Stereophonics' Kelly Jones overcame a negative mindset to achieve stardom.
Kelly Jones has been surprised by his success
The 47-year-old singer was born in the former Welsh mining village of Cwmaman, and he admits that his success has come as a surprise.
He explained: "I think it’s a working-class, small-town thing.
"You don’t really get pats on the back and people saying: ‘Go for it son.’ People don’t mean to do it, but there’s an underlying negativity in those towns.
"When you start achieving stuff, you’re on the back foot. You can be in front of 90,000 people thinking: ‘Well, what are they all here for then?’ It’s ridiculous really because at shows your name is on the f****** ticket!
"You’re a kid from a dead end street one minute and the next you’re on the front of all the magazines in the f****** country. It took us by surprise."
Kelly underwent surgery in January 2019, when his doctor spotted a vocal polyp, and he initially feared he might never sing again.
However, the 'Dakota' hitmaker now feels as though his voice is better than ever.
Reflecting on his recovery from surgery, he explained to The Independent: "I went pretty hard on it. I’ve got a brilliant coach called Joshua Alamu and he had me blowing f****** straws in bottles of water. It was bizarre, man, but I think I’m singing better now than I ever have."
Kelly likened his recovery to an athlete working their way back to full fitness after suffering an injury.
He said: "It ended up being a good thing to do at this point in my life, getting older. A bit like an athlete, you learn how the muscles work and then you can use them better."
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