Sam Smith ‘starved himself for weeks’ before photoshoots
Recording artist Sam Smith attends the 60th Annual GRAMMY Awards at Madison Square Garden on January 28, 2018 in New York City. (Jamie McCarthy/Getty)
Out singer Sam Smith has spoken about his emotional battles with body image issues, as he shared a shirtless photo.
The “Stay with Me” singer has been candid in the past about his struggles with weight and body issues, undergoing a rapid period of weight loss after the success of debut album In the Lonely Hour.
Smith shared a shirtless photo from a photo session on Instagram, opening up about how difficult it is for him to strip off in public.
Sam Smith says he’s reclaiming his body
He said: “In the past if I have ever done a photo shoot with so much as a T-shirt on, I have starved myself for weeks in advance and then picked and prodded at every picture and then normally taken the picture down.
“Yesterday I decided to fight the f**k back. Reclaim my body and stop trying to change this chest and these hips and these curves that my mum and dad made and love so unconditionally.”
The singer added: “Some may take this as narcissistic and showing off but if you knew how much courage it took to do this and the body trauma I have experienced as a kid you wouldn’t think those things.”
Addressing queer photographer Ryan Fluger, he said: “Thank you for helping me celebrate my body AS IT IS.
“I have never felt safer than I did with you. I’ll always be at war with this bloody mirror but this shoot and this day was a step in the right f***ing direction ”
Sam Smith weight loss: singer had ‘obsessive’ approach to body image
Speaking to V Magazine in January 2018, Smith said that his weight loss was spurred by the process of making his first album.
He said: “When I was shooting my first music videos, I just wasn’t happy with the way I looked, so I was trying to control the way the camera moved. I got a bit obsessive.
“I was constantly looking in the mirror, pinching my waist, weighing myself every day. Now, I’ve gotten to a place where I really love my stretch marks and I just enjoy my body.”
Sam Smith attends the 88th Annual Academy Awards at Hollywood & Highland Center on February 28, 2016 in Hollywood, California. (Frazer Harrison/Getty)
Smith adds: ” My body image is always going to be an issue. I need to constantly train myself to watch the right sort of films, to not look at certain ads and think that’s how my stomach should look.
“It’s something that I’m fighting every day. I think men should talk about it more.”
Smith himself was accused of fat-shaming in June 2018, after he posted a photo to Instagram of a woman eating a large breakfast.
