Connect with us

Hi, what are you looking for?

Entertainment

Smith & Thell talk ‘Hotel Walls’ single, inspirations, streaming (Includes interview)

On the commercial success of their smash single “Forgive Me Friend,” Thell said, “In general, I think everyone has a desire to be understood. The commercial success of the song is proof of that. It was created from our hearts and in turn, touches other people’s hearts. Overwhelming is not enough to describe this particular feeling.”

Thell shared that their new single “Hotel Walls” is a metaphor for life. “You check in, you check out. Everything on earth is rented, but while we’re here, we should celebrate life rather than fear the inevitable death,” they explained.

Regarding their plans for the future, Thell said, “We have a new single coming out today, Friday, July 19, and will be finishing our headline summer tour in Sweden. At the end of the summer, we’re doing some European shows and back to the U.S. in the fall.”

On their songwriting and music inspirations, Thell said, “Our music and songwriting is mostly inspired by real events and tough experiences in our past and in our present. This perspective of time is relatable to our audience: the ones who are experiencing pain in the present and the ones who have experienced pain in the past.”

“This is why we often write the best music about our toughest experiences that we’ve managed to get through, to capture the whole emotional spectra,” they added.

Digital age of music

On being artists in the digital age, Thell said, “I think there are both positive and negative aspects of the digital era but we try to look at the possibilities in order to focus on the music instead of the obstacles. One of the pros of the digital age is that it helps us to reach out to a bigger audience and people that would probably never find our music otherwise.”

Thell opened up about the impact of streaming on the music business. “Streaming gives everyone a better chance to reach out with music through play-listing. I think that makes the music industry more diverse and interesting,” he said.

When asked about their dream duet partners, he said, “There are many great artists out there, but Bon Iver would be pretty rad. But the soundtrack of our summer right now is this amazing band called Khruangbin, so working with them would be cool too.”

For young and aspiring singer-songwriters, Thell said, “I think my greatest advice is to be curious about yourself and brave enough to understand why you do it. When you create music that touches you, there is a good chance that it will touch somebody else. It’s easy to get lost in the world of success. That is why self-awareness will be more important now than ever before. Always believe in yourself.”

Speaking of the word success, he defined it as follows: “For us, success means that we get to do music for work, and other things we love. We believe the word success means that you are constantly on your way in the right direction. Getting lost can be successful if it ultimately puts you back on track. I think people mistake success with having no space for failure.”

“Success should be seen as a bigger, more meaningful purpose that we strive for, but never really fully achieved as you keep pushing yourself to reach higher goals,” he added.

For their fans, they concluded, “The new music will reflect our emotions about what we’ve gone through lately in our lives. Maria and I have both gone through really rough periods and our new music will be all about the highs and lows through different situations.”

“Hotel Walls” by Smith & Thell is available on iTunes and on Spotify.

To learn more about the duo Smith & Thell, check out their official Facebook page.

Markos Papadatos
Written By

Markos Papadatos is Digital Journal's Editor-at-Large for Music News. Papadatos is a Greek-American journalist and educator that has authored over 20,000 original articles over the past 18 years. He has interviewed some of the biggest names in music, entertainment, lifestyle, magic, and sports. He is a 16-time "Best of Long Island" winner, where for three consecutive years (2020, 2021, and 2022), he was honored as the "Best Long Island Personality" in Arts & Entertainment, an honor that has gone to Billy Joel six times.

You may also like:

Business

United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby said the carrier was reviewing recent incidents and would redouble safety initiatives as needed - Copyright AFP Logan CyrusUnited...

World

US President Joe Biden speaks during a reception honoring Women's History Month at the White House - Copyright AFP Brendan SMIALOWSKIDanny KEMPUS President Joe...

Business

A Milei marks 100 days in office, thousands protest his austerity measures - Copyright AFP Luis ROBAYOLeila MACORArgentina’s President Javier Milei has slashed public...

Life

The Michelin Guide unveiled its annual list of the best French restaurants, praising the "cultural dynamism" of a new generation of chefs.