smith uses their star status to champion causes for the LGBTQ+ community and fight body-shaming issues. Yet, Smith finds being a role model “intense”.

“ I am just a singer and I am going to continue with that. I am going to express and do whatever I can through that, but I am a big supporter of people in the queer community.I know there’s so much to fight for. There are so many amazing talented queer people who need to be seen. So I will do what I can. Being a role model is intense,” Smith laughs, adding they are still learning how to be kind and more compassionate from fellow non-binary individuals such as the Indian-origin American artist Alok Vaid-Menon.

 “They are not just activists on social media. They are also our teachers. Being a queer person, you don’t understand your history from books or school or your family. It’s really difficult. So you turn to people like Alok, who I turn to, who teach me the right terminology. I understand that I have the white male privilege so I am still unlearning a lot of things, and trying to learn the right terminology,” they share. 

Using the right terminology is also close to Smith’s heart. The singer was recently identified as a “he” by Elton John, following which the latter was trolled on social media for being insensitive despite being gay himself.  Smith understands that “ people are bound to make mistakes”  because many are still understanding the right words.

Yet, for Smith, it’s important for people to respect feelings of individuals who identify themselves as non-binary or from the queer community. “ For someone who is non-binary, they know deep down that they will be mis-gendered through out their lives. So, if someone has asked to be referred to as ‘they’, from their friends and family, then the latter should try to do that and help understand them better,” Smith adds.

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2020-04-19 02:26:36Z

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