Ahead of her first ever concert in Ireland, 'Britain's Got Talent' star Faryl Smith chats to Linda McGee about her love of music, dreams for the future and rubbing shoulders with Lady GaGa!
Linda McGee: Are you looking forward to performing your first concert in Ireland tomorrow night Faryl?
Faryl Smith: Yeah definitely. I mean, I've never been to Ireland. It's not just that it's my first time singing here, I've never been here. And I'm not just saying it but the people are very, very nice here. So yeah, I'm looking forward to it.
LM: Will you get to stay here for a few days or is your schedule hectic?
FS: I think we're going to go on Thursday so the day after. I came here yesterday so I have about four days, so it's not too bad.
LM: How have the rehearsals with the RTÉ Concert Orchestra been going so far?
FS: Yeah, really well. It's been going very well. The orchestra are really, really good.
LM: Looking back on your stint on 'Britain's Got Talent', can you even put into words how your life has changed since then?
FS: It's been a whirlwind, definitely. I don't know! Obviously on the show it was weird because you went from being a nobody to everybody recognising you in the street. And then obviously when the album is out and you're promoting you get recognised again. Then when you have a break and you're recording, it's not as bad. It depends, it kind of changes. When you're recording it's alright but then when you're on the telly everyone knows you so it changes a lot, but it's fun. We always try and enjoy it. I think that's the best way.
LM: Did you find that instant fame difficult initially? I'm sure people are nice when they stop you in the street but it must be hard to get used to being public property and people coming up to you all the time.
FS: Yeah, people were nice. It was fine. When we were on the show they kind of kept us in the hotel and the studio so it wasn't too mad so apart from that it was fine.
LM: Is this the career path that you had always dreamed of? You've obviously had a great love of music from a very young age but did you always believe that it would happen?
FS: Yeah, I've always wanted to sing anyway. I've always wanted to be a singing teacher or something. As a kid obviously everyone wants to be the famous singer or something. So it's been good. I've had some fantastic experiences from it and it's been really fun.
LM: Was classical music what you listened to growing up? And what about now - do you listen to chart music?
FS: Yeah, definitely. People my age say to me 'Why do you sing classical music?'. Some people don't understand it but I think it's different for a younger person to be singing it. Basically I joined a choir who sang classical music and my singing teacher taught classical music so I've kind of just been brought up with it really. But I do listen to anything really.
LM: There are lots of cross-over artists now, classical singers doing pop tunes and, like you said, younger singers taking on classical numbers. Do you think it's good that classical music is being brought to a younger audience in this way?
FS: Definitely. I always try to get people my age and younger to, not necessarily sit there and listen to classical music all the time, but just to appreciate it a bit more. I think shows like 'Britain's Got Talent' and 'X Factor' are good because G4 obviously were a classical group and Rhydian, he was a classical singer, so yeah definitely, I think shows like that bring classical music to a younger audience.
LM: And lots of modern classical artists, like Jonathan Ansell and Katherine Jenkins, have forged really successful careers for themselves. Does that encourage you to believe that you can have a long career ahead in classical music?
FS: Yeah, I hope so. Hopefully, obviously, I'd like to record and keep going but even if it isn't a really, really long-term career I'd always think of going into an opera, or anything to do with singing. My career myself, I'd like it to last forever really but with the industry like this it's harder to keep it going, but hopefully it will.
LM: Is being on stage where you feel most at home? Do you get a real buzz from standing up there performing and hearing the audience reaction first-hand?
FS: Yeah. I think the best part is when you get up on the stage and you are actually performing to people, definitely.
LM: Seeing as you took part in a reality TV show yourself, would you still watch 'Britain's Got Talent' or other shows like 'The X Factor'?
FD: Aw yeah, definitely. Me and my mates always watch them, yeah.
LM: When you're watching I imagine you're feeling the contestants' pain a little bit. You know what it feels like to be standing up there...
FS: Yeah, it's weird watching it back now because obviously you know everything that happens and you know how they're feeling. It's obviously completely different watching it now but I still enjoy watching it.
LM: Are you following 'The X Factor' at the moment?
FD: Aw God, yeah!
LM: Have you got a favourite?
FS: I don't know really. I think at this point I'm not really sure. But everyone's kind of going a bit mad on Cher at the moment, aren't they? And I think my friends, because obviously they're younger, they look at her and think 'Oh my God, she's really good, she's different', and then obviously over here everyone's going mad about Mary! She's got a fantastic voice.
LM: You've achieved so much at such a young age but are there still dreams on your wishlist, maybe singers you'd like to collaborate with or productions you'd like to star in?
FS: Yeah, definitely. Singing with José Carreras and meeting Plácido Domingo and things like that... I mean The Three Tenors are the best classical singers in the world, so just to even be close to that is amazing. It's been great. I've done duets with so many people and even Jonathan [Ansell], he's so, so nice. It's really, really nice to collaborate with different people. One of my ambitions would probably be to perform in an opera, with no microphones, just performance and acting it out. So that's probably one of the things on my list.
LM: People only tend to see the more glamorous side of what you do, when you're on stage all dressed up, but do you sometimes find the behind-the-scenes schedule difficult, because you have to be quite disciplined, don't you?
FS: I think usually if you sleep and if you drink loads of water and make sure that you kind of keep your voice going, I think it's alright, you'll be fine. But people always worry because with the Charlotte Church thing, she worked so much that she kind of lost her voice. I don't want that to happen because, like I said, I want it to be a long-term career. They know my age and they know my limits so the record company are fine with it.
LM: You've travelled to some amazing places and met some of your musical heroes since your career took off but is there a particular moment or highlight that stands out for you?
FS: Probably when people say 'What's the most surreal moment?', it would be the Royal Variety... to even be involved in it. I was walking around backstage and you bump into Michael Bublé and Lady GaGa and Alexandra Burke and then Whoopi Goldberg came up and spoke to me afterwards and they were all saying 'Oh my gosh, you've got a really good voice'. At one point I was standing on the stage rehearsing and Lady GaGa was after me so she was at the side of stage and they were saying to her 'You've got to come back now. You've got rehearsal and an interview' and she was standing there watching me perform and I was looking to the side thinking 'There's Lady GaGa... Hiya!'... and then after that I was first in line to meet the Queen, at the end. Oh my God, I was so nervous because I didn't know what to do. There were so many rules about what you have to say, what you have to do and I was thinking 'Oh my God, I'm going to mess it up. I'm first in line' but it all went fine. It was a really, really good night.
LM: When you were talking about Lady GaGa there you sounded very excited. Do you still get starstruck even though you've met a lot of famous faces at this stage?
FS: Oh God, yeah, definitely... with anyone that's been on the telly or even been on one show. I'm like 'Oh my God'... yeah, I do get starstruck a lot!
Anyone who has ever doubted the validity of TV talent shows would surely reconsider their viewpoint after spending even a few minutes with the lovely Faryl. Charming, modest and very appreciative of her success, she is a genuine talent that deserved to be discovered.
Faryl Smith and Jonathan Ansell will be performing both popular and classical solos and duets (including 'Amazing Grace', 'Danny Boy', 'Ave Maria' and 'Somewhere') with the RTÉ Concert Orchestra, conducted by David Brophy, at the National Concert Hall on Wednesday 20 October. For more information click here.
