Sam Smith I Didn't Know About Being Gay

The singing superstar reveals his struggle to understand his sexuality.

While the lyrics to his songs might suggest otherwise, Sam Smith admits he sometimes has a bit of trouble expressing himself. ‘I’m not the most eloquent person,’ he humbly shares. ‘I didn’t get the best grades in school. I mean, I’m just good at singing.’

The singer’s word fumbles followed him to the Oscars in 2016 when he scored his first ever win for Best Original Song for his James Bond theme Writing’s on the Wall for Spectre. The career milestone was unfortunately overshadowed by his acceptance speech, where he erroneously claimed to be the first openly gay man to win the award.

‘Basically, I just f---ed up. I was so nervous… I’d read Sir Ian McKellen’s interview the day before saying that no openly gay man had ever won the Oscar for Best Actor, and in that moment my brain and my mouth didn’t work together. That’s nerves for you,’ Sam explains. ‘It made me really sad for a few weeks afterwards. I was really upset, but my intentions were good.’ The Brit made his musical comeback last year with new album The Thrill of It All. Now, Sam says he’s more confident to speak about the things close to his heart. ‘I am gay and my music is gay and what I speak about is gay,’ he says. ‘I feel like if you’re a true artist, you’re going to speak about what moves your core.’

Here, Sam talks about coming out, finding fame and how he’s only human…

FINDING HIMSELF