“I’m just a small-town guy who never thought he’d be an artist.”
While remaining himself, this late bloomer musical has come through the drama to now be rubbing shoulders with the big names in modern country. And he’s taking the opportunity to preach hope and authenticity along the way.
A few years ago, no one knew who Nate Smith was. After a failed musical venture in Nashville in his early twenties, he returned home to work as a nurse in a California hospital. His old dream of becoming an artist went dormant again.
But his life has changed completely since then. Today, after a meteoric rise on the country scene in just a few years, the 38-year-old singer crisscrosses the United States, performing concert after concert. “It’s never too late to make your dreams come true,” he draws as a lesson.
Currently on tour with superstar Morgan Wallen, Smith is headlining Montreal’s Lasso Festival. A privilege he’s eager to honour. “We’re moving pretty fast, it’s awesome. I feel like we’re everywhere at once. It’s just crazy to be able to play in front of 60,000 people or more a night right now,” he says in an interview with The Press.
Close to people
Interviewed via videoconference, Smith has a genuine smile behind his lumberjack beard. Even before he points it out, we understand that gratitude and honesty are important values for him.
Yesterday I was on stage with Morgan [Wallen]. There was a moment when I looked up, realized what I was doing and said to myself: ‟I can’t believe I’m here, in a stadium in front of you, this is crazy!” Being honest like that, it brings you closer to people.
Nate Smith
And come to think of it, he has something to be proud of. Last winter, his song World On Fire spent 10 consecutive weeks at No. 1 on Billboard Country Airplay, which tracks airplay on U.S. country radio stations. It was his second song to reach the top of the music chart, after Whiskey On You in February 2023.
More recently, Nate Smith collaborated with DJ Alesso to produce the hit I Like Ita unique blend of country and EDM music. As a result, he now has nearly 10 million monthly listeners on Spotify, a personal record. Of the artists who will take the stage for the third edition of Lasso, only Eric Church surpasses him in this regard.
Reborn after a fire
So, business is good. That’s because instead of letting his scars define him, the Californian has chosen to brave the odds.
In 2018, his hometown of Paradise suffered a devastating fire. Smith lost everything he owned. “All my baby gear, all my family pictures, gone. The whole town was destroyed,” he says.
“A friend sent me a guitar in the mail because I had lost mine. I wrote a song for Paradise, recorded it in Nashville and raised some money for a single mother and her children who were victims of the fire,” he says. “That gesture inspired me.”
Music can really make a difference in people’s lives, especially country. There’s no genre on the planet like it.
Nate Smith
“My friends set up a GoFundMe to send me back to Nashville. I loaded up my Honda Civic and drove around America for a month and a half sleeping in my car and playing random bars,” he recalls.
When he arrived in Music City, he had only $14 in his pocket. “Within a week, I had a management contract, and within the same month, I had a publishing contract with Sony Music Publishing.”
At every show, Nate Smith takes a minute or two to tell this story. It’s about hope. “I want people to know that I’m just like everybody else. I’m just the lucky guy who gets to do what he’s always wanted to do for a living.”
At Parc Jean-Drapeau on Friday at 5:10 p.m. as part of the Lasso Festival. Nate Smith will also perform at the YQM Countryfest in New Brunswick on August 22, then at the Festival Country Lotbinière on August 24.
Visit the Lasso Festival website