Miss Smith

In a few short years, Jorja Smith has gone from a stint in Starbucks to a sold-out US tour. We catch up with R&B’s new golden girl.

- Shama Nasinde

There is no one on the scene quite like Jorja Smith. The 19-year-old newcomer has the smooth and commanding presence of a jazz songtress way beyond her years, a touch of Amy Winehouse in her expressive delivery and the flow of an artist with Reggae spirit coursing through her veins. Smith’s observant lyricism landed her on BBC’s Sound of 2017 – a list famous for naming future stars such as Adele, Ellie Goulding and Sam Smith. Fresh from a US tour and due to dazzle sold-out crowds across the UK this spring, Schön! sits down with the alluring soul singer.

Smith is petite, bubbly and insists on hugs over handshakes. Behind her puffa jacket and all-black Nikes she maintains a charmingly humble teenage spirit which makes her imminent career trajectory that much more admirable. In just over a year, Smith’s jazz-infused R&B has amassed impressive industry buzz. Last January she released her indelible debut single, Blue Lights, grabbing the attention of notable radio influencers Drake, Annie Mac and Zane Lowe. The single samples Dizzee Rascal’s Grime track Sirens against a melancholic piano riff she found on SoundCloud. Smith reveals the track’s success was unexpected: “I wrote it in my room, came downstairs, played my dad the song like any other and that was that. I didn’t think it was going to have this snowball effect.”