Superstar Power Hour with Nate Smith
Nate Smith joins Katie Neal during the 'Superstar Power Hour.'
Category
🎵
MusicTranscript
00:00How lucky are we that we get to be graced with the presence of Nathaniel Dean Smith?
00:05How lucky are we? Oh, I mean, the jury's out on that. You know, I don't I don't know
00:09how blessed we are until we get through this thing, you know, but I think we're very blessed.
00:13How are you? I'm happy. I love you guys. This place. This is beautiful. You guys have done
00:16it here. We are so excited about our home here at the Hard Rock Cafe. It's really fun. It feels
00:21like hanging out in the living room, which is what I wanted. It does. It does. I'm looking
00:24at my friends over here just sitting by the fireplace, you know, and I know we should have
00:26done this over there. That would have been nice. A little fireside chat. Yeah. Yeah.
00:31How have you been? I've been really good. I've been really good. Been, you know, going a million
00:35miles an hour. It's been it's been insane. But we're getting so much done. And, you know, it's
00:40just it's one of those things like you hope your whole life that you have an opportunity to do
00:43something like this. So once you once you're once you're doing it, it's like, man, you can't let
00:47off the gas, you know, at all. Yeah. Do you feel like you have any time to process things as
00:51they're happening? Are you like a few weeks after something happening? It's like, whoa,
00:55that was wild. It's more like that. Yeah. It's so quick. It's so fast. That's what I heard that
01:00you are on a big health kick right now. Like you're not drinking right now. I'm not drinking
01:04right now. I'm not really overeating right now. How's that work? Because I still can't figure
01:10that out. I'm eating less. I'm just eating less. That's all I'm doing. And just, you know, not
01:15drinking and just just trying to be healthy, I guess. I feel really good. You feel really good.
01:21That's like I have a long ways to go still. So I'm kind of like in that place where I'm like,
01:24OK, I'm down a little bit, but now I want to get to the next the next step. So I got to start
01:28incorporating working out again. But it's hard when you when you're reducing your calories,
01:31then to work out on top of it. Everyone's like, you need a calorie deficit diet. I'm like,
01:35but I what? I'm so hungry and then I'm tired. It's just math, right? Yeah, it's just math.
01:41The math doesn't math, though. It's really hard. But it's got to feel great, though,
01:45like especially with touring, because the thing I always say to like like listeners or people
01:50who don't realize, like when you're touring artists, like you kind of need to treat your
01:53body like a professional athlete. Otherwise, you get really run down and sick very quickly.
01:57Yep. So I do IVs every week. I get an IV. I'll get like the full Myers cocktail,
02:02glutathione, you know, probably. I have no idea what that is. Do I need that?
02:07Yes. Yes. You feel like a whole new glutathione is like it's just really good for everything.
02:11It just like basically gives you tons of energy and stuff, but it's not like crazy energy. OK,
02:15just feels good. And then like having all the vitamins and hydrating yourself,
02:18it just it just feels really good. You know, I've been doing that a little bit here and there.
02:23Taking good care of yourself, which is great. I also love that today you're in like
02:26the traditional Nate Smith all black uniform. It is my uniform. It's my starter kit. Is this
02:31like a styling choice that you made like with a stylist? You're like, I'm just going to wear
02:34all black all the time because it's the easiest thing for me. They have tried and tried and
02:38tried to get me out of wearing all black. And like I'll do like little things here and there.
02:42But I'm like, but we kind of like the black jacket a little more, don't we, guys? You know,
02:45like it's kind of it's kind of a thing like that all the time. It always looks great. I
02:49loved when you had the leopard print outfit. Oh, there's more of that to come. There's more
02:52really. That's what you need, like a good matching set. I don't know if you've seen
02:56this. These little kids, like little Morgan Wallen, little Posty, Rachel and Tyler family.
03:00So we've become friends with them, you know, and they're going to meet with me in Texas this week
03:05with Morgan. And they did a video with this song I did with Alessa, the DJ, the I Like It song,
03:10wearing a cheetah thing. And they said, would Nate please meet up with us and wear his cheetah
03:15shirt again? So I'm going to bring it down and going to do a video with the kid.
