John Newman interview: “I’m ready to move on to album two”

Singer John Newman has teased details about his next album after celebrating his debut record Tribute reaching Platinum status.

Tribute entered at Number 1 on the Official Albums Chart last October and includes the chart-topping single Love Me Again and Top 10 hit Cheating.

OfficialCharts.com caught up with John at this year's V Festival to talk about about the success of Tribute and what's next...

Congratulations on Tribute going platinum! This officially means a lot of people have been buying your album. Does that feel nice?

"It does! I told my label and managers 'I want to get a platinum album' when I was making the album and now I can sit here and safely say I want a double-platinum album on the next one –if all goes well. You might not see me here next year if it doesn’t!"

Are you pleased with how people have taken to the record? It feels like people have really embraced it.

"It’s stuck around. From all the key people that I listen to and that inspire me, that’s the thing that you pick up on, that they’ve stuck around. I keep an eye on all the charts, as everyone does, and it’s amazing to see it cropping back up in the chart every so often, with Love Me Again as well.

"I’m ready to move on now, I’m ready to go on to album two and it’ll be great to see you guys congratulating me again on that if it happens. I think I’ve learnt a lot from Tribute and I’m now ready to move on with confidence."

Is it a daunting prospect to follow such success?

"I think you’ve got to learn from any success that you’ve had and what was right and what was wrong about that album. Albums become EVERYTHING for your next two years and they supply you with you guys wanting to speak to me, or festival promoters wanting to put me on - it all comes from that music.

"You can’t feel pressure around that because if you do its almighty. I’m doing the right things from Tribute again and then I’m adding what else feels right and generally just being the naïve young producer/songwriter that I am and enjoying it. I’m still doing a lot of it at home on a computer, I’m not taking it too seriously."

How far along with the album are you?

"In my head I’m a lot further on than the standing material. I’ve got all the concepts, all the artwork, I’ve done all the marketing and release strategies and video ideas for the songs I’ve got.

"The thing is, I come up with an idea on a piano and if I doesn’t feel right I’m not going to continue because I’m wasting my time. I’m only doing what feels right at the moment, and executing it properly so it’s coming slowly but it’s coming right, and how I want it."

We wanted to ask about your Calvin Harris collaboration. What’s happening?

"It’s there – I think it’s up in the air with everybody at the moment. The thing is with both me and Calv, we don’t like to give away too much. I think we like to tease as well, which we’ve done, but in terms of a track and in terms of when it’s coming, it is coming very soon and there’s no need to worry anymore.

"We did tease it a little bit too early quite obviously, but we’ve got confidence that it will live up to the hype that’s been built. I’m very excited about it, I think it’s the next step up in my career."