Craig David talks ahead of Birmingham show
Few performers have experienced the highs and lows that have marked Craig David’s career.
The R&B star, who’s enjoyed 20 Top 40 hits and shifted 14 million records, has received 13 BRIT nominations – and never won – alongside two Grammy nominations and 10 Mobos, with five victories there.
He was at number one in the charts in 2000 with his debut, Born To Do It, which sold 7.5 million copies. And he repeated that chart placing last year with his sixth album, Following My Intuition, which marked his return in stunning style.
Craig’s return has been the most talked about and relevant in some years and the star is back on the road with his biggest UK arena tour in 15 years. It calls in at Birmingham’s Barclaycard Arena tonight.
And yet he doesn’t worry too much about whether he’s up or down. He just takes each day as it comes; taking things in his stride.
“I don’t take things too seriously, because – especially within music – I’ve seen the journey, I’ve seen the rollercoaster ride.
“And I know that the only thing that I’ve ever really loved is making music, and being able to connect with an audience that’s in front of me. All of the things that people aspire to – the material things, money, and what as a kid you dreamed of having – for me, it never fulfils you. So I just realised that when I jump onstage and perform in front of a crowd, that for me is like: this is incredible.”
He adds: “The UK is a melting pot of so many different genres and styles of music. I love that, because on one side of it I love my R&B and hip-hop, but I also like reggae and dancehall; but then there’s garage, EDM music, that I’ve always loved.
