Sam Smith has unveiled their new single ‘To Be Free’, alongside announcing a 12-night residency at Warsaw in Brooklyn this October.
The acoustic track, co-written and produced with longtime collaborator Simon Aldred, features Smith’s vocals accompanied by The TwoCity Chorus. The song was recorded as a single live take with guitar.
“I’ve never had a recording experience like I did making this song. It’s one vocal and guitar take from start to finish – one live performance of me and my friend Simon Aldred in a pure state of music and expression,” Smith explains. “I wrote it five years ago while writing my last album Gloria and then parked it because I knew it was not a song for that album. It was created during a time in my life where I became free within myself.”
Smith continues: “With this song, the visual of rivers kept coming into my mind and into my heart. I grew up next to a little river in Cambridgeshire in the countryside of England. Then I moved to London and lived by the Thames, and now I live by the Hudson River. Rivers have been in my life a lot. So I found it interesting to think of my music and my expression as an artist as a river. Over the last five years, Simon and I started to create music that fit into this world of ‘To Be Free’ and during this time, I’ve continued to turn to this song in happy moments, sad moments, lonely moments and angry moments. It’s become my sister, my family member and ultimately calms me. Now, I’m ready to let it go and hopefully it can do the same for someone else.”
The accompanying video, directed by (LA)HORDE, was filmed at Warsaw and features The TwoCity Chorus joining Smith for a performance of the track. The video was directed by the collective who previously choreographed Smith’s ‘Unholy’ featuring Kim Petras.
The dates in full read:
OCTOBER
8 Warsaw, Brooklyn, US
10 Warsaw, Brooklyn, US
11 Warsaw, Brooklyn, US
15 Warsaw, Brooklyn, US
17 Warsaw, Brooklyn, US
18 Warsaw, Brooklyn, US
21 Warsaw, Brooklyn, US
22 Warsaw, Brooklyn, US
24 Warsaw, Brooklyn, US
29 Warsaw, Brooklyn, US
30 Warsaw, Brooklyn, US
31 Warsaw, Brooklyn, US
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