''Simple, Sweet, and Smiling'' is the third studio album by American singer-songwriter

Kacy Hill Kacy Anne Hill (born May 1, 1994) is an American singer-songwriter, producer, and former model. She was born and raised in Phoenix, Arizona and had previously worked as a model for American Apparel. She released "Experience", her first non-album ...

. It was released independently on October 15, 2021. It was preceded by the singles "Seasons Bloom", and "Easy Going". The album was made primarily in collaboration with her then-partner

Jim-E Stack James Harmon Stack, (born January 21, 1992) known professionally as Jim-E Stack, is an American musician, songwriter, record producer, and DJ born in San Francisco, CA, and based in Los Angeles, CA. His solo releases have featured Bon Iver, Emp ...

, and

John Carroll Kirby John Carroll Kirby (born February 26, 1983) is an American pianist, record producer and composer based in Los Angeles, California, United States. As a musician, Kirby has collaborated with artists including Remi Wolf, Solange, Frank Ocean, Mil ...

, collaborating also with Eli Teplin,

Ariel Rechtshaid Ariel Rechtshaid ( ;) is an American record producer, audio engineer, mixing engineer, multi-instrumentalist, and songwriter. His accolades include three Grammy Awards for music production. Rechtshaid was the lead singer and guitarist of the ska ...

, Mk.gee, and Ethan Gruska.

Background and release

Hill released two singles in support of the album: "Seasons Bloom" on August 27, 2021, and "Easy Going" on September 24, 2021. She released a music video for "Easy Going" on October 27, 2021. Hill embarked on her first headlining tour, the Simple, Sweet and Selfish Tour, in support of the album, as well as its predecessor. Similarly to her previous 2020 record, '' Is It Selfish If We Talk About Me Again'', the album documents Hill working through feelings of powerlessness and agoraphobic panic disorder, as well as acknowledging gratefulness towards her loved ones, and moments of clarity. In late February 2022, Hill unveiled a demo album available for consumption via the

NFT A non-fungible token (NFT) is a unique digital identifier that is recorded on a blockchain and is used to certify ownership and authenticity. It cannot be copied, substituted, or subdivided. The ownership of an NFT is recorded in the blockchai ...

-based music platform, Catalog.

Critical reception

Peter Piatkowski of ''

PopMatters ''PopMatters'' is an international online magazine of cultural criticism that covers aspects of popular culture. ''PopMatters'' publishes reviews, interviews, and essays on cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television, ...

'' praised the album for "Hill’s sharp, forthright lyrics and the lovely soundscape she’s created with her producers work to make an incredible album of stirring pop tunes that display an artist’s emotional vulnerability – and the strength she possesses to share it." Writing for ''Pitchfork'', Cat Zhang wrote that the album was charming despite its heavy themes.

Track listing

References

2021 albums Kacy Hill albums Self-released albums Albums produced by John Carroll Kirby Albums produced by Mk.gee Albums produced by Jim-E Stack Albums produced by Ariel Rechtshaid {{2020s-album-stub