We recently reviewed Lloyd Daniels’ debut single ‘Suburbian Girl’ and liked the soulful, laid-back, summery feel of the song. On 4 December, eighteen-year-old Daniels – who placed fifth in the sixth series of The X Factor in 2009 – finally released the song exclusively through iTunes as part of an EP that, despite having received little nationwide promotion – is doing quite well already.
We caught up for a quick chat with the Welsh hottie in Manchester to talk more about his music and life after The X Factor.
SSG: Hi Lloyd, congratulations on the release of your first single and the EP! Are you also working on an album at the moment too?
Lloyd: Thank you! Yes, I started working on it back in March this year recording it in Glasgow and am about three-quarters of the way through right now. It will be released at some point next year, but a second single will precede it.
SSG: That’s great, we look forward to hearing it. So far, many people have compared you to the likes of Olly Murs and Bruno Mars, but who are your musical inspirations?
Lloyd: I quite like the more soulful singers such as Robin Thicke, Daniel Merriweather and James Morrison, although my music is more focused around appealing to the pop market. At the same time I don’t think I could handle having the same amount of fame as someone like Olly – I’d rather be more subtle, otherwise I’d probably freak out!
SSG: Talking of Olly, do you still keep in touch with him and the rest of the people from your series?
Lloyd: Not so much Olly anymore, but I have spoken to Joe and still keep in touch with Stacey and Rachel as often as possible.
SSG: And we take it you are a fan of this year’s show, but who are you rooting for to win?
Lloyd: Little Mix! I’ve loved them since the beginning and I like Marcus too. I’m pleased with the final three.
SSG: Your birthday is next week (14 December) and Christmas is just around the corner. What are your plans for these two occasions and what would your ideal present be?
Lloyd: Yes I’m looking forward to my birthday and really want to maybe go down to Hyde Park in London to see the Winter Wonderland – that’d be nice! For Christmas I’ll be spending it at home in North Wales with my family as usual. As for a present, I’ don’t know but I’m quite a greedy person to be honest, so my dream would probably be to get a car! [laughs]
SSG: Finally, what most people, especially our readers, would want to know – you have done a naked photo shoot for Gay Times magazine before and were quoted as saying ‘I love to get naked’, but would you do that again?
Lloyd: [laughs] Yes I think I definitely would! I quite like the idea of being, erm, ‘free’. But only if I got back into good shape again before that so I could see an improvement since the last shoot.
Hmm, maybe we should start our own a ‘Naked Column’?
‘Suburbian Girl’ or the four-track EP from iTunes are available for download now. To keep up to date with Lloyd, you can visit his official website (coming soon), Facebook page or follow him on Twitter.
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