Ahead of Matt Cardle’s tour of the UK and Ireland next year, the Essex singer/ songwriter released his debut album Letters, from which he has just released his second single, Starlight.
“It’s the first track on the album and it’s the second single,” he says, “and it’s the first one to come off the album that I’ve written so it’s really exciting for me to get that out there.
“With the first single [Run For Your Life] there’s a lot of hype and excitement, but it wasn’t my song it was written by Gary Barlow and it was a great song to bridge the gap between the show and the album. With Starlight, it’s even more nerve wracking to have my own single out there.”
Taragh Loughrey-Grant: I’m sure no matter where you go or what you do; The X Factor is never far away. Being more of a singer/songwriter rather than a popstar, do you find that the experience has helped or hindered your music?
MC: The whole experience has helped massively, this time 18 months ago I was still painting, writing songs for a band and for myself that weren’t getting heard. Nobody was taking my songs, my songwriting or my voice seriously, so the show has really helped me get into a position that I want to be in. I don’t have any problem with people saying ‘There’s Matt from The X Factor’ because that’s where I got my break.’ In ten years, if I’m still here making music and still in the industry and selling records, then hopefully people will say ‘Look, there’s Matt’ rather than ‘There’s Matt off The X Factor’.
What is Louis Walsh really like when the cameras stop rolling?
I love Louis, I think everybody loves Louis and they should just give him a break. I think people have given him a hard time sometimes and he’s wicked. He was nothing but lovely, lovely, lovely to me when I was on the show.
Ahead of The X Factor Live Tour you were given a joint contract between Syco and Colombia, a move which you seem very happy with?
I think it’s a great move for me to have made and whoever pitched for it was absolutely right. They [Colombia] have Kings of Leon, John Mayer and Bruce Springsteen, plus many more singer/songwriter types. Syco is an incredible label for what it does and it does pop very well, but I don’t see myself as a pop artist.
You did a fashion shoot recently where you had a new image, new hairstyle and fake tattoos and there were no yellow trousers in sight, but what about ‘The Hat’?
I wish I’d never worn it now! I’d seen these kids in American movies when I was growing up all wearing these baseball caps and these gangsters looking cool with baseball caps on and I thought I wanna wear one.
Every time I put one on I looked like an idiot and I couldn’t find a hat to suit me and one day a mate of mine left a cap, like the one I wear, in my house. And I just put it on and thought, that doesn’t look too bad and then it just became part of me, like a safety blanket. When I look back on my Facebook, I’ve actually been wearing it for about seven/ eight years. It’s pretty wrong! Not the same cap, but still, I love a bit of headgear.
What sort of reaction have you had from your Irish fans?
My experience so far of has been great and the majority of it has been on The X Factor Live Tour when we were over here. We got such a great reception. I think I went down better over here than I did in the UK, plus we were number one with the Christmas single [When We Collide] for four weeks here and three weeks in the UK, so there’s a little bit more love over here.
The Voice, which is going to air in on RTÉ for the first time in January, is a different style of talent singing show to The X Factor in that the judges hear the performers sing before they get to see them.
I think that’s an absolute wicked idea for a show. I really hope it takes off. At the end of the day, the voice, that’s what it’s all about. I know in the industry you have to have the whole package to a certain degree, but you really have to have an amazing voice.
