Joshua Bassett Releases “Smoke Slow”.
Written by: Lauren Everett
Teen heartthrob and star of the hit Disney+ show High School Musical: The Musical: The Series Joshua Bassett delivered “Smoke Slow” on August 11, his second release of 2022 following February’s “Döppelganger”.
Written by Bassett alongside Brett McLaughlin and producer Ryan Raines, the California singer-songwriter crafts a tale of heartbreak and loss over a plucky acoustic guitar with sparse instrumentation, allowing Bassett’s mournful tenor to shine. On lines such as “and nicotine don't taste the same/If I'm not with you savoring every breath we take”, Bassett compares a dying love to the harmful yet addictive properties of cigarettes, as no matter how hard he tries, he finds he cannot keep himself away from someone he knows he cannot be with. Bassett explains, “This song is about savoring those moments together with a person you feel close to, but know you can’t be with. Since I couldn’t say it aloud, of course, I had to write a song about it – ha!”
While Bassett has found his name in the headlines primarily due to his past relationships with fellow Disney actress Sabrina Carpenter and HSMTMTS costar Olivia Rodrigo, the young artist has set out to let his name speak for itself through his art, including “Smoke Slow”, for which he also directed the music video starring Michael Cimino of Love, Victor and Ilia Wayans. Amassing over 300 million streams worldwide since the release of his 2019 debut single “Common Sense”, Bassett has certainly made strides towards accomplishing his goals.
Despite already having a whirlwind of a year, Bassett is just getting started. Along with the premiere of season three of HSMTMTS last month, a slate of shows with special guest Lindsey Lomis are scheduled for Toronto, New York City, and Los Angeles this fall, all of which are sold out. While a number of other North American and European shows planned for next month were cancelled due to scheduling conflicts, Bassett has promised to return next year with more music and bigger venues, gearing up to make 2023 his biggest and best year yet.