Introduction
Sam Smith is an English singer and songwriter whose voice — a soaring, soul-inflected tenor — carried them from featured vocalist on dance singles to one of the most decorated British pop artists of their generation. Smith has won five Grammy Awards, three Brit Awards, an Academy Award and a Golden Globe, a haul built on ballads such as “Stay with Me” and “Writing’s on the Wall” and on a later, bolder pop phase crowned by the global hit “Unholy”.
Smith uses they/them pronouns and identifies as non-binary, a fact they have spoken about publicly since 2019. Their career is often told as two acts: the heartbreak balladeer of In the Lonely Hour (2014) and the theatrical pop artist of Gloria (2023). The fuller story connects those acts — the choir and musical-theatre training, the years as a featured singer, the Bond theme, and the deliberate reinvention that produced “Unholy”.
This article follows that full arc, explains why Smith’s awards record matters beyond the trophy count, and covers the gaps short profiles skip: the featured-artist breakthrough, the songwriting partnerships behind the hits, and the live and orchestral work of recent years.
| Quick Bio | Details |
|---|---|
| Full name | Samuel Frederick Smith |
| Born | 19 May 1992, London, England |
| Profession | Singer, songwriter |
| Best known for | “Stay with Me”; “Writing’s on the Wall”; “Unholy” with Kim Petras |
| Years active | 2007–present |
| Pronouns | They/them |
| Major awards | Five Grammys; three Brits; one Academy Award; one Golden Globe |
| Albums | In the Lonely Hour (2014); The Thrill of It All (2017); Love Goes (2020); Gloria (2023) |
| Breakthrough | Featured vocal on Disclosure’s “Latch” (2012) |
Early life and training
Samuel Frederick Smith was born in London on 19 May 1992 and grew up in the village of Great Chishill in Cambridgeshire. They sang in choirs and in bands and performed in musical theatre productions as a young person, training that explains the control and range of their later vocal performances. Before their commercial breakthrough at 21, Smith balanced study and music, building a voice shaped by soul singers such as Aretha Franklin and Chaka Khan and by later British artists including Amy Winehouse and Adele.
Breakthrough: “Latch” and “La La La”
Smith rose to prominence in 2012 as the featured vocalist on Disclosure’s breakthrough single “Latch”, which peaked at number 11 on the UK Singles Chart. The following year they featured on Naughty Boy’s “La La La”, which reached number one in the UK. Those two features did something unusual: they made Smith’s voice famous before Smith’s own name was. When their solo career launched, the audience already knew the sound.
In the Lonely Hour and the Grammy sweep
Smith’s debut studio album, In the Lonely Hour, was released in May 2014 through Capitol Records UK and debuted at number one on the UK Albums Chart. Its singles “Money on My Mind”, “Stay with Me” and “I’m Not the Only One” all reached the UK top ten, with “Stay with Me” reaching number one in the UK and number two on the US Billboard Hot 100.
At the 57th Annual Grammy Awards in 2015, Smith won four awards: Best New Artist, Record of the Year and Song of the Year for “Stay with Me (Darkchild Version)”, and Best Pop Vocal Album for In the Lonely Hour. The album was the second-best-selling album of 2014 in both the UK and the US, behind only Ed Sheeran and Taylor Swift respectively.
Bond theme, second album and reinvention
Smith’s next major milestone was “Writing’s on the Wall”, the theme for the James Bond film Spectre (2015), which became the first Bond theme to reach number one in the UK and went on to win the Academy Award for Best Original Song and the Golden Globe for Best Original Song. Their second album, The Thrill of It All (2017), continued the soul and gospel-inflected ballad style, producing the UK number-one single “Too Good at Goodbyes”.
Love Goes (2020) moved towards electronic and pop sounds, and by the end of the 2010s Smith had accumulated six UK number-one singles as a headliner. The through-line was a willingness to change producers and collaborators rather than repeat the debut’s formula — a choice that set up the most dramatic reinvention of their career.
“Unholy”, Gloria and recent work
In September 2022 Smith released “Unholy” with German singer Kim Petras, the lead single from their fourth album Gloria (January 2023). The song reached number one in the UK and the US — Smith’s first US chart-topper — and won the Grammy Award for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance in 2023, Smith’s fifth Grammy. It also made Smith and Petras the first openly non-binary and first openly transgender artists respectively to top the Billboard Hot 100.
Gloria was supported by a global tour, and Smith has since continued to collaborate across genres, including a second partnership with Calvin Harris on the 2023 dance single “Desire” and an orchestral appearance at the BBC Proms at the Royal Albert Hall in 2024. A fifth studio album, Hazel Eyes, was announced for 2026, conceived as a tribute to New York City.
Why Sam Smith’s career stands out
Smith’s career stands out for its range: from featured dance vocalist to Grammy-sweeping balladeer, Bond theme singer, and theatrical pop artist. Few British singers have topped both the UK and US charts in such different styles, and fewer still have done so while speaking openly about identity in a way that changed how the industry talks about pronouns and representation. Competitor profiles that reduce Smith to a single hit or a single album miss that deliberate, decade-long reinvention.
Frequently Asked Questions
When was Sam Smith born? Sam Smith was born Samuel Frederick Smith on 19 May 1992 in London, England.
What pronouns does Sam Smith use? Sam Smith uses they/them pronouns and identifies as non-binary.
What is Sam Smith’s biggest song? “Stay with Me” (2014) is their signature ballad; “Unholy” (2022) with Kim Petras was their first US number one.
How many Grammys has Sam Smith won? Five: four at the 2015 ceremony for the In the Lonely Hour era and one in 2023 for “Unholy”.
Did Sam Smith sing a James Bond theme? Yes — “Writing’s on the Wall” for Spectre (2015), which won the Academy Award for Best Original Song.
More on Presslix
James Arthur: X Factor Winner, Singer and Career Explained — the previous article on Presslix. See also the Biography category for more profiles.
Sources
Wikipedia — Sam Smith. AllMusic — Sam Smith biography. Recording Academy — Grammy Awards results. Official Charts Company — Sam Smith chart history. BBC News — BBC Proms and Gloria coverage.
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