A Newbie Goes to a Sam Smith Concert

I've been so consumed by football lately, I need to catch up on some things that I have wanted to write about the last 2 weeks.

One of those things was seeing Sam Smith live in Saint Louis on August 18th. I know that was 10 days ago, but the great thing about the show, I am still thinking about how wonderful it was. I didn't really know too much about Smith before seeing him live. I knew of his big songs, "I'm Not the Only One" and "Stay With Me". I was also kind of familiar with the new single off his newest record, "Too Good at Goodbyes". So, I knew three hits, but that was it.

I had mentioned offhand one day that he was playing Chafeitz Arena here in Saint Louis to my mom, and she was thrilled. She loves Sam Smith. She is a tried and true fan. She knew all his songs, not just the singles. She said she wanted to go see him, but she didn't know anyone that would go with her. Well, I love a good live show. I have been more into seeing "pop stars" lately, and she did sit through Run the Jewels with me when I took her to see Lorde. So, I offered to go with her. I figured it would be fun, I had time to get more familiar with his music and it is always fun to hang out with my mom.

Well, sitting down for the show, I didn't know what to expect. I saw this very cool stage, we had great seats and after we sat down, he was coming on stage. So, among all these diehard fans, among people who live and breath his music, there I sat, waiting to see what he could do, and he did not disappoint.

Sam Smith is truly amazing. He has one of the absolute best voices I have ever heard live. The notes he can hit are truly remarkable. I don't understand how singers can do what he did, but he did it better than any other person, in his genre, that I have watched perform live. He was really amazing. He also has this very humble way about him. He talked to the crowd about pretty much everything that was going on in his life. He told us about the tour. He spent individual time with each band member. By the way, his band is great as well. He has some real pros backing him up. He kept calling Saint Louis, Saint Louie, and I appreciated that. He has the look and attitude of someone that realizes they are living their dream. He is a humble, respectable dude. And, as I have mentioned multiple times, that dude can "sang". When someone is a great singer, my wife and I say they can "sang", because "singing" doesn't do them justice. 

Smith started out by singing multiple songs off his newest record, which I appreciated since that was what I was listening to on repeat. The live versions of songs like "One Last Song", "Baby You Make Me Crazy" and "One Day at a Time" were wonderfully uplifting and beautifully sung. He also did stuff off his first couple records, which I am not that familiar with. But they were, in turn, slower paced and beautifully melancholy. He also did a different version of "I Know I'm not the Only One", with tons of crowd participation, and it was awesome. I liked that he mentioned how depressing his songs were, but you would never have known by the mood on stage and the way they played the songs. Even a slower song off his new record like "Say it First", which is very stripped down, they turned it into something lively and almost danceable. During the show I kept looking over at my mom and just simply saying, "wow". I was absolutely astonished at how great this show was.

I don't truly know what I expected, but Sam Smith and his band surpassed any expectations I had. They were great. I highly, highly recommend going to see him live, especially if it is in a smaller arena like Chafeitz here in Saint Louis. He is so god damn impressive at what he does. He appreciates his craft, and you can tell he works hard at it. Sam Smith is a wonder and someone I will most definitely go see live again. I love that my mom shared this experience with me. I'm glad she needed someone to go with and that someone just happened to be me. This will be a show that I will always remember, and it will be a show that will most likely be in my top 10 shows of all time. Sam Smith is remarkable talent. Go see him live. You will love every single second of the show.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He is available to go see a concert with any moms out there. Nothing sexual, Ty just likes rocking out with women twice his age. 

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.