Smile Lyrics

How to Format Lyrics:

  • Type out all lyrics, even repeating song parts like the chorus
  • Lyrics should be broken down into individual lines
  • Use section headers above different song parts like [Verse], [Chorus], etc.
  • Use italics (<i>lyric</i>) and bold (<b>lyric</b>) to distinguish between different vocalists in the same song part
  • If you don’t understand a lyric, use [?]

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About

Genius Annotation

“Smile” was Lily’s debut single from her debut album Alright Still with B sides “Cheryl Tweedy” and “Absolutely Nothing”. The track reached number one in the UK singles chart and remained there for two weeks.

The song is about a woman’s anger towards a cheating ex-boyfriend. Initially she is heartbroken, and describes how the feeling of hurt, and longing turn into anger, bitterness and a thirst for revenge. Eventually she enjoys seeing him alone and desperate in the same way that she once felt.

The lyrics suggest heavily that the song may be about Lily’s ex-partner DJ Lester Lloyd and the controversial music video, directed by Sophie Muller, removes any doubt as a DJ character is cast as the protagonist.

Throughout the video Lily arranges for him to be beaten up, spiked with laxatives and his home invaded while Lily smiles.

However Lily has never admitted the link between the fictional character and her ex-partner, and Lloyd claims he never cheated on Lily.

The track is built on a sample from the Soul Brothers 1960’s “Free Soul”

Q&A

Find answers to frequently asked questions about the song and explore its deeper meaning

What did Lily Allen say about "Smile"?
Genius Answer

What has the media said about the song?
Genius Answer

In 2018, NPR ranked this as the #153 greatest song by a female or nonbinary artist in the 21st century, saying:

Lily Allen was always a rebel in a polka dot dress. You could see it in her early years when she would get thrown out of schools (plural) for chain-smoking and fighting but would turn around to bring an auditorium to tears with her beautiful rendition of a Disney song. And you could hear that duality of life experience and musical presence in her 2006 debut single ‘Smile,’ when she dressed up some Cockney-twanged mischief in sugar-coated vocals and ska-pop-tinged melodies. It’s cheeky, bawdy, experimental and ear-catching. With a mix of spoken word disses and Snow White high notes, ‘Smile’ proved then (and forevermore) that Lily Allen is the pop princess that you do not want to mess with.

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