THEGAYUK APRIL/MAY ISSUE 3
2014
INTERVIEW
Who’ve you had the chance
to work with?
an album that we thought was
the right album.
Y’know I made the whole album
with a guy called Brian Rawling
who’s a very famous record
producer he’s made massive
amounts of albums throughout
his career and sold millions and
millions of records. So when his
name was mentioned I knew
exactly who he was. I knew the
music that he’d made and I think
it’s important that between the
artist and producer that you can
talk together, that you can
express each other’s feelings.
Because it is a collaboration
when it comes to making an
album with a producer; he
understood me very well and I
understood him very well and I
think we got a very good balance
on the album, of the sound of the
album between what he likes and
what I like.
Have you chosen the singles
you want to release?
Was it hard choosing songs
for the album?
We kind of just did it song by
song, we weren’t sitting there
saying we’ve got our song list let’s
go. It was like we definitely want
to record this song so let’s record
it and see how it turns out. We
recorded quite a few songs that
didn’t end up on the album, some
songs that just didn’t turn out as
strong as the others. They didn’t
necessarily fit the sound of the
whole album so things like that
were starting to happen here and
there. This is the type of album
that I wanna make and this song
doesn’t necessarily fit this sound
and that was kind of how it
worked. We just did it song by
song, I definitely wanted to
record this one, then definitely
wanted to record that one, so I
went into the studio and
recorded them all, so y’know we
put them together and then all of
a sudden we had ten songs and
78
I’m gonna play it by ear I think is
the best thing to do, this is the
first single and y’know after that
we’re just gonna have to see what
the reactions like to the album
and see what everybody likes. So
it’s a bit early to be jumping on
that bandwagon so we’re just
gonna wait and see.
Are you nervous about being
by yourself for this album?
Well y’know it’s definitely nerve
wrecking having done it the other
way with four other people but at
the same time there’s a lot less
pressure for me personally. I
think in my life I never expected
this opportunity to come my way,
so for me I was kind of like yeah,
that’ll never happen, so when the
offer came in I was like wow. It’s
not about selling millions of
albums like I said, it’s more
about the opportunity to do it
and I’ve got to do it. That’s what’s
special to me, being able to do it
on your own and not necessarily
y’know, coming away from such a
huge machine that was Westlife.
It can be quite weird, but I’m just
really enjoying it and just kind of
like taking every day as it comes.
What are you looking
forward to doing differently
now that it’s just you?
a rock band rather than just me
out there on my own. I want it to
have that feel and that’s what I
really like about it because it is
that feel to me so I suppose that’s
one thing that I’m definitely
doing different. But I don’t think
it’s too different y’know, I don’t
think it’s dramatically different.
The video is as bright and shiny
as the videos that I did in
Westlife but just a bit more raw,
just a bit more me I suppose.
What’s been the reaction
you’ve received from your
fans, especially the gay fans?
Y’know I’ve had a lovely reaction
to be honest I’ve had loads of
lovely support from everybody in
the gay community but I don’t
see it as any different to anything
else. They’re just people that are
being really nice to me about
what I’m doing and that
supported me this far whether it
be Westlife or coming out of the
jungle or doing this solo project
y’know? I’ve just had fantastic
support from everybody. I don’t
really pay attention to whether
they’re gay or straight but y’know
I’d love to get into G-A-Y and
play there at some point.
Have you been in touch with
the other guys to get advice
about launching a solo
career?
No. There’s nothing like that with
the boys, we’re all just doing our
own thing as individuals, I think
if we were all to sit around and
When it comes to the music and
it comes to the videos it’s not that give each other advice then we
might as well be back in a band
I would do anything differently
together. I mean that’s the whole
it’s just it’s all my ideas rather
than four people’s blend of ideas point, we’re all leaving each other
y’know? So from that perspective to our own devices. We all sing
differently and think differently
I’m kind of like y’know what I
and that’s what makes the world
wanna have is the guitar around
my neck in the video and I wanna go round in general doesn’t it?
From that perspective I think it’s
be rocking out with my band, I
want to feel like the front man of best that we just let each other do
things our own way.