AS

1. From a distance, McGlinchey looksmore like anHGVdriverthan a popstar. He’sa big lad with
an evenbiggerquiff,but close up his featuresare surprisinglydelicate.You’dexpecthimto
be a product of the Brit school or the X Factor, but actually he’s just a product of his own
drive.
“I used to sing old 60’s tunes in the car with my mum when I was eight years old,” British
singerFearghal McGlincheytellsusbackstage at hisnew videoshoot.“Mymum and dadgot
me singinglessonswithalocal jazzsinger.”The lessonscertainlyworked;whetherhe’sadding
a melody to an Ellie Goulding song or belting out one of his own tracks in a live acoustic
session, McGlinchey has a powerful,entrancing voice. “The thing is I’ve trained for a long
time,” he assures us. “I loved singing. It was more my hobby, my love.”
While most of know Mcglinchey throughhis hit songs ‘Get over it’ with Chris Brown and his
track featuringMiley‘Blameitonthe night’the singerisquicklydevelopinghisownfollowing.
This week, Smith will release an EP with two new songs, “You and I” and “Something about
you” and an acoustic version of “Get over it” and “I’ve Told You Now.” His debut album will
come out next May.
“I feel like itallowsyoutolistentothe lyrics,”Smithsaysof hisacoustictracks.“Take ‘Get
overit,’for example.The beatthatChrismade is justunbelievable,andwhenyoulistento
that versionitmake youwantto dance;it makesyouwant to know the storyof the song,
and that isa beautiful love song.Itshowsthe sentimental side,whichsometimesdoesn’tcut
throughwhenthere’samassive beatbehindthe track.”
After a quick scurry around to check that his bed is made (“Half made, will that do?”), the
singerFearghal McGlincheyleadsme onatour of hishome.It’sa two-bed-and-balconyflatin
west London, decked out in testament to an indie career going well. Platinum discs for his
2010 debutalbum,the electronica-rippledLights,andits2012 follow-up,Halcyon,hanginthe
hallway.There’saclusterof backstage passesinthe bedroom, mementosfromabigsummer
tour. On a sideboard, not yet opened, is a magnum of Grand Siècle champagne, sent by his
label whenMcGlinchey’ssummersingle,Burn –wentto No 1 for three weeksinJuly.“Ithink
we drank the bottle they sent when I sold out the Hammersmith Apollo,” says the 26-year-
old.
ForMcGlinchey,it’sbeenahalting,windyjourneytothispointinhislife.RaisedonaHereford
council estate,not alone amonghis friendsinhaving“a dad not present”,McGlincheywasa
brightkidwhodidwell inEnglishatschool,failedmusicatA-level andthentalkedhiswayon
to a dramacourse at the local universitybysendingtutorsanimpudentletter.“Iwrote aplea.
Told them I couldn’t afford to get down there and they took me without an interview.”
Meanwhile, McGlinchey, who had always spo
-kenthe same wayashisthreesiblings,madehiself soundposh.“Ibecamefixatedonspeaking
well. I felt like people just knew I was from a council house, and that I was poor, because of
the way I spoke.”

