Rag’n’Bone Man: Performing at Brighton Centre November 24th as part of new album tour – ‘What Do You Believe In’.
Critically acclaimed Sussex born singer songwriter Rag’n’Bone Man, AKA Rory Graham announced a tour to celebrate the release of his new album, ‘What Do You Believe In?’ earlier this year. He will be appearing at The Brighton Centre on Sunday November 24th and our editor caught up with him to chat about the new album and how finding true love has changed his life and inspired him to create something he is truly proud of.
What can fans expect from the new album? A little more happiness! My records represent how I’m feeling at the time, I’m not very good at introspective, my songs are always right there out on the plate, so people always know exactly what I’m talking about when I sing them. I met my missus Zoe in 2021 and since then life has been better. We have an amazing family life and I have a great balance between music and that family life and the new album is a representation of that. It is essentially a celebration of my love for Zoe and my family with a few twists and turns. Not everything is always roses.
I begin with a song called ‘The Right Way’ that has a sample of my kids at the very start of it and it’s all about how people tell you how to parent but there’s not really a right way to do it and how we are always winging it. My family has given me the inspiration to make a really uplifting album.
I kept thinking about my live performance throughout making this record and thought about the early days when I would see people in the audience crying while listening to my songs and I almost felt bad. I don’t think people will cry (as much) when they see me perform this time around. When I listened back to the new album I actually love my own record. This doesn’t happen often as I am super critical of myself. But I am proud of this work.
If people are coming to your gigs and connecting with your songs, even if they are crying, isn’t there something beautifully cathartic about that? Absolutely. The thing about music is when you put it out it’s not yours anymore it belongs to everyone else and they have their own interpretation and connection to it. There are songs on this record I haven’t played live yet and I’m scared to perform them because I don’t know if I’ll get upset (For context, Rory sadly lost his mum recently, the singer became visibly upset when discussing this, so out of respect, I moved on).
How do you get inspiration to write your songs? I usually wake up at 3am with a flash of inspiration and start writing. I don’t know why it’s around that time, maybe it’s because your brain becomes super active then? I used to just go back to sleep but now I embrace it and note down what I’m thinking. Sometimes it’s just a sentence about how I’m feeling and when I go into the studio I try to add a bit of artistic licence to it. But those 3am scribbles is where all my songs originate.
Do your children come to your gigs? Zoe and I have four boys between us, she had three boys when I met her and I had a son Ruben who is now seven, Jessie is eight, Bear is 13 and Jasper is 15. I don’t know how interested they are in my music, but they do come along to some of the gigs. Most of the time they are more interested in going on the tour bus and playing FIFA. or they like to see what food is available backstage.
‘What Do You Believe In’ out now. www.ragnboneman.com
Where have you settled, obviously being from this area? We relocated outside of the city because Brighton is too hectic and I need somewhere peaceful. We live in a world where people want to take pictures of you and I want to keep my children’s innocence for as long as possible. When we are out and about it’s very difficult for me to say no to fans when they want to capture the moment, but my kids don’t deserve to have pictures taken of them so I am extremely mindful of that. It’s a catch 22 because I love the fact that people want to chat to me. My favourite thing is when they want to tell me which songs mean something to them and if my music may have helped them through something, which is amazing, but at the same time I want peace and quiet when I’m with my family. Saying that, my little ones Jessie and Ruben keep trying to photobomb fan pictures lately…
What did you love about living in Brighton? I first moved to Brighton in summer 2008 and I lived right on the edge of Kemptown next to Concorde 2. I had never lived on the coast before coming from Uckfield, it’s a crazy city Brighton! One of my favourite things was people watching. I used to sit on my balcony in the morning and have a coffee while watching people from the night before, staggering home and listen to their hilarious conversations. The city is full of really interesting people.
What advice would you give to an aspiring artist? Just get in front of as many people as possible and do all of the gigs offered even if you think they are too small or the wrong venue. I did my first gig at The Hope and Ruin on Queens Road (great venue) and I never said no to a gig anywhere. Even with the rise of social media for promoting yourself as an artist there’s still nothing like being in front of a live audience, that’s the true way you will be remembered by people – standing in front of them and performing.
Book tickets now: brightoncentre.co.uk
