Sam Smith turns to voice app to help him speak as he recovers from surgery

Sam Smith has adopted technology similar to that which helps scientist Stephen Hawking speak as he recovers from corrective vocal cord surgery.

The singer's producer Jimmy Napes has revealed the Stay With Me star has been told he cannot speak as his throat heals following specialist Dr. Steven Zeitels' operation last week (14May15), and so Smith is using a voice app to communicate.

Napes tells the BBC, "He's doing well, he's resting up. He's got an app that speaks for him and it's like Stephen Hawking, where you type something in... except it's in a girls' voice, which is hilarious."

And the producer reveals the app voice may make an appearance on Smith's next album: "It might be a little outtake."

Smith showed fans he is taking his recovery seriously when he held up cue cards with his acceptance speech written on them in a video segment beamed to the 2015 Billboard Music Awards in Las Vegas on Sunday (17May15).