Sam Smith is no stranger to performing in front of thousands – tens of thousands, even. Still, one might imagine it’s a task that’s infinitely more daunting for someone wearing an outfit of nipple clamps, leather briefs, and thigh-high platform boots. Yet as the 30-year-old stomps across the O2 Arena stage, cherubic cheeks rosy as they grin, there’s no hint of fear. Instead, there’s a playful glint in their eyes and a defiant expression of pride on their face. “Did I say something wrong? Oops, I didn’t know I couldn’t talk about sex,” they tease in a cover of Madonna’s 1995 self-expression anthem “Human Nature”. Smith knows that people will talk – and from the looks of things, that’s exactly the point.
Born in London, Smith was raised in the Cambridgeshire village of Great Chishill, where they performed in youth choirs and musical theatre groups. After releasing some early tracks in their late teens, 20-year-old Smith got their first taste of mainstream attention after providing the irresistible vocals for Disclosure’s hit song “Latch” in 2012. From there, the road to stardom was paved. Their 2014 debut album, In the Lonely Hour, was a global success, earning Smith four Grammys and securing their status as a household name. But recent years have seen the musician transition away from the strait-laced, desexed image of their young career. In 2019, Smith announced their non-binary identity. Since then, they have embraced queerness in their music and in their dress, experimenting across gender lines with fashion and make-up. Tonight feels like the culmination of those years of self-discovery.