03:18Like, it's gonna be really cool. Oh, my God. They're so cute. Like,
03:21they're adorable. Like those videos crack me up. And they've got like the little like
03:24hearty goatee or they got like post like face like tattoos or jelly rolls. It's amazing.
03:29Good for them. Well, I want to talk to you. We'll talk more about the Morgan tour in a little bit.
03:33But first, I want to talk about how you are headed back up at the top of the charts with
03:37a song. Whoa, whoa, whoa. I mean, seriously, like crazy, right? Bulletproof, the song written by
03:43like three lesser known writers, Ashley Gorley, Hunter Phelps, Ben Johnson, who I love dearly.
03:49What did you think the first time you heard this song? Like which one of them sent it to you? Did
03:53it come through publishing? Ashley sent it to me personally, and I got a list of them. And as soon
03:58as I heard it, I'm like, this is a smash, like 100% a smash. And it honestly feels like I wrote
04:02it. Like it feels like I was in the room with them on this one and stuff. I don't know if they like
04:06intended to make it perfect for me, but it was. And I knew because the demo that we had, Hunter
04:11Phelps sang it, he sounded amazing on it. But like, it's still kind of like it had this like
04:16cool little hop to it and stuff, but it didn't have like the rockin' rockin' part. So me and
04:20Lindsey Rimes, who produced all my stuff, like we knew what to do with it. We need to like rock it
04:23up in the choruses and stuff and make it. And I feel like we made it our own. Like I love that
04:26song so much. And it's the energy of people singing it now live is just insane. It has to be,
04:31but I feel like all of your music has such an energy to it. Like when I'm watching you sing,
04:36I'm like no one's like singing harder than Nate right now and like having a better time. But like
04:40you can tell that you put your flavor into that song. Yeah. Yeah. Like it just has that rock thing
04:46kind of, you know, and I think I grew up listening to a lot of rock. I think that's where it comes
04:48from for sure. But I just like to hype everybody up. I like to like, I want it to be like a thing
04:53that we're all doing together. Like during my shows. Like I don't want to just perform
04:56and you guys are watching. That's so boring. You know, I want to be more like Garth, you know,
05:01I'm like to you and you and you. Are you going to get a little tiny mic too? I might. I might.
05:05It seems like a very logistically, it seems much easier to do that.
05:08It really would be. I have free hands, free hands. What do I do with my hands?
05:14What I was going to say is that like this song in a similar way reminds me to like World on Fire,
05:18the way that the sound is so big. Yeah. So you and I think that's why so many people were so
05:23drawn to that song, which made it massive, massively successful, like 10 weeks on top of
05:29the chart. What were you thinking like each week that your team was like, Nate, you're number one
05:32again, again, again, again. It was just like it was becoming a thing. Like, is this seriously
05:36going to go again next week? Like we couldn't even believe it. Like all of us were freaking
05:39out. Like and then we had a party in L.A. and they presented me a seven week number one award.
05:46And then the next week it went eight weeks. So like we're like, oh, no, we got to like,
05:49you know, that went nine weeks. I don't know. It was just like it was crazy how long that thing
05:53went. I can't even believe it. I actually can't. So surreal and so cool. Something I always like
05:58to ask, because, you know, most artists spend so much time as like a starving artist. You're like,
06:02really like, you know, living with friends or like you're not you're not making money regularly.
06:07You get your first number one song. This is like your first big payday. Did you make like a
06:11memorable first number one purchase? I just bought a house. You did. I just put an offer
06:16on. Yeah. And it got accepted. Congratulations. I've never owned. Thank you. I've never owned a
06:20house. That's a big deal. I've been everywhere I've lived has been temporary for as long as I
06:24can remember and stuff. So like this is like putting roots down like, oh, my God, this is
06:28crazy. I'm really excited for you. Congratulations. Like that's nerve wracking to like put in an
06:32offer and then be waiting to see if it's going to happen. We knew within like two days, like it was
06:37like the weirdest thing. Like it was the first house I've looked at. My manager sent it over.
