Sam Smith drops Madonna collaboration 'Vulgar'

'Unholy' minstrel of pop and soul, Sam Smith has once again crafted a stunning single - this time, in collaboration with Queen of Pop herself, Madonna.

The collaboration was revealed through social media when the talented pair teased the song with a 15-second clip of the track with the words "SXM, 'Vulgar," back in May. SXM is the two's new joint alias, combining the first letter of each of their names together.

With a building, near-symphonic string opening reminiscent of enchanting film scenes that quickly devolves into a pumping, drawling beat, 'Vulgar' is the latest enrapturing, captivating single to be spun from Smith's transforming musical sound.

"Look like I'm dressed to kill / Love how I make me feel / All black in stripper heels / Mood like Madonna."

Released via Capitol Records, the sultry single was produced by Smith, Illya, Cirkut, Omer Fedi, Ryan Tedder and Jimmy Naples. Madonna's vocal producer and engineer Lauren D'Elia is also credited with production contributions.

Say our names #VULGARhttps://t.co/lax8K7Kmx1 pic.twitter.com/x6zR5qqDf7

— SAM SMITH (@samsmith) June 6, 2023

In the lead-up to 'Vulgar's' release, Smith had plans to reveal the new track at their Gloria tour Manchester performance, but Smith unfortunately had to cancel after suffering from vocal issues.

Luckily, there was some more recent material to tie people over while waiting for the new music. In honour of Pride Month, the singer opened up the month with a cover of 'Beautiful' by Christina Aguilera.

With 'Vulgar' now out, Smith continues on with the European leg of their third tour. On it, they've already come to Ireland, taking over Dublin's 3Arena to deliver a magnificent performance about self-love and living freely. It came a scant few months after they gave an interview to Hot Press and featured on January's magazine cover after they debuted on the charts at No.1 with Gloria.

Madonna has her own tour in the works, a 'Celebration Tour' commemorating her phenomenal 4 decades dominating the pop music scene. Starting in Vancouver, Canada, on July 15th, she'll be travelling around North American until early October before performing a string of shows across Europe.

Read the live report of Sam Smith's 3Arena performance, here:

Check out Hot Press's January cover issue interview with Sam Smith here:

Listen to Sam Smith and Madonna's new track 'Vulgar' here: