A Chat With: Will Young
He has come a long way since his very first audition on Pop Idol. Winning the competition back in 2002 on what now seems like a vintage television show, Will Young has paved out quite a career over the past 15 years. The Guide’s Rachel Flynn chats to the ‘Leave Right Now’ singer, ahead of his upcoming performance at Carlisle Racecourse on July 2.
Will said: “I will most definitely be having a little flutter when I play at the races. I used to come up to Cumbria quite a lot when I was younger, we used to go to this great fudge shop and do the most beautiful walks. I’m sure it will bring back some lovely memories from when I was much younger.”
I was a mere 11 years old when I excitedly watched Will Young beat Gareth Gates in the very first Pop Idol final. I am now 25, and Will has achieved an awful lot since his crowning; a lot more than say, Rik Waller or Darius. Remember him and his passionate and original cover of Britney Spears’s, ‘Hit Me Baby One More Time’?
In other words, Will Young set the bar high for future singing competition contestants, and with Cumbria’s very own Jolan coming second place on BBC’s, The Voice in April, Will knows a trick or two about making it big in the business of national singing competitions.
Will said: “I thought Jolan was fantastic, I’m just a huge fan of singers and he has got the most wonderful voice so it was just a pleasure to hear him sing.”
Multi-chart topper, actor, campaigner, dog lover, and baker – is there anything this man can’t do? Since releasing his sixth studio album, ‘85% Proof’ in May 2015, 13 years after his very first album ‘From Now On’, Will has been keeping himself more than occupied with an array of miscellaneous projects. Along with tackling Thailand’s illegal dog meat trade, and learning the art of synchronised swimming, he almost poisoned our national treasure, Mary Berry on this year’s Sport Relief Bake Off.
Will, said: “The Bake Off was brilliant, but thank God I never poisoned Mary. I’m such a fan of the show and it was really interesting actually being in the tent. It was almost like I had jumped into the TV and then using things like the oven and the sliding door, even just being there was incredible, it was really surreal. I just had a real laugh, attempting to bake, because I can’t bake, I think that was obvious.”
Paying a visit to Cumbria this summer as part of his 15 date tour of the UK, Will is looking forward to playing at Carlisle Racecourse and will be treating the audience to everyone’s favourites including ‘Evergreen’ and ‘Light My Fire’. He said: “I am really looking forward to coming to Carlisle. It will be a unique gig as I don’t often do gigs at racecourses, and I get a sort of audience that is already having a great time. Normally they start and then hopefully I create a head of steam, but they already have a head of steam, so it’s great for me as performer; and for them it’s a great day out to go to the races then have this entertainment at the end; it’s a lovely feeling going to the races.”
Moving on to his album, ‘Brave Man’, the first track on Will’s new album, has made for some serious viewing since its release and has been praised by some critics for bringing transgender issues to the forefront. The video follows a young man who is shown walking naked around a city, being hassled and abused by members of the public, while covering his self with Polaroid photographs. At the end of the video, he throws the photos – which show him dressed in ‘female’ clothing – into the sea, revealing him to be a transgender man.
Will, said: “It’s one of the proudest things I’ve ever done. It was really about doing a very authentic story about a young man and the reaction to it was completely appropriate however people reacted. Art should really get a reaction and so I don’t really believe in good or bad reactions, I just believe in a reaction and I think in the last few years people’s understanding, as well as my own understanding of what it might be like to be transgender has broaden so much and really that’s how I came to that video.”
Releasing numerous number one albums, heading campaigns, confronting MPs and raising money for charity are just a few of Will’s endeavours over the past few years. Most people might have expected him to disappear after his first single all those years ago, but six albums down the line and four UK number 1s, it appears Will Young is here to stay.
Don’t miss Will Young at Carlisle Racecourse on Saturday July 2. For more information, visit Carlisle Racecourse website.
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