James Arthur: "My Daughter Calms Down When I Sing"
James Arthur's fifth album is out soon and he's going to be touring the world. He reflects on his journey from The X Factor, becoming a dad and being calmer at The Pride of Britain Awards in London. Report by Jonesl. Like us on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/itn and follow us on Twitter at http://twitter.com/itn
Transcript
00:00 James Arthur, hello.
00:01 Hello.
00:01 You're back out in the wild.
00:03 I'm back in the wild, yeah.
00:04 It's been a few years since you came here last. Five, four years?
00:07 Yeah, unfortunately I've been away every time it's been on.
00:10 Are you a crier?
00:12 I will be tonight, I think. Yeah, I will be tonight.
00:14 Because you're a softie now you've had your little lady in.
00:16 I am a softie, yeah. I think it's going to make me feel more emotional probably, yeah.
00:21 And the hair, by the way. Talk me through the process of the new look, because it's
00:25 getting longer every time I see you.
00:26 I know. I just can't be bothered cutting it, to be honest. It's one of them. I just...
00:31 Something new for the new campaign. Trying something new. I'll probably lop it off once
00:37 the album's out.
00:38 Lop it off?
00:39 Yeah, yeah.
00:40 Let's talk about the fact that you are a daddy and you've started sharing more footage of
00:43 her on the internet. Is that a conscious decision?
00:46 No, I've not shared anything where you can see her face because it's just a decision
00:50 that we've made where we don't want to... We want to give her agency over what she shares.
00:56 And so, yeah, it's hard not to want to share everything and I'm bursting with pride and
01:01 love for her. So, yeah, it's a little bit, but not too much.
01:05 Does she like your music?
01:06 I think so. I think so. She does calm down whenever I sing, so...
01:10 Last thing you'll love is Upbeat.
01:11 Upbeat is the only one.
01:13 Flying Side, she'll love.
01:14 Flying Side, yeah.
01:15 She actually likes A Year Ago the most, the first single.
01:19 That's amazing. Bittersweet Love, is that because of her, the name?
01:23 No, it's just that it's basically when I was writing the album, it ended up being a bunch
01:28 of love songs and a bunch of heartbreak songs and it felt like a great title for that.
01:32 We love the crying thing. We love cry dancing together. It's brilliant. And in regards to
01:36 that article about you and the hat on TV, made me die.
01:40 Mental. Mental. It wasn't even hot in the studio. They were like, 'He's wearing a hat
01:46 because he's scared.' I'm not scared to show this hair off. Look, I'm out on a red carpet
01:50 with it, flopping about in the wind.
01:52 I feel like you are more confident about your social media stuff now. You don't really bite
01:56 back as much as you did before.
01:58 No, no. I've matured. I had to learn a lot of lessons in the spotlight. I had to learn
02:03 the hard way. But yeah, you mature as you get older and it's just all nonsense, isn't
02:09 it? Now I've got little ones.
02:12 And in regards to what happens next, the acting. Is that taking a back seat? Are you going
02:16 to do more of that? The video is brilliant, by the way.
02:18 It has a little bit just because I signed a new record deal and I wanted to focus on
02:23 the album. I still have plans. As you can see in my videos, I do a bit of acting. But
02:30 it'll happen at some point.
02:31 I want to see you dance.
02:32 Me dance? Honestly, I've got two left feet. I've got no dancing ability at all.
02:38 If there was an opportunity to go on any reality show, would you do it?
02:42 The only one I reckon I'd think about is Big Brother because I love Big Brother.
02:45 Starts today. What are you thinking?
02:47 I'm gagging to get home after this and stick it on. It's on ITV now and I can say that.
02:53 ITV2. There you go. And in regards to your daughter, football. Does she like it?
02:57 She's only one. I don't know.
02:59 Start on early.
03:00 I think so. I think so. She'll have to because it's always on telly.
03:04 An album five until next year. Did you think you'd get to this point?
03:08 Did I think I'd get to this point? You mean like... What do you mean?
03:13 You've been fully fledged to the music world. Five albums worth of material. It's amazing.
03:17 I'm very proud. I'm proud of the resilience that I've shown to still keep going and still
03:23 keep putting myself out there.
03:25 I think it's the best music you've ever made.
03:27 Thank you. I agree. I probably shouldn't be the one to say that, but I agree.
03:31 Do you listen to your own music in the car?
03:33 You've got to listen to your own music. As an artist, you've got to listen to your own music, I think.
03:36 I do that quite a lot just to try and get better, I suppose.
03:41 And sled big brother. I'll put a word in for you, alright?