Sam Smith Faces Backlash Over 'I'm Not Here To Make Friends' Music Video

Pop sensation Sam Smith is currently facing considerable backlash over the newly released music video to their latest single, "I'm Not Here To Make Friends." The British artist and Kim Petras previously dominated the charts with their hit single, "Unholy," even going on to earn a Grammy nomination for the song.

Smith released their fourth studio album, "Gloria," on January 27. The album, which has 13 tracks, "Unholy" inclusive, was produced by Capitol records and is the artist's first since "Love Goes" in 2020. Some featured names on "Gloria" include Petras, Ed Sheeran, Koffe, and Jessie Reyez.

Read on to learn more.

Smith just released their fourth studio album, "Gloria." The artist posted the music video to a track off the album, "I'm Not Here To Make Friends," featuring them in skin-baring outfits as well as several raunchy scenes. While their fans have commended Smith's video, others have accused them of "sexualizing" and "degrading" the LGBT community.

The music clip was shared on YouTube on Saturday, January 28, and started with the artist stepping out of a gold helicopter in a puffy pink get-up, after which they were met with a Bacchanalian-themed party. After entering the country mansion, Smith is shown in another similarly flamboyant black outfit, complete with a magnificent headpiece.

As the video unfolds, Smith is seen in several other eye-catching attires, one of which showed the artist in a corset, some nipple tassels, a thong, sparkly gloves, and an equally sparkly tiara. Smith was also shown being sprayed with a liquid assumed to be water in a somewhat suggestive manner.

The backup dancers and extras, who are even more scantily clad, gave eye-popping and mesmerizing performances throughout the music video. "INHTMF," which was produced by Calvin Harris, is said to represent self-expression and joy.

Smith's video left social media in an uproar, with former fans claiming that the artist's considerable change over the past few years was for the worse. Someone wrote on Twitter, "Apparently, this change is hard fought for "progress." I do think Sam Smith needs some serious help instead of being paraded like a vulgar character from Little Britain."

Another post by broadcaster Dominique Samuels read, "Sam Smith is a perfect example of what degenerate Hollywood culture does to people." She continued, "It makes celebrities vulgar, hyper-sexualised, and obsessed with wearing their sexuality like a costume and shoving it in everyone's face. And to make matters worse, kids look up to this man!"

The artist's fans were having none of that and quickly came to Smith's defense. One account posted, "I was going to ask 'what has sam smith done to deserve this amount of hate directed at them,' but it's quite literally that they're queer and fat isn't it. That's what it comes down to."

Another fan chided, "People are kicking off saying Sam Smith's video shouldn't be allowed on YouTube…but millions of people watching Andrew Tate's misogyny is fine? Make it make sense."

While speaking with Apple Music's Zane Lowe last week, Smith revealed that an unidentified person spat at them shortly after they came out as non-binary. The artist talked about their personal life, stating that while their loved ones accepted their admission, the public was another matter.

"I think all the only negatives in the struggle have been in my public life and my job. And just the amount of hate and sh**ness that came my way was just exhausting," Smith revealed.

"It was in the f**king news," the artist continued. "Someone spat at me in the street. It's crazy. What I find hard about it is it's like, if that's happening to me and I'm famous, I'm a pop star, can you imagine what other kids, like queer kids, are feeling?"

They also said that U.S. cities allowed them to be more expressive. Smith recalled a time in the White House when "the gays and the queers" were present for President Biden's Marriage Act signing ceremony, saying that it was a "wild feeling."

Talking to Rolling Stone earlier this month, Smith revealed that during their early years in the music industry, they tried to fit in with everyone. Years later, the artist said they got tired of it and decided to be more expressive in their clothes and music.

"In the time that people have known me — from In the Lonely Hour, at the age of 22 — was a time when I didn't want to dress up as much; it was a time when I wanted to take a break and fit in," the "Love Goes" singer said. Smith disclosed that they eventually got tired of trying to fit in and returned to "how I was when I was younger."

They also talked about facing difficulties trying to express their sex and happiness through their music. Smith continued, "I ran into this world, and it was not the world I thought it was. I was afraid to express certain things… my sex in the music, my happiness within the music."

They revealed that they were more comfortable expressing other parts of themselves but decided that they needed to "break out."