[James]

From The Voice...

FRESH FROM his appearance on the recent E4 reality show, Big Brother Celebrity Hijack, British R&B singer Nathan re-releases his debut album Masterpiece today.

Best known for his singles Come Into My Room and Do Without My Love (the latter is also being re-released next month), the 21-year-old talent is currently recording his sophomore album.


You’ve been grafting for so long but you’ve yet to earn mainstream recognition. Should you be more successful?

I prefer not to be the judge of that. My job is to keep working hard and doing the best I can. People can make their own judgments on whether they think I should be more successful than I am. Of course, I am disappointed that I haven’t had more recognition so far. But I’d rather work hard to build and sustain my profile, rather than shooting straight to the top, only to come right back down again.


Do you think you would have enjoyed greater success if you were white?

Yeah, I do. I think the UK music industry struggles to package and promote black British talent. I really like Amy Winehouse and Lily Allen, but it’s unfortunate that the industry seems to know exactly how to make successes out of them, but struggles to do the same with black artists.


Why do you think that is?

It seems that the media is more comfortable with constantly churning out the idea that all black youngsters do is engage in gun and knife crime. So, a guy like me, who’s trying to make good music and create a positive image, struggles to get the exposure. That’s part of the reason why I did Big Brother; so I could showcase myself and let people see that I’m a decent guy who’s doing positive things.


Has the Big Brother appearance helped your career?

Definitely. It gave me a new lease of life in the UK and allowed me to reach out to more people than I already had. It was a good opportunity. There are people out there who didn’t know of me before, who know me now because of it.


Did you want to win the show?

No, I didn’t wanna win. When you win, you get all this publicity about being the winner. I didn’t wanna be tagged as ‘Nathan, the winner of Big Brother.’ I wanna be Nathan, the R&B singer.


Do you have plans to follow in the footsteps of UK acts like Estelle and Fun*dmental who have moved to America?

I don’t think that’s the move for me right now. I’ve spent time in America and recorded tracks out there, but I still wanna do all that I can here in the UK. I definitely feel that Fun*dmental have the potential to enjoy success in America. And with Estelle, I think she deserves the success she’s enjoying in the States, because she worked hard here in the UK. I definitely want to showcase my music on a worldwide level. But I’m staying put in the UK for now, and I’m feeling optimistic.


Published: 20 February 2008
Issue: 1308

http://www.voice-online.co.uk/content.php?show=12983

[Christina]

Thanks for this.. im gong to buy his album x