So Louis just confirmed what you and others have been saying for years, that his label did absolutely nothing to promote his music, that radio stations and streaming platforms boycotted him, that the only thing he has is the support of his fans. Hope it's going to be different with BMG.
Itās validating that he confirmed it.
And it puts to rest the toxic fan theory that āhe didnāt want charting success.ā ļæ¼
Do you ever ask why
Itās not black and white
How you sleep at night
When youāre just like me?
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This is for all the fans who treat him as a toy, a puppet for their fanfiction and their theories about his sexual and private life, theorize about his lack of aspiration and his preference to play a supportive role. āHow you sleep at night when youāre just like me?ā
As he readies the release of second solo album Faith In The Future and its lead single Bigger Than Me, Louis Tomlinson talks us through his most 'authentic' work to date
Waiting for the host to let us into a Zoom interview with Louis Tomlinson, weāre extremely conscious youāre about to speak to one of the worldās most accomplished musicians. Itās quite nerve-racking, really. Even having interviewed Louis many times across his career, from the early One Direction days, we canāt help but wonder if the fameās somehow changed him.
We neednāt have worried.
At 30 years old, Louis has achieved feats few would deem possible. Seen corners of the world many will never visit. Experienced pandemonium only The Beatles or the Spice Girls could ever truly comprehend. But, while itād be all too easy for him to sit back, consider his ambitions fulfilled and live off some sizeable royalties, Louis is looking ahead.
On November 11, Louis will release his second solo studio album Faith In The Future. The follow-up to his 2020 debut Walls, it sees him collaborate with such unlikely influences as Australian trio DMAās, Courteenersā bassist Joe Cross and Hurtsā Theo Hutchcraft.
As he readies the release of lead single Bigger Than Me, we speak to Louis about his most āsonically ambitiousā work yet, and why heās āimmensely proudā of his new-found artistic āfreedom.ā
We firstly congratulate Louis on becoming a first-time uncle to sister Lottie Tomlinsonās baby son Lucky (āIām dead excited,ā he beams) and his mammoth world tour; a series of shows thatāve seen him play 80 shows to over 500,000 fans across five continents.
āIāve been so lucky with this whole tour,ā he says. āI spent two years over lockdown being excited for these moments. I wasnāt even prepared for how I feel in this moment, right now. I feel so fulfilled with everything thatās happened this year.
āIāve been so, so blessed. I mean this ā everywhere I f**king go the crowd bring the energy. I feel incredibly lucky, and itās taken quite a bit of work to get here. Looking back and reflecting, Iām really proud to be here and of the year Iāve had.ā
We tell Louis we were blown away by his performance at Londonās OVO Arena Wembley earlier this year. āEven in the sling?ā he laughs. āThereās such a raucous energy out in the crowd, so it really warrants that feeling back from me.ā
On the topic of resuming his tour post-COVID lockdown, we question how Louis mentally coped with such a drastic lifestyle change; from 100mph living throughout 1D and his solo career to a complete standstill. How did he navigate such a shift?
āIāve had most days filled for the last ten years,ā he acknowledges. āWhat I liked about that period? My life, by definition, comes with a lot of pressure in this job. I felt like the world had gone on pause. That was the first time Iād really had a moment where I didnāt have to worry what was to come. I felt a lot of freedom in that. I feel like it gave me room to declutter my brain and, hopefully, I got a better album out of that.
āI knew, in that time, I needed to make a record, but it just felt like I could take my foot off the gas a little bit. I really needed that. It revitalised me. It also made me dead excited about whatās to come.
"We live in a world now where we get everything we want quite quickly, and I think the fans would agree it was nice to wait for those moments. It meant that, when they did come around, it felt even more special.ā
The title of Louisā second record, Faith In The Future, immediately sparks a certain hope in things to come.
āI had the title before anything else,ā he explains. āI was 99 per cent sure I wanted to call it Faith In The Future, then lockdown happened and it just felt like an appropriate statement.
"I actually tweeted it for the first time, without any context, last year. I felt this magnetism to the phrase. With that statement, Iām not saying we can predict the future or that itāll necessarily look any brighter, but it inspires hope. Have faith in that idea and you wonāt be any worse off.ā
Taking some of the albumās somewhat unlikely collaborators, from DMAās to Courteenersā Joe Cross, we ask if Louis allowed himself to be more open to experimentation on this record.
āThis whole albumās been a learning process for me,ā he says. āWith the first record, there was an element of me finding my feet and working out what it is I could do. Deep down I always knew what I wanted to do, but there was definitely a time when I asked myself the question ācan I pull this off?āā
Itās during moments like this it becomes apparent that superstardom hasnāt actually changed Louis. Much as he was throughout The X Factor and One Directionās infancy, he remains somewhat self-critical, aware and refreshingly humble.
He continues: āI felt much more freedom in this record to express myself in the way I wanted to. I didnāt put as much restraint on myself as I did on the first record.
