Get to Know: Lewis Capaldi
This week's featured artist is an incrediblesinger/songwriter from Scotland.
Lewis Capaldi is already making huge waves in the music industry. Since releasing his debut EP' Bloom 'in October''last year, the up-and-coming artist has not only received huge critical acclaim but also amassed over 60 million streams on Spotify alone.
We were lucky enough to catch up with the rising star this week.
Check it out below...
1) For those who don’t know about you and your music tell us a little about who you are and where you’re from.
My name is Lewis Capaldi. I’m a 21-year-old singer/songwriter from Scotland. I was born in Glasgow and brought up in a place in between Glasgow and Edinburgh called West Lothian!
2) Describe your sound in three words...
Chubby sad boi.
3) Who inspired you to make music?
When I was about 9 my brother, who’s six years older than me, started getting guitar lessons and I wouldn’t say that it inspired me to pick up an instrument, it was more me being like ‘well if he’s getting guitar lessons then so am I, I’m not missing out’ type of thing. Idid a similar thing with my other brother who started playing football except I didn’t have the necessary skill or the required fitness to do it. Also, you didn’t have to get up early for guitar lessons like you did with football training so that was always more appealing to me. When I was about twelve my brother started playing in bands and again I just followed suit because if he was going to be writing songs and playing gigs then so was I.
4) Who are your biggest musical influences?
The first artist whose music I really got into was Paolo Nutini. When his album 'Sunny Side Up' came out, I think I listened to it on repeat for like six months. Beyond that, there’sBob Dylan, Frank Ocean, The Maccabees, Kings of Leon, Florence + The Machine and Sia!
5) Tell us about the writing/recording your new music...
I wrote the new single ‘Rush’ out in LA with Malay, who I worked with before on my debut EP “Bloom”, which had actually only come out five days prior to the session that we wrote the new track in. The song actually came together really quickly and we got my vocal and piano that you hear in the finished track down that day before Malay went away and worked on the production. After that, I thought I’d had the idea of getting in touch with Jessie Reyez to see what she thought of the initial demo, had an email later that day saying she loved it!
By coincidence there happened to be one evening that I was going to be over in Los Angeles that Jessie was also going to be there too! Straight after my first headline show there I jumped in a taxi up to the studio to meet her, we were in till like 3 or 4am getting it all finished. I was blown away by her live vocal. Unreal!
6) What can we expect from your live shows?
It depends what type of show I’m playing. If it’s a stripped back set with just me a guitar and a piano I like it to feel like everyone in the room is just laid back, with us all essentially having a laughand there just happens to be this chubby fella shouting songs at everyone intermittently, but in a nice way. I usually think quite a bit about the size of the room and what I’d enjoy most if I was going to the show. Some of the UK headline shows coming up are playing to 1500 people a night, for those there’s a bigger set up. I’m really going to be able to bring the more up-tempo tunes I have to life a bit more and balancethat with the more stripped back moments!
7) What has been your biggest career highlight so far?
I toured the US for the first time in January which was pretty special, I’d never been to the US at all before last year so to get to see it off of the back of my music really meant a lot to me. Also, my third headline UK and Europe tour in a row selling out is crazy. For me playing live is my favourite thing to do so to see so many people buying tickets and selling the shows out has been incredibly humbling and is something I know I don’t and will never truly deserve.
8) Have you met anyone and been totally starstruck?
Not that I can remember, I don’t spend a lot of time around famous people if I’m honest. I saw Marti Pellow in pantomime in Glasgow one time.
9) What’s on your playlists that people wouldn’t expect?
I’m not really sure what people would expect me to listen to but on tour recently I’ve only really listened to Camilla Cabello’s new album, 'Ctrl' by SZA and 'Toxicity' by System of A Down.
10) When can we see you live?
I’m touring the UK and Europe in February for some headline shows, which are sold out, but I’m doing a tonne of festivals throughout the summer and announcing some huge stuff really soon! Some of the things coming up are absolutely unreal!
Listen to Lewis' brilliant new single 'Rush' below.