06:40He's like, I think this would be good for you. And I looked at it. I was like, whoa, this is like
06:44perfect. Actually, haven't like I love this. And then like, let's just see what happens. Put in
06:47the offer, accepted it. There was one little counter and it wasn't even like a big deal,
06:51like a little more earnest money or whatever and stuff. But it was like, wow, I can't believe I'm
06:55going to be closing on this in the next couple of months. So that's adulting really hard,
06:59like buying a house. It's crazy. Like the only thing is like I got to figure out how to get it
07:04taken care of when I'm gone because I'm gone so much, you know? Yeah. You hire a guy for that.
07:09I guess so. You have been teasing a new song a little bit. Yeah. Fix what you didn't break.
07:15Yes. Because like the little bits that I've heard, I love. Thank you so much. I feel like
07:20I've had a lot of like tempo, tempo, you know, and I think it'd be good not to go all the way
07:24extreme and go super ballad, but like find like a tough boy love song kind of thing, right? Tough
07:30boy. Tough boy love song. And I don't know, I wrote this one with Ashley Gorley and Taylor
07:34Phillips and Lindsay Rimes. And I mean, we've we set out to kind of marry the 2000s with country
07:40on this one. And like listening to those songs, like I don't want to miss a thing or listening
07:44to those like Here Without You, Baby, Three Doors Down and that kind of thing. And marrying that
07:48sound with like modern country and everything. It's just like I'm obsessed with this. I'm so
07:52excited about the song. I really believe in it. I think it could be the next one. I don't know.
07:56I just believe it in my heart. You know, I know. I saw your video that you were like,
07:59I'm pushing for this to be the next single. Yeah. Yeah. I don't think anyone's going to
08:02fight you on it. I can't. I can't speak for my team. You know, it's one of those things,
08:05but like I'm going to definitely push it, you know, because yeah, I just it feels right.
08:08It just feels right. And then I have heard whisperings of a Nate Smith album somewhere.
08:14There are whispers. There are. What can you say about that without getting either?
08:17I'll say, yes, there's an album coming. Yes, there's an album. There is for sure an album
08:20coming. This one's going to be I'm so excited. So the first album and then you got the the EP
08:26Through the Smoke, which was kind of a transition between the first album and then this one.
08:31But there's going to be like there's going to be songs on this one that are more in the world
08:36that you're familiar with, like World on Fire, Bulletproof, Whiskey without redoing the song.
08:39So you can never read it. But in that that like that feeling, I guess. But then there's going to
08:44be a lot of songs that will push the listener like out of that a little bit, too. Like I'm
08:48pretty excited to kind of push the boundaries a little bit, not intentionally just to push the
08:52boundaries, but like I'm a fan of music. So like there's going to be sounds that aren't
08:56as rocking maybe and stuff, you know? And also it's like your sophomore album. Like now you've
09:00got like one album done, which was like a great album. And you I can't remember who was just
09:04talking about this recently, like how many songs you had on that record, which is like a big thing
09:08to do, like a big statement on a debut album. Crazy, right? Really exciting. And so to kind of
09:12know where your footing is going into this album. Was there anything you like learned? You're like,
09:17I'm not doing that this time, or I definitely want to do this. I'll never cut a song ever again
09:23that I like don't believe in with every single cell of my body. Not just like it, but like where
09:29I'm just like, this is like it. I would if I had to like hang everything on this one song,
09:33would I still cut it? Like those are the questions I've asked myself now and stuff. So like I'm
09:37really like hardcore about that, you know? That's awesome. But I mean like that's a really good
09:41takeaway from album one to album two. I also wanted to ask you about right now you've got
09:46a song out with Lee Bryce. Yeah. Talk about how this came to be and what has been like your
09:52favorite part about working with Lee because he's one of my favorite humans. We we really hit it
09:57off. Like we honestly really get along well. And he invited me out to his farm to record it and
10:02stuff. And but it's funny during the music video, I just bought this brand new jacket. I was super
10:08excited about it. If you can't tell, I'm still salty about this. And we, we, we sang the song
10:12and at the very end, he poured an entire Jack and Coke all over my jacket. I'm like, Lee,
10:17but we got it on film. So it's in the music video. You can tell he just splashes all over
10:21and I splashed him back and stuff. But what was the jacket? It was a nice Barbados, like very
10:26beautiful, you know, like I'm like, Oh my God, my jacket. You're like, I kind of want to punch
10:30you. Oh gosh. But I was like, if he feels comfortable with me like that, then I feel
10:35comfortable with him. And like, he's just a bro. He's his homie. He's awesome. But yeah, I just,
10:39I mean, the first time he sent the song over, I just, I loved it. And I was like, I'd love to be
10:43on a song with him. Cause I've been a fan with him since hard to love and everything else he's
10:47done. Like Lee's just like, he's got that, that raspy emotional voice, you know, that just makes
10:53me feel things. Yeah. I think it's like, again, he's like perfect for like a parking lot party
10:57or like sobbing alone in your car. Yeah. Like his range is incredible. He can do both. I think
11:03I look up to him a lot like that. Yeah. He's awesome. And then you have been out on the road,
11:07playing a bunch of dates with Morgan wall and what have been some of the highlights of being
11:12on this tour? Um, I think, you know, just honestly, just seeing the crowd show up is pretty amazing.
