An interview on their website here. I pasted it below.
"I've never fallen in love"
If you're reading this it's probably because you, like so many others, have been captivated by the incredible voice of a girl called Duffy.
She told us what it's like growing up in a town without music when all you want to do is sing...
Hello, Duffy. What do we need to know about you?
I absolutely love what I do. I've worked hard. It's easy, when you get to where you want to be, to forget how hard it was.
Is singing really hard work? It's probably not as hard as being a coalminer.
It was hard in an emotional sense. I'm from North Wales and I was surrounded by places that were coalmines, so geographically it was a bit of a challenge. I had to feel very committed and sacrifice what was normal and what was going on around me when I was growing up. People didn't understand. That made me feel quite isolated I suppose. I really wanted to sing but they didn't really understand because it wasn't around me. I came from a place where there wasn't a record store.
Is that why you escaped to London?
In a weird way I suppose, yes. I just knew that I had to do this thing or it would kill me. It was like do or die. I was feeling so lost and hurt by this thing that was driving me and I couldn't control it. I just didn't know why I was doing it and it would drain me and almost burn me out but I just knew I could never stop. When I got discovered by my label Rough Trade I thought "thank god".
So how did it feel to have your dream come true?
I was probably a crazy nervous wreck. I didn't know what I wanted because I didn't know music. All I knew about music was the radio - recording the Top 40 on the weekend. I felt so acknowledged and it really scared me because I was going into rooms of people who wanted something out of me and were asking for reference points and I didn't have any. And all I could do was stand in the corner and say "I wrote this!" But you know, I just told myself to relax. I was with good people like Bernard Butler, and there was no rush.
Now you have more than just the radio, who are you listening to?
I love Scott Walker. His early stuff like 'If You Go Away', it's so romantic. I got into Bowie. I'm obviously familiar now with Suede, The Smiths, Dylan, Leonard Cohen, there's so many. I could just go on and on, I'm just obsessed. I obsess about music.
I enjoy so much finding a record I've never heard before. It's like the most beautiful summer's day to me, I just feel so overwhelmed. I get on stage and I sing my heart out and I feel like I've fallen in love. I've never had a feeling like it. I've never fallen in love by the way, so I don't really know what love is. That's why I write about it, I suppose. When I get on stage and sing these songs I feel like I could cry. It's not about the money, it's not about the fame. I'm just going to keep going. I never want to stop this.
And we don't, for a second, think you ever will.
See Duffy performing live in 2008
21 February - Thekla, Bristol
22 February - Ruby Lounge, Manchester
23 February - King Tuts, Glasgow
24 February - Cluny, Newcastle
26 February - Brudenell Social, Leeds
28 February - Clwb ifor Bach, Cardiff
01 March - Arts Centre, Aberystwyth, Wales
05 March - Central Station, Wrexham
07 March - Bodega, Nottingham
09 March - Academy, Oxford
10 March - Komedia, Brighton
11 March - Glee Club, Birmingham
No comments:
Post a Comment