"On Walls, I was so overanalytical about every sound. Every lyric. Every moment. I went into this process with a lot more freedom and, naturally, Iāve created something thatās more true to who I am as a musician and as a music fan; what I like listening to.
"All my experience from being in a band like One Direction, the experience was incredible but doesnāt feel that relevant to what Iām doing now.
"The restraints, and they werenāt put in place by anyone specifically, Iām sure all the lads in the band will have felt their own version of this, you leave the band with this idea of who you are. Ironically, who I was was a member of a band. I wasnāt an individual artist. It took a bit of working out of exactly who I was. I had to work out if I was willing to be brave and say āitās on my head, so be it.ā On this record, thatās what I did.ā
Asked what might surprise listeners most with Faith In The Future, Louis explains: āThe fans wonāt be surprised that the guitars are the most prevalent instrument across this record. That wonāt surprise my fans, but it might surprise other people.
"There are a couple of more dance-leaning tunes on this record. I was so particular on the first record that I wanted to be seen in a certain light and it had to be organic and credible. Of course, those things are still vitally important to me, but Iāve given myself more freedom.
"I loved DMAās last album THE GLOW, which Stuart Price produced. That has dance elements in it but was done in a really authentic way. It doesnāt feel remotely contrived or like a f**king made-for-radio pop-dance hybrid. That was really food for thought for me throughout the process.
"Those moments across this record felt brave for me, because I dipped my toe in with the Steve Aoki track. Thatās a song Iām immensely proud of, but if Iām being completely honest it was me playing for radio. It was something I felt I had to do. These songs come from a different place. Yes, Iām using dance elements, but I hope itās done in an authentic way.ā
We tell Louis weāre DMAās fans, too.
āTheyāre amazing, arenāt they? Iāve been lucky enough to meet them a few times. Johnny [Took] came to one of my shows in Australia. Theyāre just really f**king lovely lads, great blokes. Theyāre an amazing live band.
"What I did on this album, more than I did on the first, and this is meant with no discredit to professional songwriters, I tried to work less with āprofessionalā songwriters and more with artists. I found that idea so fulfilling across the record. It comes with a different intent when you work with artists.
"They understand that itās not all about commercial success and radio. In my experience, thereās much more heart and soul in the music.ā
This leads us seamlessly into Louisā work with Hurts singer-songwriter Theo Hutchcraft. How did that come all about?
āMe, Theo, Joe Cross and David Sneddon did a writing camp together, and what was great about that was that ā from the off ā we were all on the same page. Theo is vastly intelligent and an incredible writer. Even just being around these people, getting into their brains and taking on their different ideas; Iāve learnt so much more making on this record than I did the first. Thatās purely from being around the right kind of people.
"Iām a massive fan of both Hurts and The Courteeners. Even the fact they were willing to work with me, I was buzzing about that. Weāve got some really great songs out of it.
"The songs with them ā She Is Beauty We Are World Class, Silver Tongues and Saturdays ā two of those songs are my favourites on the record. There was something amazing about that writing camp. I got there on the first day, we went to the pub together and just spoke about music. It meant that, the next day, we were already on the same page. Weād already had those conversations. The whole thing felt so easy and so free.
"When you go into a studio, turn up at midday and know youāve got to be out by 6pm, that brings with it its own pressure and actually influences what you create. What was great working with these guys, over two or three days at a house, was we had the freedom to create whatever we wanted. That freedom shows in the music.ā
Louisā passion in this project is clear. He beams with pride as he discusses the intricacies of the record and his reasoning behind certain artistic decisions.
āOne song in particular, Silver Tongues, Iām immensely proud of,ā he tells us.
āItās one of the first times that Iāve written a song that I could definitely imagine myself listening to, had I not written it.
"That trackās very much in line with what I listen to and love musically anyway. Writing that made me feel really confident that I was writing the album I wanted to write. I feel really confident in whatās to come.ā
Itās a confidence thatās in no way tinged with cockiness. Louis reflects on his growth, acknowledging how far heās come as an artist and how much further he hopes to go.
āI feel like Iāve come such a long way, since the start of my solo career,ā he explains. āSpecifically with how Iām performing on stage.
"One of my fans actually made a video of a show I played pre-COVID, from the end of my set when I sing Kill My Mind. They compared that show to the same song from the most recent show I did, and it was a really literal example of how far Iāve come.
"That makes me feel amazing. There are times when Iām looking at myself in the mirror thinking āare you sure you can do this?ā But then I think ācourse you can f**king do it, man ā and you do it well!āā
Louis Tomlinsonās new album Faith In The Future is released November 11 via BMG. Lead single Bigger Than Me is released September 1.
"I felt much more freedom in this record to express myself in the way I wanted to... I've created something that's more true to who I am as a musician and as a music fan; what I like listening to." - Louis on FITH via Official Charts
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