My name is Calum Scott. I am a singer and songwriter from the UK, probably best
known for my first single which was a cover of Robyn's Dancing on My Own. I released
my debut album Only Human in March of 2018, and toured it that year and had the
year of my life, and I'm now writing album two.
What's the first album that you
bought? First album I bought, and the first artists I saw live, was Spice Girls. Spice.
Do you remember the first song or musician that resonated with you? There's
never been an artist that has moved me the way that Adele moves me. And just when
she sings, she sings with such conviction, and she sings like it's the
last time she's gonna sing. Yeah, she really really resonated with me. What's your
favorite queer anthem and why? I mean, I would be -- I would be pretty stupid if I
didn't say Dancing on My Own.
The song that Robyn did was just sensational, and I've had time to speak
to both Robyn and Patrik Berge, the other songwriter on the record --
they really crafted that song. They didn't mess around. They weren't going
'Oh well, that sounds about right, yes, spinning around in circles, yeah that's
cool' -- like, they went to clinical detail about the song and about how they can
best phrase certain things. She's an incredibly powerful role model in
the gay community and the LGBTQ community and a lot of her fans
love her for what she stands for and what she does, and the songs that she
produces. It's gotta be that. It's gotta be that. How have you
been spending your time in isolation? There's varying degrees of how I spend
my time. I spent the first week, I would guess, in my pants, playing Call of Duty,
drinking wine and generally not doing anything, and then I think the second
week I was like, I can't keep this up, so I'm going to need to get back
into my fitness, get back into my studio. My time has become more and more
productive. I've rattled through quite a lot of music now.
I realized that I actually had more songs than I thought for the second
album that were up to the standard and so I've started collecting songs
together with the label, of what I think is the strongest, and then just recently
I went down to Abbey Road Studios in London and recorded a few of those, and
it felt really good to just get back into a rhythm with music.
And how has it been writing your second album? It's kind of been an up-and-down
experience, because the first album, I had all of my life to draw experience
from -- you know, everything from my sexuality and the problems I had
growing up, to losing all of my friends, to falling in love with the
first -- the only guy I've ever loved, who didn't love me back. Everything that I'd ever
thought was crammed into that first album. Second album, everything
had started coming to a really nice plateau, and the songs had done amazing
and they'd had their moment, and they were still having moments, but the label
were like, this is the time for you to go away and write your second
album, in your own time. For me, I draw on experience for my songs.
I draw on life experience, and because I was writing day in and day out, I was running
out of inspiration. Basically I needed to -- I needed to live and I wanted to
experience and feel for the second album. Yeah, the second album has been a
bit of a journey, but it's actually matured with me, as an artist, as
a proud gay guy, as a songwriter -- as a person, I've matured and
I think the album shows that. What's it like to record at Abbey Road?
My God. Like, insane. In fact, one of my friends -- I posted a picture of me
at the Abbey Road entrance and one of my friends texted me and he was like, I've just
been listening to the Beatles album and then I see your picture flash up and you're
recording in the same place. For me, to look back at moments like at --
of course, my manager goes, do you want to record at Abbey Road for your second album, and I'm
like, hell yeah, but then when I sit and think about it -- I just recorded
at Abbey Road. Like, The Beatles just walked across that zebra crossing I just
casually walked across, as if it's any zebra crossing in the UK. Like it's just --
it's not -- I can't put it into words. It's very -- it's almost like dreaming it and
then realizing you're not dreaming, if that makes sense. It definitely keeps me
excited about my career and excited about performing. Yeah, this is pretty
special. What music do you have on repeat lately? I'm listening a lot to Harry
Styles new album. I think that's an absolute bop. Watermelon Sugar is just my
jam. I love The Weeknd's new album. For some
reason, I've gone back to eighties music. I listened to a lot Fleetwood. But to answer
your question, Watermelon Sugar. What is your favourite cover? I mean,
Make You Feel My Love by Adele, by Bob Dylan.
I mean, insane. Who would you love to collaborate with? I think magic comes out
of the collaborations that you wouldn't expect, and for me I would love
to work with somebody as different to me as someone like Cardi B or Calvin Harris
and then I would do something as similar as singing with Adele or Sam Smith.
You know what I think as well -- I think a male duet needs to happen. Shawn Mendes or Ed
Sheeran or Charlie Puth, holler at me and we'll make it happen.