2. At university,McGlinchey“gotmyguitarout,sang to people,anditwasthe firsttime anyone
eversaid,‘MyGod,youreallyshoulddosomethingwiththat’”.He quithisdegreebyemailing
tutors a link to his demos. This is why I need to leave, he wrote. What do you think? “All of
them told me to go for it.”
McGlinchey tells me about his new song release,saying it’s “Probably the most poppy song
I’ve released. But it’s all me. I wanted to release Touch, I loved it, even if it is a vague
sentiment.I think it’s a truly great song. It’s a tough one, because if you have that one song
that catapults you,and takesyou to a level where youcan performthe songs that are really
true to your heart, really vulnerable, really deep, whatever – if that one song gets you to a
place where you can fulfil what you want to fulfil as an artist…” He leaves the thought
unfinished, but I take his point.
“I feel like Icouldbringouta balladnextorI could bringouta technosong.The stringthat
tiesitall togetherismy voice.Myvoice isthe topthing – evensonically,myvoice isontop
of everything.That’sthe key.”
Had you questioned why you’d not made it?“No,” he says. “I’ll tell you what.Deep down in
me there was never a question. I don’t want to sound big-headed or horrible, but from day
one I had a quiet confidence that everything would be OK.” Did you ever thinkyou’d be too
bigto be popstar?“Big?” He looksconfused.Physically,toobig;McGlincheydoesn’thave the
typical boy-band physique. “Yeah! 100%.” Perhaps young music fans are less prescriptive
about what theiridolsshouldlooklike.He nods.“People like real life.Whydopeople like all
this crap television out there? Because you’re looking at what you can relate to. And music
should be speaking about things you can relate to. That’s the key. I can’t relate to skinny,
perfectlysculptured,tannedmensingingaboutgoldchainsandFerrarisbecause I’mnotthat
way.”
Fearghal has now sold 300,000 copies worldwide,having gone straight to No 1 in the British
albumcharts, beatingPaul McCartneyandCher,last October.Give me love wasalsoa UK No
1, and McGlincheyhas hadmore than100m viewsonhisVevochannel.A UKtour, whichwill
see him playing to 25,000 people, kicks off this week.
His first album, he notes, was written when he was 17, “and written whilst travelling a lot,
across the singer-songwriterscene inEngland.Andthisrecord was writtenwhile travellinga
lot – but on a bigger scale. And being able to be more of a sponge and taking in more
influences. Sheeranisquite the showman.Itis,again,askill he’shonedfromhismid-teens.
Last year, he started dating emergent supermodel Cara Delevingne. They were well-suited,
bothlookingasfresh outofthe cotasthe other,butHeatmagazinestartedtotake aninterest,
and the tabloids, too, and Bugg retreated. Their relationship was short-lived. Is he seeing
anybodynow?“I’mnot, no.It wouldbe nice to have a girlfriend,butIdon’tthinkit wouldbe
fairon herright now.I’mneverinone place,am I.Yeah,strange that,” frownsMcGlincheyas
we sit down inside his cluttered dressing room. “It was weird; it was the first time I’d ever

3. experiencedanythinglikethat.It’sstrange ’causeIjust don’t…”Asitoftendoes,hisvoice tails
intoamutter.“Iknew,obviously,thatpeople wantedtotake photosof her,’cause,youknow,
she’s all over the world,” he says, meaning, I think, that Delevingne is famous all over the
world.“But itwas justconfusingforme – what yougonna getout of gettinga picture of me?
Evenreturninghome,toNottingham, hasbeenproblematical.Whilehisparents,whosplitup
shortlyafter hisbirth,remainsupportive and,according to him, “unsurprised”at hissuccess
(“my mum says she always knew I’d make it”), other family members have found his fame
discombobulating. “One of them, I don’t want to name names, he kept referring to me as
Fearghal McGlinchey. Not Fearg; Fearghal McGlinchey. And he’s family. He wanted a
photograph with me. I was like, Why the f**k did you not want a photograph with me two
years ago? Can’t you just relax?”
McGlincheyseemedtoemergefullyformedinthe summerof 2012, hisarrestingdebutsingle
“Love me like youdo”soundinglike ajust-unearthedclassicfrom1962. He wasyoungerthan
X Factor hopefuls, but an old soul already. There were comparisons to Buddy Holly, to Bob
Dylan, so comically throwback was he, but his eponymous debut album revealedthat the
single wasn’t a one-off. Everything on it was lovingly retro, and mature beyond his years. It
solda millioncopiesaroundthe world,whichsooverjoyedhisrecordlabel thattheyputhim
inthe studiowiththe US producerRick Rubinto recordits follow-up,Shangri La,whichcame
out late last year.
Sheeran left home at 17 for the life of a rucksack-wearing, let’s-do-the-show-right-here
busker.He was “technicallyhomeless”forthreeyears,sofa-surfingwitha networkof friends
made inpubsandclubs.Whenhe finallysecuredrecordingandpublishingdealsearlyin2011,
he boughta home in Suffolk.Six monthsagohe bought a house in southLondon.He’srarely
able to stay in either.
His itinerant lifestyle isn’t just a legacy of old habits dying hard. He could have released his
second album in 2012, but chose to delay it by 18 months so he could concentrate on
attempting to “break” America.