Sam Smith On Moving To New York, Falling In Love, And Performing A 24-Show Brooklyn Residency

The lights come up, the crowd roars. Stephen Colbert steps forward, his voice warm:

“Everybody, welcome back. Later sentiment, friends and neighbors, Romans, countrymen—hear me out! My next guest is a musical artist who’s won five Grammys and an Academy Award. Next week, they begin their ‘To Be Free: New York City’ residency right here in Brooklyn. Please welcome back to ‘The Late Show,’ Sam Smith!”

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The band plays. Sam enters to cheers and applause.

Stephen smiles, “Nice to have you back again. First time we’ve had a chance to sit down and talk this year.”

Sam, settling in, grins: “These couches…”

Stephen: “I understand you’ve been in New York many times, but you’ve moved here?”

Sam: “I have moved here. Crazy.”

Stephen: “The greatest city in the world?”

Sam: “It’s amazing.”

Stephen, curious: “As a new resident, what are your impressions of our country and the city?”

Sam laughs, “It’s a strange time to move to America, for sure. Very strange.”

Stephen: “It’s a strange time to stay in America. But weirdly, being in New York, I feel the most free I’ve ever felt.”

Stephen nods, shifting to Sam’s artistry:
“You’re an extraordinarily talented musician. Your music, your fashion choices—this is how a lot of people first got to know you. This was the look you were rocking. Was that your natural state?”

Sam: “That was more like drag for me. When I was in school, I wore full makeup and wild clothing. I was known for it.”

Stephen: “Is this what you’re talking about? This is you in high school. Where did you go to school?”

Sam: “A place called Bishop Stauffer in the U.K., just outside of London. As you can see, I was very in the closet.”

Stephen: “People love so many of your outfits. This fabulous number in 2022—a lovely piece of coral. It turned a lot of heads. It’s beautiful, but it looks like maybe a terrible scuba diving accident. Tell me about this.”

Sam: “That was the funnest thing I’ve ever worn in my life. It was amazing. Everybody at the time was calling me fat, so I thought, let’s be really, really fat. I had to lube myself up to get in it.”

Stephen, laughing: “It’s a family show. Here we go.”

Sam: “It was a fun few years. Nice to add some color into the wardrobe.”

Stephen: “When did you fall in love with music? When did you say, ‘This is what I want to do with my life’?”

Sam: “I had an amazing singing teacher growing up, who taught me when I was eight. She released her own music and albums. Watching her do it, I thought, that’s what I want. I want to travel and sing stories from my life.”

The crowd applauds.

Stephen: “I heard your dad had a big influence on your music and taste.”

Sam: “Yeah, my dad was a huge supporter. He worked me hard. Every time I came home from school, we’d do an hour of singing while he cooked. If I hit a bum note, he’d stop cooking and make me start again. He was such a tender man. He’d sit there and cry when I sang.”

Stephen: “That’s lovely. People struggle for many years before they make it. When did you think, ‘Oh, I’ve hit a level I hadn’t expected’?”

Sam: “It was much later in my career. The first three, four years were crazy. I remember selling out an arena in Montreal for the first time—couldn’t believe it. Going back seven, eight years later, fully being myself and still selling out that room—that was my moment.”

The crowd cheers.

Stephen: “You’ve got new music coming and a Brooklyn residency starting next week as part of ‘To Be Free: New York City.’ What can people expect? Are we going to cry? Dance? Dance until we cry?”

Sam: “First of all, please come. It’s at The Warsaw in Brooklyn, a thousand-capacity venue—smaller than my recent shows. It’s just me and friends, very simple.”

Stephen: “You’ve also got a residency in San Francisco after that?”

Sam: “Yes, opening up the Castro Theatre.”

Stephen: “Some of your most popular music is very emotional. Do you ever get emotional listening to your own music? Do you ever cry?”

Sam: “I have in the past. I’m working on a project now, and for the first time, I’m fully in love with someone. Singing love songs and actually meaning it—that makes me cry.”

Stephen: “That’s lovely. You’ve worked with legends—Streisand, Madonna, Keys. Who’s still on your collaboration list?”

Sam: “After Streisand and Madonna, where do you go? Mary J. Blige—that was insane. Every year, it’s like a religious experience for me. I go see Mariah Carey sing Christmas songs in New York. To sing with Mariah Carey, just one Christmas song with her—I would die.”

Stephen: “I think she watches every one of these shows. Mariah, you know what you need to do. I don’t call in favors often, but come on the show and sing with Sam. This year.”

Sam: “That would be fabulous.”

Stephen: “Wouldn’t that be fantastic? So lovely to see you. Thank you for being here. Tickets for ‘To Be Free: New York City’ are available now, and you can see Sam perform on this show tomorrow night. Sam Smith, everybody. We’ll be right back.”

The credits roll. Stephen waves:
“That’s it for ‘The Late Show,’ everybody! Tune in tomorrow when my guest will be Julia Roberts. Good night!”