Now I’m Wiser — John Smyths Turns a Lifetime of Lessons into Song
3 min read
John Smyths (offstage Johan Smits) was born in the ancient Dutch city of Nijmegen and has had an incredible musical journey. Since he was a teenager, engrossed in the intensity of heavy metal to the introspective wisdom of country songwriting, Smyths has grown into a musician whose notes sound like hard-won experience. Since relocating to Germany, he has been working for years, performing and touring across Europe, gaining increasing recognition and appreciation for his sincere songwriting and authentic sound. Not only is his sound informed by his influences — Alan Jackson, George Strait, Kenny Rogers, among others — but his purpose is to tell the truth through music. After his 2025 international award of “Loving You Makes Me a Better Man,” Smyths returns with “Now I Am Wiser”, a song that encapsulates 150 years of experience in four minutes of elegance and self-reflection. It is written and sung with the confidence of someone who has weathered through the eye of the storm and discovered serenity on the other side: straightforward, soulful, and honest.
Now I Wiser starts with the good old-fashionedness of an acoustic guitar —stable, relaxed, and natural. The introductory chords are almost like the pages of an old book where each word was heavy and soft-spoken. The voice of Smyths has a wearied richness which is at once grit and pity, and he is not preaching; he is talking to us. The structure is close and natural: the acoustics are stacked, the slide guitar is quietly humming, and the beat of a heart is barely perceptible in the musical background. There is a pause between all notes, a silence which is majestically heinous–as though the song were stopping to take breath. His language is simple, yet rich: moulded by modesty and not pomp. I have had the best, I have tried the worst, but I have studied through it all. The silent certainty of experience strikes down every word. The instrumentation becomes more sombre, a slight bassline getting the mix down, and a delicate female harmony flowering in the background like memory itself. The song is developed, not by strength, but by feeling — it has strength in self-control and sincerity. It is pure country music —music where it counts; no screaming is necessary.
When the final chorus dies away, not sadness, but calmness is the only thing left by Now I Wiser. It is more like bringing a chapter to a close with a grateful heart, not a regretful one. Smyths does not just write about growth; he is it, and he transforms personal contemplations into universal medicine. His ability is to know when to let the song speak for itself; the story justifies all the sounds, and all the lyrics have meaning. It is no mince-pies country song of a young man, but a well-rounded writer singing praises of acceptance and grace. Now I Wiser is an unusual piece of calm in an era of noise and rush, when wisdom is so whispering, not clamouring. John Smyths establishes himself as one of the contemporary narrators of country music with this song, preserving the genre’s heart. He might have begun with the rock fire uprising, but in this case, with silent persuasion, he demonstrates that the essence is to reflect. Now I Wiser is not a song; it is a tribute to time, to endurance, and to the beauty of being what you were destined to be.
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