St. Lundi is gearing up for the release of his debut album, The Island, on September 20th.
After a successful run of outdoor shows with Take That, where he inspired huge singalongs, St. Lundi’s own solo UK and European pop-up tour has sold out, and he is set to embark on a North American co-headline tour with Jake Thistle, his biggest full-band tour to date. With anticipation building, St. Lundi has released his new single, Loved Somebody Else, which combines his signature soaring melodies with introspective lyrics about the insecurities of a new relationship, turning vulnerability into a powerful anthem.
Your debut album The Island is set to release on September 20th. What does this album represent for you, both personally and as an artist, and how does it reflect your journey from Hayling Island to pursuing your dreams in London?
When I started writing this album, I had no idea that it would end up being so autobiographical. It ended up becoming almost like a form of therapy for me and allowed me to heal relationships with my family and move on from the past.
When I left home at the age of 21, I didn’t want anything to do with where I was from and in making this album I feel like I’ve grown into someone that is really proud to be from ‘The Island’.
Your new single Loved Somebody Else is described as one of your best songs to date. Can you share more about the inspiration behind this track and the emotions you were channeling when you wrote it?
Loved Somebody Else was written about the feeling when you’re in love with someone for the first time, but they’ve been in love before. This is something I briefly experienced in my relationship as it is my first and only, but I knew that my partner had been in a relationship before. You start to feel jealous and insecure, but really those emotions and feelings shouldn’t matter because you know that the person you’re with loves you, and that’s the most important feeling that I want to get across in this song.
The lyrics of Loved Somebody Else touch on the insecurities of being in a new relationship. How important is it for you to explore vulnerability in your music, and how do you hope listeners connect with these themes?
Music, I think it’s really important to explore these topics in my songs and I don’t choose them for that reason but always feel it’s good to open up and tell the stories from my perspective and hope the other people can connect to them and then share their own.
You’ve had an exciting summer performing as a guest to Take That during their outdoor shows. What was it like to instigate huge singalongs with such a legendary band, and how did those experiences influence your live performances?
Support and Take That was one of the best moments of my career so far. I grew up listening to the band in the car with my mum, and the first thing I ever bought my mum was a Take That CD, so when I saw these gigs, I made it my mission to try and be a part of them. The final night in Belfast was one of my favourite moments in life; there were 20,000 people singing my melodies and lyrics back to me, and that’s a feeling that’s quite hard to explain. I think all of these I’ve done in the past few years gave me the experience and taught me everything I needed to know to feel confident and walking out on that big stage and I loved it.
With your solo UK and European pop-up tour already sold out and upcoming tours in North America, how are you preparing for these shows, and what can fans expect from your live performances?
I can’t wait to get back out on the road again and perform some unreleased songs as well as released ones to fans all over the world.
I feel so lucky to be able to do this so frequently, and as for my set list, I have a selection of songs that I’ll definitely play every night, and then I like to let the crowd decide a few that they’d like to hear as I know sometimes people create a connection with a song, and if it’s not played, that could be quite upsetting.
Each song on The Island operates as an autobiographical chapter in your life. Can you talk about the process of turning your personal experiences into music and how you chose which stories to include on the album?
As I mentioned earlier, I didn’t initially intend to write something so autobiographical. I’ve always dreamt of releasing an album, and when it came to writing and producing this one, I had no idea I was going to tell the story of my life so much. Some of the songs were really hard to write; there’s one about the day my parents told me they were splitting up, and that took two years to finish. I really hope these songs can help other people that have been through the same things and bring us all closer together so that we feel we can talk about these things freely.
Usually, when I start to write lyrics, I just think about a time in my life I can relate the feeling of the song to, and then all of the words fall out from there, and there’s not too much thought that goes into it.
I think the fact that I wrote this about my life made everything easier because I didn’t have to make anything up.
Loved Somebody Else was produced by Matt James and Ollie Green and written with an impressive team, including Tim Deal and Andrew Frampton. How did these collaborations come together, and what was it like working with such talented producers and songwriters?
I feel really lucky to be working with such amazing writers and producers and found people that not only understand what it is that I’m trying to do musically but can then better that with their own talent and experience. This album would not be what it is without the people that contributed towards making it.
Your music has been featured on shows like Love Island, and you’ve gained significant support from BBC Introducing and BBC Radio 2. How has this exposure impacted your career, and how does it feel to have your songs resonate with such a wide audience?
The support from Radio 2 has been amazing and definitely helped me grow more of a following back home. It’s so fun seeing messages and posts on the Hayling Island Facebook page of people hearing about someone from the island on Radio 2.
Scott Mills has been such an amazing supporter, and I really hope that I can continue to have my songs played on the biggest radio in the country.
You’ve described The Island as exploring themes of love, family, and personal growth. How do these themes intertwine throughout the album, and what message do you hope to convey to your listeners?
I think honesty is the most consistent theme of this album, and I’d like to encourage people to talk about things they’re struggling with and even things that they’re not. For example, if you’re in love with someone, tell them as much as possible, and if there’s something from the past that you feel is making you down, try to speak to someone about it. In writing this album, I’ve really experienced the way that opening up and talking about things can really help process them. I know that a lot of these topics are widely shared and hope to meet people through my music that have shared the same experiences.
Looking ahead, what are your goals for the next phase of your career following the release of The Island? Are there any new projects, collaborations, or experiences you’re particularly excited about?
I can’t wait to put this album out in September, and following that, I’m not sure if I’m allowed to say yet, but I’ve been working on a full acoustic version of the album out in Spain that I’m really excited to share.
There are some collaborations that I’m working on for next year that I’m really excited about, as well as already being quite far into working on album two!
I hope to be the kind of artist that releases lots of albums and lots of music because one of my favourite things to do in the world is write, and the other is to perform.