11:19They show up, they show up. Um, cause we're second on the list. So, um, you just never know,
11:24but they've been really full. So seeing people pack in the pits and stuff has just been amazing.
11:28Um, we've had shows in the rain, Hershey park was one of those that stood out to me. I was,
11:32we got to be direct support for that one. Um, and it was pouring rain. There's a video of it on my
11:37Instagram and that was, we did my hero by foo fighters and it was the most Epic, like
11:42and we're just like, ah, it was just amazing. Like, I don't know. Is there anything you feel
11:46like you learn from Morgan, maybe watching him? Cause I feel like he's gotten so comfortable in
11:51that space of a stadium. And as like a newer artist, like it is harder to move from doing
11:56like bars and clubs and arenas to being on stage in the stadium. There's so much you got to learn
12:01and everything. Um, yeah, I watch a show a lot. Um, I, I see how he interacts with everybody.
12:06Um, he's very much like stays on the thrust or like some people call it the catwalk. Yeah. He
12:11stays out there most of the time. You never really see him sit back with the band unless it's like
12:16when he's doing one of his others more than my hometown or something like that, where he's on
12:19the bleachers or that kind of thing. But he's really like with the crowd the whole time and
12:23everything. Um, I'm kind of, I'm like jumping like crazy. I could probably do a little less.
12:28He's kind of, he kind of, he's sort of like comfortable up there and calm, you know, so I
12:31could do a little bit more of that. And then I've also noticed when he gets done with the song,
12:35he hops off of there, goes and gets his water. It's no problem. Like you don't have to like freak
12:38out and like, what are they going to do for five seconds while I'm not up there? Like I've just
12:41watched him do those kinds of things. If that makes any sense. It is really nerve wracking.
12:45The space in between, like just moving from point A to point B, like people probably wouldn't realize
12:49that. But the whole time you're like, well, there's like 80,000 people behind me that are
12:52like, what are you going to do next? Yeah. Yeah. It's an eternity. Like what am I going to say?
12:56I wouldn't dare get a glass of water. I'd be like you, I'd be like, I'll just die of dehydration
12:59up here. But you, you, you kind of, you watch him perform and stuff. And then you see like
13:03little things in your own little sets where all of a sudden you're doing something that
13:07Morgan would do. And Bailey does it. We, but like, you know, ain't going no waste. Like he'll do his
13:12little, like, you know, like he'll yell and then let them finish it. Like you start doing those
13:16things. Like, what am I doing? I'm sounding, I guess because we've been around him so much,
13:19you know? Yeah. But it's good to like, I'm, I'm a very much like a visual learner. Like if I see
13:23somebody doing something, like you kind of adapt those things and you find out what works for you.
13:26Wait, speaking of Bailey, you guys were, while we have you on the show this week and you're
13:29co-hosting with me, we're going to play some Bailey songs too. And I heard that you two are
13:33like really close buddies to talk about how you two became friends. He first came over to core
13:38management where I'm at core entertainment. Um, like after I had just signed over there,
13:43not too late before that and stuff, but he was actually a fan of my music, which I thought was
13:48so sweet. And he did a cover of sleeve, one of my songs on Tik TOK and everything. And I thought it
13:52was really sweet. I loved his voice. Um, but we just, we just instantly bonded just instantly.
