Friday 30th September: Fast-rising electronic-pop artist sadHAPPY has released his euphoric new single ‘Better Everyday’, out now via Platoon. Listen here. With its head bopping guitar motif and production that fuses disco with modern dance and lush textural soundscapes, ‘Better Everyday’ is the first single to be released under the Scottish artist Aaron Smith’s new moniker.

Arriving as a tonic ahead of World Mental Health Day next month, in ‘Better Everyday’ sadHAPPY accepts that the path to self improvement is a rocky one. The song – co-written with Mick Coogan (5SOS, Imagine Dragons) and Sean Myer (Demi Lovato) – carries a forward sense of optimism not felt in his previous work.

sadHAPPY said: “Better Everyday is a song about channelling my emotions in the right way. I was numb for a long time and suddenly I got all these feelings I didn’t know I had in me. It’s a song to myself to say that I’m not perfect but I’m getting better and better everyday”.

In keeping with the song’s feel-good message, sadHAPPY decided to donate his music video budget for ‘Better Everyday’ to pull off a massive random act of kindness by surprising drivers in Los Angeles with free petrol.

The single follows ‘You’, which premiered as a ‘World First’ on Zane Lowe’s flagship Apple Music show in June and also earned BBC Radio 1’s Best New Pop. He also performed at a string of UK and EU festivals this summer including Barn of The Farm, Standon Calling and Haldern Pop, and formally made his introduction to the US with a label showcase in LA.

Happier and healthier than he’s ever been, sadHAPPY’s sound is a natural progression following a period of personal reflection, replacing the stripped-back ‘Sad Boy’ down-tempos that emerged during lockdown with shiny electronic beats and bouncing synths, while still retaining his signature honest lyricism.

Explaining his name change, sadHAPPY said: “I would describe the world as a very sad/happy place right now. The world is on fire, rivers are drying up and the cost of living has increased dramatically but every day there will be people waking up still wanting to be their best possible self to support, inspire and keep the people close to them happy.

I’ve been through a lot of changes personally over the last couple of years and feel like a name change to reflect who I am now is important. I am happier and healthier than I’ve ever been before after winning over my addictions but still every day I have to manage my anxieties and depression so the days can be tough. I think a lot of people are in the same headspace of feeling not quite all one emotion so I believe I am/we are sadHAPPY together.”

The 25-year old made a life-changing decision during the depths of lockdown to tackle his alcoholism head on, following years of numbing after he lost his mother in his teens. Amidst his personal storm, sadHAPPY was catapulted from Polmont into the spotlight as Aaron Smith, topping Beyoncé and Sam Smith on global streaming playlists. His 2019 breakthrough single ‘Unspoken’ has amassed over 20 million streams on Spotify to date (No.1 on Apple Music’s Best of The Week and Spotify’s New Music Friday playlists). He followed up with two EPs Loveless (2019) and the critically-acclaimed For My Father (2020), and singles ‘Nocturnal’, a collaboration with Matoma ‘Beautiful Wave’, and ‘Giving Up’.