Haley Smalls Perspective on Cheat on Me

My name is Haley Smalls, I am a music artist and songwriter.

I am from Toronto, Canada and I had a very musically diverse household when I was growing up. My parents played music non-stop, and so music and nostalgia are very much intertwined for me. I try to bring that feeling of nostalgia to my music, so I focus very much on how the music feels. I love when a song brings me back to a moment in time, makes me feel like I have heard it before, or is so relatable that it instantly brings me to a memory or a deeper feeling.

Playing and singing along to songs from 'The Lion King’ on a cassette tape in my room.

I never had that moment, it was just something that was embedded in me since as long as I can remember. I always say, I did not choose music - it chose me.

R&B primarily, but there are pop and jazz influences as well.

I have learned a lot as a human, and self-growth is one of my greatest passions. My music runs parallel to my growth in that way, and so I think my sound is a reflection of the energy I carry at that time. Right now, I feel great empathy for the world and what people are going through.  A lot of my concepts are written in a way where I can connect with my audience through relatability, sharing the things I have gone through with them in a way that makes them feel less alone.

Love. Peeling back layers of the self through love and relationships. Relationships and love are one of life’s greatest mirrors. You can learn so much about yourself through your relationships with others, and through loving or feeling deeply for someone.

There are a lot of artists I admire, but when it comes to working with them creatively it would just boil down to what makes sense in terms of merging sound and creative production. I like to keep myself open to infinite possibility.

Poetic, nostalgic, deep, feel-good.

Nostalgic, R&B, relatable

Michael Jackson and Erykah Badu. Michael, because he was the greatest. Erykah, because she embodies authenticity and alignment.

I do not have a favourite song, but as of right now I would have to say my new album ‘The Cure IV’, because to me it is the most relatable.

I do not think I could narrow it down to three! I love Tems, Sabrina Carpenter, The Weeknd, Brandy, Erykah Badu, Michael Jackson, Toni Braxton, Celine Dion, Janet Jackson. There are too many…

A live band, a big stage, an engaged audience, and good energy.

For me, it always comes down to what creatively makes sense but I admire artists like Tems, The Weeknd, and Sabrina Carpenter.

My hope would be that they feel the things they need to feel in order to heal the parts of themselves that need healing.

Someone once said ‘someone else’s perspective of you is none of your business’, and I agree with that sentiment. I say that because whichever answer I give, may not resonate with my audience because I cannot see myself the way they see me and I think people internalize things and people based on what they need to see or understand in a moment. I offer an expression based on what I have experienced in my life, and however my audience translates that expression is personal to each one of them and I am okay with that.

Live performance is my favourite, because it is the most real and raw connection to the audience. I can feel them and they can feel me in a way that no other medium can duplicate. 

Everyday. I have tried to integrate practice into everything I do, so instead of setting aside a couple hours to practice (which I still do when I need to) I try to practice throughout the day everyday as I go about my day so it becomes embedded in my sub-conscious.

Hearing thousands of people scream every lyric to my songs from the audience at my shows. It is an incredible feeling to see and feel that energy from fans in the crowd who really resonate with your music.

I just focus on taking everything I have learned and experienced and channel it into the most authentic creative expression that I can. 

My personal success is what defines my professional success. Through my journey so far, it is been important for me understand that it is almost impossible to enjoy any sort of professional success without establishing my personal wellbeing. I see energy as currency, so I focus on putting my energy in places that make me happy and are aligned with my soul mission. That is my map to success. I care less about what it looks like, and more about what it feels like. Being able to embody and spread love through music is success to me.

I think we each have different roles in society as artists, and it is hard to tell someone what role someone should or should not play. For me, I try to serve as an example for those who need someone to relate to as they find themselves. Finding myself has been a major theme in my life, and I have had artists who I look up to serve as examples for me at times in my life when I needed that. It is a blessing to have the opportunity to do the same for others who may need it.

The first song that comes to mind is ‘Didn’t Cha Know’ by Erykah Badu. It poetically describes the spiral that one goes through in losing and finding their way while trying to reach their destination. This is a key part of achieving any sort of success.

Almost feeling like I did not belong in the music industry.

Almost losing myself.

I would make it less political. Less about favours, greed, and power plays. I would make it more about creative expression, and the love of music. 

I worked as a server at my family restaurant growing up.

My passion for self-improvement has gone hand-in-hand with making music, because it has driven me to keep expanding past my limits and comfort zones. 

Not everyone understands the life of an artist, and so at times it has isolated me from the people that I care about but I have learned to be mission-focused, and I know that my purpose in being an artist serves more than just myself so I stay focused on that. I know that the ones who are meant to stay in my life will, and the rest will come and go. It is never any love lost, either way.

Seeing the art in everything. The pain, the joy, the trauma, the loneliness, the love, the doubt, the triumphs, the losses, the fear. There is beauty in all of it.

Life.

Anything poetic, whether it be a movie/show, a book, a documentary, or music. If it resonates with the deeper chords of the human experience I am captivated by it.

I do not really seek to be compared to anyone, I try to embody authenticity as much as I can. Whoever my audience finds me similar to is fine with me. I respect the perspectives of the collective.

Know yourself. Know who you are. Know what your mission is. Know what you will not settle for. Know who and what you serve. If you don’t know these things, you will wander around lost and lose yourself.

It’s the tool I have been blessed with to spread love, heal myself, and heal others.

To make a positive impact.