Shropshire Star

Olly Murs chats ahead of Birmingham gig

He's so God Damned nice. Talking to Olly Murs is like talking to the ultimate cheeky chap. There's no edge and nothing unpleasant.

Published

He's as unlikely to throw a strop as Mother Teresa, he's as unlikely to be caught with his pants down as the local lollipop lady. He's the antithesis of Kanye and Kardashian, the polar opposite of Katie Hopkins. He's as unlikely to demand a jar full of purple Smarties on his backstage rider as a lion is to marry a dolphin.

Good God, Olly, stop being so flippin' nice.

And yet that's what the public admires about him. While so many who are thrust into the spotlight are dysfunctional and difficult, Murs is precisely the opposite. He is the archetypal boy-who-done-well, the classic boy next door who made it big.

Olly was working as a recruitment consultant at Prime Appointments, in Witham, before he featured on The X Factor.

Listen to Olly Murs' Troublemaker here:

[youtube]

And he's still in touch with his old officemates now. The closest he'd come to stardom was appearing on Deal or No Deal in 2007. He wasn't much cop, taking home a tenner after messing up royally.

Like many kids, he'd dreamed of hitting the big time. But after forming a band, The Small Town Blaggers, that got nowhere fast, he pretty much gave up. And so, after his Deal or No Deal experience, he jacked it all in and went backpacking around Australia. Then, when he returned, he decided to have one last crack at fame. He rolled the dice in 2009 and is landed on X.

"X Factor got me started, but I think for me it's just about hard work. It all comes down to hard work. I respect people and I'm nice to people and I've also had a bit of luck. People like my music and have bought into me so I try to give people a different sound and a different vibe. It's just been a great journey. I've been very lucky. I hate to say luck because we all know it isn't all luck. You've got to have a bit of talent, so it's a bit of everything really. You've got to tick all the boxes really if you want to get somewhere."

There he goes. Nice again. Humble too. Gah.

Olly Murs

Olly was the runner-up on the sixth series of X Factor in 2009. His debut single, Please Don't Let Me Go, debuted at number one while his debut album was certified double platinum after shifting more than 600,000 copies. And since then, it's been one-way traffic. Olly has been moving higher and higher and higher as he's shipped a colossal 10 million records, published an autobiography called Happy Days and released three further albums which have all gone to number one and achieved between two and four platinum discus for sales that have hovered around one-million-per-record.

The only thing he hasn't done is fill his mantelpiece with awards. Olly has been nominated for six BRITS and two Ivor Novellos, but always been pipped. Still, there's still time to put that right, especially with the release of his fifth album, 24 hrs.

"I think it's the best thing I've done, yes. It's certainly my best songwriting. I wrote it with some great writers and as a body of work it's the best thing I've come up with. Right now, I'm just looking forward to the fans listening to it.

"When you've done four albums, it's like what am I going to do for my 5th? Where do I go? So what I've always done in my career is try to move forward.

"When I did my first album, I was into reggae. Ska music was my vibe. That developed over the years. There was funky Troublemaker and then almost a country song with Demi Lovato. Kiss Me was a real 80s influence, it was a bit more soul and a bit more modern. But all of them have been different. Songs like Kiss Me opened up a new avenue for me, it gave me a different route."

Robbie Williams and Olly Murs

The new album will be accompanied by another megatron tour. Having stayed on the road from March to August with his last set of arena shows, for Never Been Better, which included three dates at Birmingham's Barclaycard Arena, Olly is back for more. This time he'll be playing the city's Genting. At present, he's scheduled just the one date, for March 24, but don't bet against him returning for more.

He's one of British music's biggest stars and 24 hrs features the huge hit You Don't Know Love. Olly is still riding a wave following the critical and commercial success of Kiss Me, a smash hit that was released last Christmas. His last tour in 2015 was a triumph selling out all 27 dates including four shows at The O2, London. This summer Olly played a spellbinding set to a 65,000 Hyde Park crowd as special guest to Take That, further confirming his reputation as one of the Britain's very best live performers. Tickets for his spring shows are going to fly.

"I'm looking forward to it," he says. "To do these sort of venues is fantastic and I never get bored of it. I always hope that one day I'll move up and play stadiums. That's certainly on my bucket list. But right now, I just can't wait to get on the road and see the fans. I love touring."

Olly Murs

He's learned from the best in the business. Olly was part of One Direction's Up All Night Tour in 2012, when he joined the boys in the USA. And he was also the special guest for Robbie Williams' Take The Crown Tour, in 2013, which earned $20 million from nine shows and included four sell out-gigs at Wembley and the same number at Manchester's Etihad Stadium.

"Working with people like Robbie Williams and Gary Barlow has been great. It's always good to work with people like that and get close, to see those guys going about their work. I'm grateful to them for giving me the opportunity to play on their tours.

"Hopefully one day there'll be a young singer on one of my tours and I'll try to guide them and give them advice and help. I've always had great guys around me. People like Robbie and Gary aren't what I'd call idols. But they are people to look up to. To watch those guys, especially Robbie when we were on tour, was amazing and I learned so much."

There he goes again. Mr Nice.

Not that Olly takes his success for granted. In the fickle world of pop, he knows that what goes up must come down. Though a crash is more unlikely that a bad dinner from Gordon Ramsay, he knows it might not last forever.

"I'm not a fool. I know that at some point it'll all be gone. But then it might not – who knows it might go on for the rest of my life. I'll continue for as long as my fans in the UK want me to. If I move into other careers, like TV or radio, that would be cool. Or I might do something else in music or become a songwriter. You don't know, the opportunities are endless."

For a cheeky chappy like Olly, they probably are. He's the sort of entertainer who'll still be around in 20 years.

The Nice theme continues when he's not on pop star duty. Away from the stage, he's a right regular philanthropist who supports his local Brainwave charity, which is based in his home town and helps kids with cerebral palsy.

"Giving back is massively important to me. When you're in the position I'm in where your profile can really elevate some charities then you can use that to raise money and help families and kids in need. I'm in the position to do that and I love helping, I love doing that. The charities that I'm involved in, like Brainwave, and Rays of Sunshine, are all important to me.

"To go in and see the families and kids going through a difficult time is inspiring. I just want to make them have a laugh. That makes me feel amazing. At the same time, I like to help out and raise awareness about how great these charities are."

With enough in the bank to live comfortably, Olly could slow down. He could swan off to some exotic isle and sip vodka, lychee juice and vermouth or mango daiquiris. Not that he does. When he's off duty, you're more likely to find him knocking about in Essex, where he still hangs out with his old mates. Olly may have Robbie Williams' number on speed dial, but he's just as likely to text his mates, Colin and Robbie, instead.

"I'm always at home in Essex. I'm always visiting my old employees, especially an agency I used to work for, Prime Appointments.

Olly is performing at The Genting Arena, Birmingham on Thursday, March 23, Friday, March 24 and Saturday, March 25. Tickets cost from £33.99. Visit www.theticketfactory.com or call 0844 33 88 222.

By Andy Richardson

Sorry, we are not accepting comments on this article.