Unbreakable Smile

Album: Unbreakable Smile (2015)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • The title track from Tori Kelly's debut album finds the singer refusing to give in to the commercial pressures of the music industry. "I was getting some feedback through the grapevine through the industry that people were doubting if I was going to be able to do anything else - if I was just that girl and her guitar, if I was too boring, too plain, too nice even," she explained.

    "I'm hearing all these things and pretending it's not fazing me at all, and sure enough, that night, I went home and just spilled my whole heart out into a song," Kelly added. "I think it was some things I needed to say for a long time that I was holding in."
  • Tori Kelly's manager Scooter Braun (Ariana Grande, Justin Bieber, Carly Rae Jepsen) recalled to Billboard magazine: "I remember telling her, 'You're the most talented person I know, but you're boring. People think you're boring. They think you're vanilla.' But Tori is resilient. The next day she came to my house and said, 'I wrote a song about what you said, and it's called 'Unbreakable Smile.'"

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Rob Thomas of Matchbox Twenty

Rob Thomas of Matchbox TwentySongwriter Interviews

Rob Thomas on his Social Distance Sessions, co-starring with a camel, and his friendship with Carlos Santana.

Stephen Christian of Anberlin

Stephen Christian of AnberlinSongwriter Interviews

The lead singer/lyricist for Anberlin breaks down "Impossible" and covers some tracks from their 2012 album Vital.

Part of Their World: The Stories and Songs of 13 Disney Princesses

Part of Their World: The Stories and Songs of 13 Disney PrincessesSong Writing

From "Some Day My Prince Will Come" to "Let It Go" - how Disney princess songs (and the women who sing them) have evolved.

Rosanne Cash

Rosanne CashSongwriter Interviews

Rosanne talks about the journey that inspired her songs on her album The River & the Thread, including a stop at the Tallahatchie Bridge.

Gene Simmons of Kiss

Gene Simmons of KissSongwriter Interviews

The Kiss rocker covers a lot of ground in this interview, including why there are no Kiss collaborations, and why the Rock Hall has "become a sham."

Chris Robinson of The Black Crowes

Chris Robinson of The Black CrowesSongwriter Interviews

"Great songwriters don't necessarily have hit songs," says Chris. He's written a bunch, but his fans are more interested in the intricate jams.