Sam Smith and John Legend to release Official Red Nose Day single

Sam Smith and John Legend to release Official Red Nose Day single

Comic Relief is delighted to announce that Brit and Grammy award winning superstar Sam Smith will be collaborating with Oscar winner John Legend to record a very special version of Sam's song Lay Me Down, making it the official single for Red Nose Day.

The original song is from Sam's multi-platinum debut album In the Lonely Hour and this new version is being re-released as a one off single to raise money for Comic Relief. The track is available from today to download on iTunes and the single is available to buy exclusively in Sainsbury's.

UK born Sam Smith and American born John Legend will perform the ballad together for the first and only time on Comic Relief – Face the Funny on Friday 13th March on BBC One, where their special one off performance will be broadcast live from the London Palladium.

Sam Smith said: "Lay Me Down holds a very special place in my heart, not only did I perform it at the Brits I'm now going to perform it live on the Red Nose Day show with the extremely talented John Legend which is so exciting. I recently visited a Comic Relief funded project in my home town which supports the young LGBT community in London, I'm extremely proud that my single will help raise money for projects like this and many others in the UK and across Africa."

John Legend said: "Sam is such a talented artist. We've been looking forward to working together for a while now. I'm so glad we could collaborate on such a great song and for such a great cause."

The pair recorded the track together in Los Angeles, earlier this year. The single is produced by Jimmy Napes and Steve Fitzmaurice and was written by Sam Smith, James Napier and Elvin Smith. Universal will donate 100% of its profits from the sale of the single to Comic Relief.

Stream the single here http://po.st/SSCRSP


Buy the single on iTunes https://po.st/ukhlzV

Sam Smith releases new video for Lay Me Down

Sam Smith releases new video for Lay Me Down

Sam Smith has released a stunning video to accompany his newest single "Lay Me Down" released through Capitol Records on 15th March. The striking video opens as Sam Smith stands at the head of a church for a funeral service, as the chorus approaches the camera pans to the back of the church and the setting becomes a wedding as Sam is getting married before finally closing as Sam sits, alone with his words in the empty pews. The breath-taking new video was directed by Ryan Hope (Bombay Bicycle Club, London Grammar, Alpines) and shot in a South-East London church, all in one continuous take with no editing involved

Just over two years ago, Sam Smith captured hearts throughout the world when he released a stripped-back, acoustic video of "Lay Me Down". The video of Sam and his pianist in a studio was raw and emotive, leading to it being shared at an exponential rate the world-over. Now in 2015, Sam has been back into the studio with producers Jimmy Napes and Steve Fitzmaurice to re-record a brand new version for single release - the result is a heartfelt and poignant track that underlines Sam's completely unique and powerful vocals.

Two years later and Sam Smith is still the name on everyone's lips as last year saw Sam sell over five million copies worldwide of his debut album 'In The Lonely Hour' making him one of the fastest-selling British debut artists of all time. 2014 saw Sam go from newcomer to international superstar having now collected an impressive array of prestigious music awards and nominations including six Grammy Nominations and leading the charge with five BRIT nominations. It was also recently announced he was the only artist in the world last year to reach over 1 million album sales in both the UK and the US.

Sam's Grammy nominations make him the first male artist in 34 years – and the first U.K. male artist ever – to receive nominations in the "big four" GRAMMY Awards® categories following the release of a debut album. In The Lonely Hour was nominated for Album Of The Year while his 4x multi-Platinum single "Stay With Me" was nominated for Record and Song Of The Year as well as receiving a nod for Best New Artist. These four categories constitute the General Field of the GRAMMY nominations. In addition, he was nominated for Best Pop Vocal Album (In The Lonely Hour) and Best Pop Solo Performance ("Stay With Me"), bringing his total nominations to six.

In just a year from being awarded the BRITs Critics Choice in 2014 he leads the pack as we move into this year's BRIT Awards with five nominations under his belt for Best Male, Best Album, Best Song, Best Newcomer and Best Video.

Sam's live shows move from strength to strength, after a string of incredible sold out shows across North America, Sam will return to the UK in March to embark on another sold out UK tour, culminating in three back to back shows at London's O2 Brixton Academy. 2015 is shaping up to be bigger than the last year with Sam's escalating success and multi-national sales making him one of the UK's most exciting home-grown talents.

For more information: www.samsmithworld.com

Sam Smith announces new single Lay Me Down

Sam Smith announces new single Lay Me Down

In the midst of his sell out North American tour, which has seen him perform at Madison Square Garden and two nights at The Forum in LA, Sam Smith announces his new single "Lay Me Down" released through Capitol Records on 15th March.

Just over two years ago, Sam Smith captured hearts throughout the world when he released a stripped-back, acoustic video of "Lay Me Down". The video of Sam and his pianist in a studio was raw and emotive, leading to it being shared at an exponential rate the world-over. Now in 2015, Sam has been back into the studio with producers Jimmy Napes and Steve Fitzmaurice to re-record a brand new version for single release - the result is a heartfelt and poignant track that underlines Sam's completely unique and powerful vocals.

Two years later and Sam Smith is still the name on everyone's lips as last year saw Sam sell over five million copies worldwide of his debut album 'In The Lonely Hour' making him one of the fastest-selling British debut artists of all time. 2014 saw Sam go from newcomer to international superstar having now collected an impressive array of prestigious music awards and nominations including six Grammy Nominations and leading the charge with five BRIT nominations. It was also recently announced he was the only artist in the world last year to reach over 1 million album sales in both the UK and the US.

Sam's Grammy nominations make him the first male artist in 34 years – and the first U.K. male artist ever – to receive nominations in the "big four" GRAMMY Awards® categories following the release of a debut album. In The Lonely Hour was nominated for Album Of The Year while his 4x multi-Platinum single "Stay With Me" was nominated for Record and Song Of The Year as well as receiving a nod for Best New Artist. These four categories constitute the General Field of the GRAMMY nominations. In addition, he was nominated for Best Pop Vocal Album (In The Lonely Hour) and Best Pop Solo Performance ("Stay With Me"), bringing his total nominations to six.

In just a year from being awarded the BRITs Critics Choice in 2014 he leads the pack as we move into this year's BRIT Awards with five nominations under his belt for Best Male, Best Album, Best Song, Best Newcomer and Best Video.

Sam's live shows move from strength to strength, after a string of incredible sold out shows across North America, Sam will return to the UK in March to embark on another sold out UK tour, culminating in three back to back shows at London's O2 Brixton Academy. 2015 is shaping up to be bigger than the last year with Sam's escalating success and multi-national sales making him one of the UK's most exciting home-grown talents.

For more information: www.samsmithworld.com