Kim Petras Reveals How Sam Smith Helped Her Manage 'Really Scary' Fame After 'Unholy'

Kim Petras and Sam Smith dominated the charts together with “Unholy” last year, but their relationship runs much deeper than a simple collaboration in the studio.

For the 31-year-old Feed the Beast popstar, “Unholy” was a historic song that earned her a Grammy and her first No. 1 on multiple charts.

In a new interview, she addressed the extra attention (and political outrage) that the song sparked and how it affected her personally and professionally. One thing that Kim made clear is that Sam was at her side through it all.

Keep reading to find out more…

Speaking to Cosmopolitan UK, Kim described her experience, especially winning at the Grammys, as “a huge honor.”

“But nothing can prepare you for that level of attention. It felt exposing and scary. Suddenly, a lot of people who wouldn’t usually listen to my music were digging up my origin story,” she recalled.

Kim added that the newfound success “took over [her] life,” leading to a very full schedule that she had to adjust to. While that was good, it also led to some struggles that she had to work through.

“Therapy was also necessary for me after having a huge song, to learn how to shut everything off,” Kim explained. “I had therapy in my teen years and stopped when things got busy. But I missed having someone to let everything out to. I recommend therapy to everyone; it’s an essential tool… The music industry can get very hectic.”

Through it all, Sam made Kim feel supported.

“Sam‘s such a wonderful person, and has been my coach in a lot of ways. If I feel in a crisis, or read something about myself that I can’t deal with, I’ll text or call them. That level of media attention is really scary; it forced me to grow as a person, and it’s so inspiring to see Sam be able to brush that off,” she said.

If you missed it, Kim recently addressed her relationship with sex as a trans woman.