Warsaw — a beloved, Polish-influenced venue in Greenpoint — retains the warmth of a neighborhood music room: good food, close sightlines and excellent sound. Though the space has hosted luminaries from Jack White to Kesha, Sam Smith’s multi-date To Be Free residency transformed the intimate 1,000-capacity stage into something especially memorable on the night of December 10, 2025.

For the 22nd show of the 24-performance run, Smith delivered a 90-minute set that felt personal and carefully curated. The audience — which included guests like Anna Wintour, Anne Hathaway and JD Samson — witnessed two surprise duet partners across the evening, each bringing a different mood to the program.

Brandi Carlile joined Smith for “Party of One,” a collaboration the pair originally recorded in 2018 for War Child. Carlile’s rich, soulful timbre complemented Smith’s plaintive delivery, lending the song an elegiac, resonant quality that suited the room’s close-up intimacy.

Later in the show Ed Sheeran, who had been seated in the VIP area with his wife, came onstage to perform the live debut of “Who We Love,” the duet that appears on Smith’s 2023 album Gloria. With an acoustic guitar and effortless chemistry, Sheeran and Smith traded lines and created a relaxed, heartfelt moment that suited Warsaw’s homey atmosphere.

The evening culminated with both Carlile and Sheeran joining Smith for a communal finale — a sing-along rendition of Smith’s Hot 100 top-five hit “I’m Not the Only One.” The trio’s voices blended nicely for the crowd, turning the amenable room into a celebratory close to an already standout show.

As the residency winds down, Smith has also been road-testing new material. During the run they introduced a song called “My Guy,” which they said was written in Brooklyn and carries a lighter, more affectionate tone than some of their recent work. Fashion designer Christian Cowan — long linked to Smith and in attendance that night — appeared to be part of the inspiration behind the track. With the new material and the residency’s warm reception, it seems likely Smith will continue to surface new music in 2026.

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