Establishing the mood with a cerebral, almost alien frequency and a countdown from three, Jon Henri opens Smile with a captivating timbre as he assertively shares the words, “I ain’t lookin’ for escape routes baby, you know I’m here to stay…”
The opus expands with a dimensional pop soundscape, tapping into tropical elements with reverberating guitar and textured percussion. We appreciate the vocal production, astral harmonies, and the intentional meaning of the song.
In essence, Smile is about notions of commitment, accountability and love that chooses understanding over ego. It centres on apologizing after a conflict, and doing whatever it takes to make your partner smile. The lyrics highlight sentiments of emotional intimacy and loyalty. It’s a love song rooted in self-realized growth and poetic reassurance. The song emphasizes sincerity, vulnerability and devotion.
We learn that Smile was written and produced by Jon Henri, who also performs the lead vocals. The recording took place at The Lab. The track was even mastered at Abbey Road Studios in London. The instrumentation is sublime and cinematic, perfect for a range of sync placements – notably a coming of age movie or TV show on Netflix or Amazon Prime.
Background vocals are performed by Amani Guerrero and Rhonda Womack, with Ronnie Love on keyboards and Mia Poulos as production assistant. The official music video, which brings to life the heartfelt message of the song perfectly, was directed by Nigel Barnaby.
Needless to say, we are in awe, and have added Smile to our New Music Spotlight playlist, and our TIMELESS playlist, whilst we continue to stream the entirety of Jon Henri‘s EP, Pop Life, and anticipate future releases from the rising star.