Smiler (musician)

Joseph Bartlett-Vanderpuye, better known by his stage name Smiler, is an British rapper and former Grime MC, who was born in London. Vanderpuye first entered the limelight after releasing an underground mixtape in 2009, as well as the urban single "Enza".

After being spotted by a talent scout, Vanderpuye was signed to Warner Music UK, and released his debut single, "Delorean", featuring fellow rapper Wretch 32 in March 2012. The track originally featured rapper Lady Leshurr, but she was subsequently replaced by Wretch for the single release, following his recent chart success with hit singles "Traktor", "Unorthodox" and "Don't Go".

Vanderpuye was dropped from Warner Music in 2013 following poor sales of his fourth single, "Brand New Style". His album of the same name, which was scheduled for release in November 2013, remains unreleased.

Background

Joseph Bartlett-Vanderpuye was born in London. His musical career began in 2009 when he released the underground mixtape "Da Musical Omnibus" via Elementary Entertainment.^[1] Following the release, Vanderpuye began working on his debut single with the label, and on August 8, 2010, released "Enza".^[2]

Producer Jakwob subsequently contacted Vanderpuye and asked him to contribute vocals to his upcoming single, "Right Beside You". The single was released on New Year's Day 2011 and was heavily supported by BBC Radio 1.^[3] Vanderpuye was subsequently signed as a support act for British rappers Wretch 32 and Professor Green, and toured with the pair extensively throughout 2011. Vanderpuye was subsequently spotted by a talent scout at one of Green's concerts, and subsequently, was offered a record deal with Warner Music UK. Vanderpuye began work on his debut album with the label, and released mixtape "All I Know" as a taster of his upcoming record.

Vanderpuye released his first single with the label, "Delorean", in March 2012. The track featured fellow rapper and friend Wretch 32, although was initially demoed with rapper Lady Leshurr (with several promotional copies of the single being issued with Leshurr's version on). On June 8, 2012, Vanderpuye released his second single, "Rock Steady", which featured the collaboration of singer and rapper Sneakbo. Neither single impacted the UK singles chart. In an attempt to impact the charts, Vanderpuye contacted former touring partner Professor Green and asked him to record a verse for his new single, "Top of the World", which features rising star Taiwah. Green agreed and the single was subsequently released on August 28, 2015,^[4] peaking at #63 on the UK Singles Chart the following week.

In early 2013, a sampler featuring previously unreleased material from the album, surfaced online. Tracks on the sampler included hit single "Top of the World", as well as "Real Thing", "X", "Tonight (Part 1)", "Quicksand" and "Streets of London". Snippets of "Quicksand", "Streets of London" and "Real Thing" had previously appeared on an internal record company sampler which surfaced in March 2012, which also contained an alternate version of "Top of the World", only featuring Green. Vanderpuye returned in August 2013 and announced the release of his latest single, "Brand New Style", as well as his debut album of the same name, due for release in November 2013. "Brand New Style" was again supported by BBC Radio 1, but upon its release on September 20, 2013,^[5] again failed to chart. At this point, Warner Music UK announced they were terminating Vanderpuye's record deal and his debut album subsequently remains unreleased. A tracklisting for the album was announced prior to its release being cancelled, and subsequently, certain tracks from the album have subsequently surfaced online.

Vanderpuye continues to tour and record, and is currently working on a new record deal with an independent label.

Discography

Albums

Mixtapes

• All I Know (2012)

Singles

References