Sam Smith on His Four Grammy Wins: 'I Keep Spontaneously Crying' (VIDEO)

"I genuinely didn't think this was going to happen," Smith revealed on The Ellen DeGeneres Show

Photo: Michael Rozman/Warner Bros.

Update: In September 2019, Sam Smith announced that they use they/them pronouns. This content was written in February 2015 before Smith publicly announced their pronouns.

After Sam Smith swept the Grammy Awards on Sunday with a whopping four trophies – including the coveted record of the year trophy – he was as surprised by his sudden success as anyone.

“It’s ridiculous,” Smith, 22, said of his wins to Ellen DeGeneres on Tuesday. “They’re so heavy, as well. It’s unreal. I genuinely didn’t think this was going to happen. It’s incredible. I keep spontaneously crying. I started crying in the shower this morning, like, ‘Oh my God.’ “

Of course, Smith’s crying may have also been influenced by his late night – he admitted that he went to bed at 6:30 a.m. after the Grammy Awards and that he slept “for like four hours,” turning to the Ellen DeGeneres Show audience and apologizing: “Sorry, guys. I’ve had to put a lot of makeup on my face to not look red.”

Smith’s success at the Grammys was underscored by the fact that, by his own admission, no one even knew who he was at last year’s ceremony.

The “Stay with Me” singer, who has been outspoken in the past about how some of the people he’s met in the music industry are “just awful,” was proud to tell DeGeneres, 57, that he has stayed true to himself. “The most beautiful thing about this whole thing is that I haven’t played a character. I went on stage and I didn’t rehearse anything that I said last night, it was just a genuine response.”

He did, however, cop to rehearsing the bit about thanking his ex for inspiring the record that won him such acclaim. (After all, who could resist jamming that kind of success into an ex’s face?)

Smith also touched on his recent breakup, joking that, with the tone of his record, he just had to be single for the Grammys.