Idol Chatter & Voice Views

Colton Smith, a Top 24 contestant on Season 15 of The Voice, has released his first two singles.

Colton released “Everybody Knows” and “I’ll Cry” on Wednesday. The singer from Albertville, Ala., who turned 22 last month, wrote both songs.

‘“Everybody Knows’ I wrote about my experience coming out and learning to love myself in a time when everyone told me it was wrong,” he told Voice Views. “I hope others can find that story in the lyrics and I hope at least one person can relate to the message.”

The ballad “I’ll Cry” is about a breakup, he added.

“The situation was kind of rough and all of my friends were telling me to move on and get over it when all I really wanted to do in the moment was throw myself a pity party. Hahaha,” Colton said.

“There’s a lot of emotion behind this song and I’m really happy with how it turned out.”

As for why he chose the songs as his first post-Voice releases, Colton said “I think these two songs kind of say everything about me as an artist. ‘Everybody Knows’ is about learning to love and accept yourself — a really difficult journey that I had a hard time with. ‘I’ll Cry’ is about heartbreak, a feeling that so many people encounter.”

More music is coming. Colton said he’s working on an album of songs he’s written based on personal experiences.

Fans of Season 15 will remember than Colton turned a one-chair turn into a twice-stolen, successful run on The Voice that took him all the way to the live playoffs as a member of Team Jennifer Hudson.

You can follow Colton through his Facebook and Instagram pages. On Twitter, he’s @coltonasmith.

Here’s “I’ll Cry.”