13:57We're like, man, this guy's awesome. He's like a little brother to me, wild and crazy, a little
14:01annoying, but I love him, you know, like all the things, you know, like, uh, and just, I've just
14:05really grown to really respect him a lot. And I've seen him grow so much as a human being and
14:10just become a really great businessman, you know, and, and, and also just a great human being,
14:15you know, he already had all that, but he's just, I don't know. He's just really becoming
14:19quite a role model. You know, I'm, I really look up to him a lot.
14:22So you two remind, like the thing that I think that you two have in common is that you're always
14:26in different ways, but always both in a great mood, like Bailey's like,
14:31over the top and you are always just like so joyful. And so it doesn't surprise me that the
14:35two of you would have become so close and doing shows together has been a blast when he's there,
14:39um, playing with Morgan too and stuff. It's so much fun. What has been like the funniest moment
14:44of like all three of you being on this tour together?
14:48Well, um, I don't know if it's this tour, but there was, there was a time where a green room
14:52was absolutely thrashed. Um, can't really say when and where that happened, but let's just say
14:57there was jumping on, on coffee tables and it just, you know, things get out of hand sometimes
15:02back there. You know, I, a good time is always had. I was going to say, if I asked that question,
15:05he's probably like not going to be able to give me a lot of detail, but you could probably figure
15:10it out somewhere. You can look it up and figure that out, but it happened. It happened. There's
15:13some wild times. That's awesome. And then, uh, you also, something I was reading about you when
15:19I was like doing my prep for the interview that I didn't know before, like before music stuff
15:24really started to take off for you, were you a certified nursing assistant? Wait, talk about
15:28this a little bit, like talk about life leading up to where you were and like this job that maybe
15:32led what you were doing till you like made it in music. You got to go back a little bit to when I
15:36was, so when I was 18, I became a CNA, you know, certified nurse assistant. And I had jobs in
15:41convalescent homes, um, acute care, you know, so I was working in regular hospitals and,
15:47you know, um, retirement kind of home sort of situations where they require more than just
15:51assisted living, be more of like, um, actually like helping them with their ADLs or activities
15:56of daily living, like helping them with all that stuff. So I did that cause I just love people a
15:59lot. I love taking care of people. Um, but when I was 23, um, I had an opportunity to get a record
16:05deal in Nashville. And so I moved to Nashville, uh, for the first time, um, with word records,
16:10it's a Christian company here in town. Um, and it sort of fell through after about six months of
16:14negotiating the long form, my ANR quit and then it all fell apart. But I ended up signing a
16:19publishing deal as a songwriter. So I did that for about three years. Um, and I went through a
16:24really difficult breakup, a divorce, um, for me and her, it was really, really hard for both of
16:28us. And so I just needed to be back home in California where my family was and, and heal
16:32through all that stuff. So that was kind of it for me, like as far as artists goes or like a
16:37professional music career. So I just, I kept working, um, as a CNA. I've worked, but I also
16:42was like working for buckle. My brother was a buckle store manager for like the clothing company.
16:47Yeah, I was like assistant manager. We used to have like the buckle challenge in high school
16:51and it was like, could you walk to the back of the buckle store and back out without anybody
16:54talking to you? Impossible. Impossible. I'm always watching the front five. Like I know,
16:57I know what's going on. Anybody who's a buckle fan, you know what that means? Front five. What
17:01does that mean? The very front section of the store, like you have to keep an eye on it. So
17:06like you're, you're watching for anybody coming in and making sure that you at least like make a
17:09connection with them. And then, um, when you start talking to them, you, you have this form,
17:15I'm probably oversharing, but it's called an SPG, um, sales presentation guide. So like you're going
17:19through and like making sure how many pairs of jeans that I offer that made sense for them.
