Sam Smith opened up to Ellen Degeneres on her show last year about how he came out of the closet just before his album was about to be released. He joked about coming out, saying he was sure everybody know he was gay even when he was four years old. He told Ellen he wanted to tell his fans before the release of the album, so people wouldn't accuse him later on of using his sexuality as a way of selling more records. His album content is based on how a guy he loved when he was younger didn't love him back, and a lot of his song's emotions came from writing and singing about that heartbreak.