Daniel Campbell Smith (born 14 July 1986) is an English singer, songwriter and record producer, best known as the founder, lead singer and primary songwriter of the English pop rock band

Bastille The Bastille (, ) was a fortress in Paris, known formally as the Bastille Saint-Antoine. It played an important role in the internal conflicts of France and for most of its history was used as a state prison by the kings of France. It was stor ...

. The band formed in 2010 and gained mass popularity in 2013 when the song "

Pompeii Pompeii (, ) was an ancient city located in what is now the ''comune'' of Pompei near Naples in the Campania region of Italy. Pompeii, along with Herculaneum and many villas in the surrounding area (e.g. at Boscoreale, Stabiae), was burie ...

" was released with their album '' Bad Blood''. The band then released their second album, '' Wild World'' in September 2016. In June 2019, the band released their third album ''

Doom Days ''Doom Days'' (stylised as "DOOM D∆YS") is the third studio album by British indie pop band Bastille, released on 14 June 2019 by Virgin EMI Records. It was preceded by the release of the four singles " Quarter Past Midnight", " Doom Days", " J ...

''.

Career

Smith attended

King's College School King's College School, also known as Wimbledon, KCS, King's and KCS Wimbledon, is a public school in Wimbledon, southwest London, England. The school was founded in 1829 by King George IV, as the junior department of King's College London an ...

and the

University of Leeds , mottoeng = And knowledge will be increased , established = 1831 – Leeds School of Medicine1874 – Yorkshire College of Science1884 - Yorkshire College1887 – affiliated to the federal Victoria University1904 – University of Leeds , ...

in Leeds, West Yorkshire, where he graduated with a degree in English Language and Literature while also writing about film and music for the Leeds student newspaper. A film obsessive from a young age, he originally wanted to be a director or editor until admitting he was "more of a fan than a filmmaker". At age fifteen, Smith started writing songs on the piano and his laptop in his bedroom, but kept his music secret from his friends and family until he was persuaded by a friend to enter the Leeds Bright Young Things competition in 2007, which he ultimately became a finalist in. His early recordings included "Alchemy", "Words Are Words", "Irreverence", and "Dictator". Smith did not achieve mainstream success in his solo career but continued writing songs both alone and with his close friend and roommate Ralph Pelleymounter of the band To Kill a King. The two formed a side project called "Annie Oakley Hanging" which was described as "cowboy-like" by Pelleymounter. After finishing his studies, Smith returned to London, where he continued pursuing his solo career, and eventually formed

with Chris "Woody" Wood, Kyle Simmons, and Will Farquarson. Bastille has released four albums called '' Bad Blood'', '' Wild World'', ''

'' and ''Give Me The Future'', the latest of which was released 4 February 2022. In 2014, Dan Smith took part in the Band Aid charity single, "Do They Know It's Christmas?". In 2015, Smith featured as vocalist for the song "La Lune," produced and written by the French electronic musician

Madeon Hugo Pierre Leclercq (; born 30 May 1994), better known by his stage name Madeon (), is a French DJ and music producer from Nantes, currently based in Los Angeles. He initially came to widespread public attention at 17 through a YouTube video, " ...

for Madeon's 2015 album ''Adventure''. In the same year, Smith co-wrote and provided vocals on "Better Love" with

Foxes Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush''). Twelve sp ...

, which was released 4 September 2015. In 2017, he participated in the Grenfell Tower charity song, " Bridge Over Troubled Water". Smith was part of the music video for the

Charli XCX Charlotte Emma Aitchison (born 2 August 1992), known professionally as Charli XCX, is an English singer and songwriter. Born in Cambridge and raised in Start Hill, Essex, she began posting songs on Myspace in 2008, which led to her discovery ...

single '

Boys A boy is a young male human. The term is commonly used for a child or an adolescent. When a male human reaches adulthood, he is described as a man. Definition, etymology, and use According to the ''Merriam-Webster Dictionary'', a boy is "a ...

' which was released on 26 July 2017. He featured in the December 2017 ITV programme of ''

The Nation's Favourite ''The Nation's Favourite...'' is a British documentary series, celebrating music by a particular artist or popular genre, including ABBA, the Beatles, the Bee Gees, the Carpenters, Elton John, Elvis Presley and Queen. To date, 19 episodes have b ...

'' series which found out the nation's favourite

Elton John Sir Elton Hercules John (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight; 25 March 1947) is a British singer, pianist and composer. Commonly nicknamed the "Rocket Man" after his 1972 hit single of the same name, John has led a commercially successful career a ...

song. At the 2019 Brit Awards, Smith performed a duet with American artist,

Pink Pink is the color of a namesake flower that is a pale tint of red. It was first used as a color name in the late 17th century. According to surveys in Europe and the United States, pink is the color most often associated with charm, politeness, ...

, of her song, " Just Give Me a Reason", as part of her medley performance. In November 2019, a cover of the

REO Speedwagon REO Speedwagon (originally stylized as R.E.O. Speedwagon) is an American rock band from Champaign, Illinois. Formed in 1967, the band cultivated a following during the 1970s and achieved significant commercial success throughout the 1980s. T ...

song " Can't Fight This Feeling" sung by Smith was used in the John Lewis & Partners 2019 Christmas advert.

Influences

Smith is a fan of the TV series ''

Twin Peaks ''Twin Peaks'' is an American mystery serial drama television series created by Mark Frost and David Lynch. It premiered on ABC on April 8, 1990, and originally ran for two seasons until its cancellation in 1991. The show returned in 2017 ...

'', and of one of its creators,

David Lynch David Keith Lynch (born January 20, 1946) is an American filmmaker, visual artist and actor. A recipient of an Academy Honorary Award in 2019, Lynch has received three Academy Award nominations for Best Director, and the César Award for Be ...

. The show inspired one of his first recorded songs, "

Laura Palmer Laura Palmer is a fictional character in the ''Twin Peaks'' franchise. She is portrayed by Sheryl Lee and was created by the series creators David Lynch and Mark Frost. She first appears in the ABC original series ''Twin Peaks''. A high sc ...

" and Bastille's first Virgin Records single " Overjoyed". Smith has said that his earlier work was influenced by

Regina Spektor Regina Ilyinichna Spektor (russian: Регинa Ильинична Спектор, ; born February 18, 1980) is a Russian–born American singer, songwriter, and pianist. After self-releasing her first three records and gaining popularity in ...

Personal life

Smith writes and arranges some of Bastille's songs, apart from remixes and covers, and worked with friend Mark Crew to produce '' Bad Blood'' and '' Wild World''. He plays the piano, keyboard, percussion, and

melodica The melodica is a handheld free-reed instrument similar to a pump organ or harmonica. It features a musical keyboard on top, and is played by blowing air through a mouthpiece that fits into a hole in the side of the instrument. The keyboard usua ...

. His original, "Dan Smith Piano" was stolen in 2010. Smith's parents are South African lawyers who met at university. During the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...

in 2020, Smith performed music live on Instagram, and also set up a film club named 'Distraction Tactics', inspired by different countries around the world; each week the club visits a different country and film. Its aim is to provide distraction and happiness to those in need of some relief from social distancing and isolation.

Songwriting credits

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Dan Living people English people of South African descent 21st-century English singers Electropop musicians English male singers Virgin Records artists Musicians from London Bastille (band) members 1986 births People educated at King's College School, London Alumni of the University of Leeds