17:23And then to offer the credit card that I, and you go through all these steps while you're looking at
17:27the room around you and folding as you go and stuff. So it honestly, that job created a lot
17:32of awareness for me, like a ton of, I was just going to say, while you're out on stage, you're
17:35keeping track of the band, you're keeping track of the audience. Like you've already, so I can
17:38multitask the show and then nothing else in my life. Am I good at multitasking? But during a show
17:42I can like make these people, um, you know, be a part of the show over here on the left. Like I
17:47can do all that stuff now, but I don't know how we got on the buckle thing, but that's it. You were
17:51talking about the CNA. I feel like you probably had such a good bedside manner as a CNA. Like,
17:57why do I feel like you were like the nurse that everybody loved wherever you were working? I just
18:01went in there and just, I was just positive. I'm like, Hey man, how are we doing? You're hurting.
18:04Dang. That really sucks. You know, I'm not supposed to have any snacks. The nurse doesn't
18:07want me to bring it. I'm like, I got you. I got you. Like if my grandmother was in the
18:12nursing home and you'd be the one who'd be like, don't worry, Robert, I'll get you whatever you
18:15want. I'm so sorry. I have to get up again. I just, I just, I'm like, you're fine. You're fine.
18:20Hey, it's all good. We're human beings. This is what we do. This is what we do.
18:24You know, that's awesome. And I'm sure you learned so many like great skills doing that
18:27and working at the buckle that have just like, you know, transformed you into the person that
18:30you are who we all love so much. Hey, I appreciate it. I mean, it just, it definitely, I definitely
18:36keep some of that stuff that I did back then and what I do now and everything, but that was pretty
18:40much it. And then, and then the fire happened in paradise in 2018 where I lost everything and
18:44buddy of mine sent me a guitar. And then we kind of, this whole, the whole thing sort of started
18:48up. It's just been kind of a nuts situation. It's been a wild ride for you. Second chance
18:53is like an understatement, you know? Yeah. Which has got to feel so magical.
18:57It is, it is. And it's never too late. That's the thing I always tell everybody. Every show I play,
19:00I go, it's never too late to follow your dreams. Just all you need is a couple of champions that
19:04believe in you. And like, you can literally do anything. You just have to see it done
19:07to know it's possible. And then, yeah, I just feel like everybody has something to offer,
19:12you know, so special. Last thing I want to ask you about the tour coming up. Yeah. End of,
19:18end of August, end of September. So it starts on my birthday. Oh, how fun is that? September 19th.
19:22Awesome. I'm going to, we're going to make it a party that day. It's going to be an Oregon.
19:25This is the first show, Portland, Oregon. Crystal ballroom. We got, um, Carly Scott Collins out for
19:30the first couple. And then we got John Morgan coming out for the rest of the tour. And, uh,
19:35it's, it's going to be a blast. I'm so excited. Bigger rooms. Uh, we still got like the VIP
19:39packages and all that stuff. And I think it's going to be a big party. Yeah. It'll be interesting
19:43coming off of the stadium tour now. Like obviously everyone in there like knows you, loves you,
19:47but like these are rooms with your people now, which is going to be so much fun. Totally.
19:51Cause you'll get like at a short, like a show like Morgan, like, you know, everybody is primarily
19:57there for Morgan. Right. But they will also, you'll have fans of you as well and everything.
20:01So you'll get these pockets of like diehard fans and that kind of thing. But to have it,
20:06all that at a show is it's going to be loud. It's just a different vibe. Cause you're trying
20:09to win people at a Morgan show, but at your show, you just, just like be there with your people,
20:13which is so fun. I am so excited for all of the, just like great things that are happening for you.
20:17I was so excited when I saw you on the ACM award, I was like getting out of a car in Dallas as you
20:21were winning. And I was like, Oh my God. You were excited. I was so happy for you. Cause I just feel
20:26like you, I know that you have worked so hard and like you were saying like, this is such like,
20:28what an incredible story of a second chance. And I just. That award was surreal. That was the crazy,
20:34like I won new male artist of the year. Like, Oh my gosh. Like that was the craziest fricking
20:38thing. Like talk about an acid trip. Like that was it. I was, I was to the moon, to the moon
20:42on that one. I love that. Well, thank you so much for coming to see us. Thanks for having me. I so
20:46appreciate it. I'm so excited to have you on the show. Anytime. No, thank you. And thanks for all
20:49the support on Bulletproof. I'm I'm, I really believe in this one. So. So do we. And I can't
20:52wait for the next one. It's almost there.