The latest on Sam Smith reveals that he is teeter tottering with himself on the topic of gender. He has made it known that he is not identifying as only male or female. What he is most concerned about is letting the public know that he is comfortable in his own skin. He admits to having very feminine actions in his very male structure.
According to the LA Times, Smith has expressed interest in drag, as he exclaims some of his idols are Marilyn Manson, and Boy George. Because of them, he has been confident in heels and furs since the age of 17. He expresses that he does not want to change who he is but wants to express his true identity and emotions from the inside out.
He got teased a lot, but he also had people who respected his style by choice.
He was the only one of his kind in his village and made a lasting impression on those he encountered. Smith did not hide who he was and just because he dressed feminine, he made clear that it did not mean he wanted to be a woman.
“I love a heel, I’ve got loads of heels at home.” Smith expresses the comfort ability he has in his own skin. Smith is not transgender, he is not cisgender, but he is gender fluid. He lets whatever gender he feels at the moment to flow through his veins in the most flamboyant way.
Smith has revealed in recent interviews that he has gone to the extent of having an alter ego to help with his expression. He calls his alter ego,”Karamel with a K.” Karamel is very present in Smith’s music. He has even admitted to Karamel being the one he can attribute to selling the 24 million records in America from the first album.
By letting Karamel take over, he really let his personality and his message shine through. “There was a point in my life where I did not own one article of male clothing.” At that time, Smith had no name for this form of expression, and even today he has not come to the forefront with a name for his actions.
Dressing in drag or more feminine is the way Smith goes beyond the opinion that, “I just like lay at home and cry all the time.” To him, showing his personality beyond his heart-felt music is how he shows his fun side.
Smith feared the baggage that came with titling himself as gay. He expressed that he knew it was beyond a title and did not want to conform. Because of this, he was silent about his relationship preferences for awhile. He did not want to be called something he was not, and had no interest in claiming a title that he felt was not fitting to his personal beliefs.
Now, coming to terms with how he identifies as being gay, but is not more masculine or more feminine, has allowed him to really be himself in his day-to-day life and more importantly, his music.
Written by Alexandria Martin
Edited by Jeanette Smith
Sources:
People: Sam Smith Opens Up About Female Alter Ego ‘Karamel’ After Revealing Gender-Fluid Identity
Los Angeles Times: Sam Smith doesn’t bother with a gender title: ‘I feel just as much woman as I am man’
Rolling Stone: Sam Smith on Feeling ‘Just as Much Woman as I Am Man’
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