Michael Bolton is undeniably, one of few musicians who can deliver album after album and never lose on of his fans: so as he prepares for the arrival for his new single, Just One Love, I caught up with the legend.
I’m so excited to hear about your new single ‘Just One Love’, I haven’t heard it yet, so what can my ears expect?
What can my ears expect? A couple of q-tips perhaps… Well you see if I tell you what to expect then you won’t be pleasantly surprised. It’s a fairly wide range of feel good music; the whole theme of the record is feel good.
There is a lot of negative energy out there and depression people are going through, and one theme that we have stuck to from start to finish is feel good themes. There’s a lot of tempo, so you can expect to be tapping your feet quite a bit.
I’m very excited to learn that you have done a track with Ne-yo and Lady GaGa. Would you say this album is going to win you legions of younger fans in addition to your older fans?
I can only hope so; I wouldn’t be so presumptuous to take that as an automatic. From the response we have seen so far from the GaGa collaboration it’s been overwhelmingly positive and it seems like there’s a great opportunity to reach a lot of younger people not just through the GaGa and Ne-yo connection but also because I wrote and produced the album with some very young, fresh writer/producers. I think that is going to speak in a voice that resonates with a younger audience.
Can you sum your album up in 5 lovely words?
5 lovely words, fresh, honest, soulful, upbeat and exciting.
Having sold 53 million albums already, what gives you the motivation to keep going?
I don’t ever see a time when I will stop creating, writing, producing and most of all singing. There may come a time when I want to take a long break. There are times when I do want to take a bit of a break, but music is something that is your first passion usually for a person.
I think like a painter as long as you have a canvas, a fresh canvas, your instinct is going to be to cover it, to fill it, to express yourself through your music is something that comes very naturally for an artist. I don’t think the number of album sales or CD sales, is the factor really; it’s what creatively motivates you.
Ray Charles was still singing and touring till he had health issues, and I don’t think, I know if he were alive today he’d be singing and touring the world. Tony Bennett still has that smile on his face as if he’s doing what he’d love to do since he was a kid.
What’s the highest point of your long and lustrous career?
I don’t know that I can point to the highest point; I’ve had some amazing experiences that were beyond my dreams as an aspiring artist. I couldn’t have written the script in a way to describe the high points themselves.
What about someone you’ve met, that was a real high for you?
Singing with Pavarotti, Ray Charles, The Grammy’s, there’s too many to mention.
FemaleFirst - Ruth Harrison
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