Singer Opens Up About Leaving Hit-Making Pressure Behind
Written by WorldOneFm on October 7, 2026
The 31-year-old singer, who has scored three UK No. 1 albums and five Top 10 singles, says he has changed his approach to music while working on his upcoming album.
The artist admitted that he had become too focused on creating chart hits and had lost sight of why he started making music in the first place.
“To be honest with you, beforehand, I was really writing for hits,” he told The Sun. “I was like, ‘I need a hit. I need a hit.’”
After listening back to his previous albums, he said he began questioning his musical identity and decided to return to his roots.
“I needed to take it back to why I loved playing music,” he explained. “I wasn’t really playing music anymore.”
The new album reflects a more personal chapter in his life, including his journey to sobriety and his efforts to better understand himself.
The singer, whose wife Danniella welcomed their daughter Dottie last year, said he now feels more comfortable with who he is and is no longer putting the same pressure on himself to succeed commercially.
“What I was looking for was peace of mind, so I went and got it,” he said.
He described the album as an emotional and reflective journey covering sobriety, personal growth and his hopes for the future.
“There’s a lot of stuff that runs through this album from sobriety to understanding who I am, what I am, and what I want to be,” he said.
