Out English singer-songwriter Sam Smith
said in a recent interview that he “gets homophobic abuse on a
daily basis.”
The 25-year-old Smith is currently
promoting his sophomore studio album The Thrill of It All.
Smith told the Herald Sun that
he hopes his songs will help promote greater tolerance toward
lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people around the world.
Smith said that his upcoming track Him
is about a boy who comes out gay to his father. (Smith came out gay
to his family at age 10.)
(Related: Sam
Smith tells Elton John that he came out when he was 10.)
“Him is my version of a hymn,”
Smith
said. “It was important for me to speak about my views on that
issue on this album instead of just being about love and
relationships.”
Smith added that he's concerned about a
homophobic backlash to the song.
“We'll see when I start singing Him
in certain parts of the world,” Smith said. “I hope people
listen and accept, but there's people who aren't going to.”
“I get homophobic abuse on a daily
basis on social media,” he added.
Smith's The Thrill of It All
arrives Friday, November 3.