Nathan Smoker had no idea just how much his life was about to change.
A few years ago, the Eltham singer was working as a Digital Marketing Intern at Mad Manners. Today he sits in the sunshine of a London morning as a full-time singer-songwriter on the cusp of releasing his debut Extended Project (EP) in July.
Smoker’s artistic journey all started at the age of eight, performing in Oliver! in London’s West End. That early experience instilled in him a passion for live performance, and after he decided to pluck up the courage to sing Amy Winehouse’s ‘Valerie’ at The Crown in Blackheath before lockdown, his life turned upside down in just the space of a few months.
His first appearance on ITV's reality show The Voice UK lasted just a few minutes, but that was long enough to propel the 25-year-old amateur singer to instant global fame.
Having performed a sensational rendition of Tom Odell’s ‘Can’t Pretend’ in his blind audition, he wowed judges Olly Murs, Sir Tom Jones and Anne-Marie, and with the choice of three judges, Smoker opted to join Murs’ team, with The X Factor 2009 runner-up insisting his performance was ‘one of the best he’d ever seen’.
That was the ignition of an upward trajectory that saw Smoker progress to the final stage of the talent competition, only to fall agonisingly short in the showpiece.
But that initial disappointment was more fuel for the fire inside, and he has rapidly made a name for himself.
Since his time on the show in 2021, Smoker has collaborated on a number of music projects, including with British actor Ashley Walters, who recently starred on the acclaimed limited Netflix series Adolescence, and is set to achieve a lifelong dream by releasing his first EP this summer.
Before then, he visited London Stadium to look back on his recent rise to stardom and reveal all about his support for the Hammers…
Nathan, where did it all begin for you as a singer-songwriter, then?
I’ve always sort of had a musical interest, but then stopped doing music for football when I was 14.
I was in Oliver! between 2006 and 2007 and also studied music business.
My big break came when I was doing karaoke in a pub with a few of my mates before lockdown, and it just so happened that someone from ITV was there, and they said I should go on The Voice, so I applied and ended up getting to the final of the competition.
Before that, I did music business at university for a year but had sort of given up and wasn't really pursuing it too much, but that moment at The Crown in Blackheath gave me the confidence to push to be a singer-songwriter full-time.
So, how was your experience on The Voice UK?
I had done a few gigs here and there in venues in Birmingham, but nothing of a similar calibre to The Voice.
It was right at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, so there was no audience there at all.
Three out of the four judges turned for me, but it was total silence in the room, so it was quite a weird place to be.
It was definitely the biggest thing I've done; it was amazing. Sometimes you need that little intervention for someone to say to you that you've got a bit of talent and it's worth trying to do as a career, and that was definitely it for me by getting those turns.
It was pretty amazing. My Mum and Dad have always been really supportive of my singing, and they’re definitely responsible for pushing me on and helping me do what I'm doing now.
And you got to work with Olly Murs as well, after he said your performance was ‘one of the best he’d ever seen’. How incredible was that feeling?
It was an incredible experience. Anne-Marie and Olly (Murs) turned within seconds, but I had to keep my composure and carry on despite knowing I was going into the next stage.
Olly felt like the perfect choice for me, as he made his career coming off a similar talent show, which is very difficult. It's quite difficult to be taken seriously as an artist once you come off one of these shows, and I just thought he was the best person to help me do that, and he definitely was.
I couldn't really believe that he was saying it, to be honest, but he was so nice throughout the whole process and regularly texted me to make sure I was alright, especially when my audition came out on TV, because obviously that's quite a big moment.
He’s such a great guy, and he really helped me and developed me a lot throughout the whole process. He’s actually helped me since as well with my career afterwards.
Since your time on the show, how has your life changed?
It’s changed a lot. I know everyone says it, but I didn't even expect to get an audition on The Voice, to be honest with you, so to even get that far was incredible, and everything else was just a bonus.
Where I'm from in south-east London, it's quite a rare thing for someone to achieve what I have, and what it did for me was really give me that little confidence boost.
People have realised I’m doing it properly and I’m not just messing around singing, so it has been really nice on that front, and the musical director [on The Voice] really levelled me up so quickly by being around those types of people all the time.
It’s given me the platform to now be a full-time singer-songwriter, which was something I could’ve never dreamed of. Don’t get me wrong, there have been good months and bad months, like with everything, but it has definitely given me the opportunity to do that, and I’ll be forever grateful for that.
And you’re releasing your first EP in July, so tell us about that!
I've been working with actor Ashley Walters recently, which has been an amazing experience.
He's just an incredible guy and has really helped navigate my next stages, which is putting out my own Extended Project that will be released in July.
I've been really working on my own sound for the last year or so and just trying to refine it and make it better and better. The long-term plan is for as many people as possible to hear it and to sing it to as many people as I can on different world tours.
I’m just really excited to get it out in the world!
You’re a big Hammer, too?
It's a good story, actually. My Granddad was a big Arsenal fan, and he took my Dad to Arsenal v West Ham, obviously trying to convert him into an Arsenal fan as well, but it backfired, and he instead fell in love with the likes of Bobby Moore and all the other brilliant players who were playing for West Ham at the time.
My Dad left Highbury as a West Ham fan that day and took me to my first game when I was about six years old against Watford at the Boleyn Ground, and I’ve never looked back.
I managed to get away to KRC Genk in the [UEFA] Europa League [in the 2021/22 season], which was amazing, and Sevilla as well. For me, Dimitri Payet has always been a cult hero, and that free-kick against Crystal Palace in 2016 is one of the best strikes I’ve ever seen.
Follow Smoker's Instagram page @NathanSmoker to keep up-to-date with the release of his debut Extended Project in July.
