Sam’s coming out … to Australia

September 9, 2014 5:23 am 0 comments Views: 4

Sam Smith worried his sexuality would affect his career.
Source: Getty Images

SAM Smith has revealed he feared his sexuality would overshadow his music.

On the eve of releasing his debut album In the Lonely Hour, Smith, 22, said many of the unrequited love songs on it were written about a married man.

EARLIER: Meet Sam, the ‘male Adele’

The British singer’s album is now one of the year’s biggest sellers globally, with the ballad Stay With Me a No. 2 hit in conservative America.

“It gives me faith in humanity,” Smith said. “I was scared there would be some people in the world where my sexuality would make them not pick up my record,’’ Smith said.

“The thought of people not being able to hear the music I made scared me, because that’s my dream, for the whole entire world to sing my songs. That’s been my dream from a very young age. So it was a risk but I was proved completely wrong. People are listening to the music, that’s the most important thing.”

Singer Sam Smith pictured in Sydney earlier this year. Photo: Jeremy Piper
Source: DailyTelegraph

Smith said no one ever warned him about revealing he was gay.

“I surround myself with people who are very liberal and very comfortable. It wasn’t an issue for me at all. I’ve been very open from a very young age about it.”

A recent interview quoted him as saying he did not want to be a spokesman for the gay community, which he denies.

“That was taken out of context. Of course I want to be a spokesman for the gay community. I want to be a spokesman for everyone. What I meant was I don’t want to limit to just one community, I want to reach everyone, gay people, lesbians, transsexuals, straight people, Catholics, anyone. I want my music to hit everyone.

“You just need to come to my concerts and see the range of people there, from 12 year old girls to 60 year old women. That’s my main aim. I don’t put things in boxes, that’s the way I’ve grown up. I believe people are people and music is music. I’m just a 22 year old boy writing songs about being lonely and hoping everyone will sing them with me, that’s kind of it.”

Smith announced his first tour of Australia yesterday, playing Brisbane’s Riverstage on April 25, Sydney’s Hordern Pavilion on April 27, Margaret Court Arena in Melbourne on April 30, Adelaide Entertainment Centre on May 1 and HBF Stadium in Perth on May 4.

Presale tickets go on sale tomorrow, with the general on sale from 11am Monday.

Smith is playing the yet-to-open Margaret Court Arena in Melbourne, situated next to Rod Laver Arena.

Ironically the venue is named after tennis player Margaret Court, now a pastor who calls homosexuality “unhealthy and unnatural” and “abominable.”

Her Victory Life Church state “The fact that the homosexual cry is, ‘We can’t help it as we were born this way’, as the cause behind their own personal choice is cause for concern. Every action begins with a thought. There is a choice to be made.”

Tennis icon Martina Navratilova said of Court’s beliefs “Her myopic view is truly frightening as well as damaging to the thousands of children already living in same gender families.”