As big as last year was for the career of expat singer-songwriter Conrad Sewell, it pales in comparison to his plans for 2020.
Last year Conrad released his highly-acclaimed debut alum 'Life', the success of which laid the framework for what he hopes to achieve this year.“2019 was obviously amazing because I put out the album and there were a lot of good things that happened, but I feel like it was a transitioning year for me as well,” Conrad says.
“I changed some things, I fired my management and there were a bunch of moving pieces, and I feel like I was setting myself up for this year.”
The response to 'Life' has been nothing short of resounding for Conrad, allowing him to tour overseas. “I spent a lot of time back home last year and I was trying to cement myself as a household name in Australia and put out great music that I was proud of,” he says.
“But I still haven't scratched the surface of what I want to do on a global scale. I feel like last year was great for setting everything up but there's so much more I want to achieve. Fingers crossed it's going to be a really big year for me.”
Now based in Los Angeles, Conrad is currently back home in Australia preparing for his 'Big World' regional tour in support of his recent single of the same name. “It's a great way to start the year,” Conrad says.
“I love performing more than anything that I do and in this industry you find yourself doing a lot of sh.t you don't want to do,” he laughs.
“You're only singing ten per cent of the time so it's nice to start the year doing what I love, which is singing. It's great to be on a bigger tour, there's 21 dates so you get to feel like you're actually on the road and it's going to be great to get to some of these places I've never been before.
“We've stripped down the show so it's going to be super-intimate and people are going to hear me sing the way I used to sing back at pubs – just raw and real.”
The 'Big World' regional tour comes as Conrad is preparing to record his second studio album, saying that after 'Life' he is in a position to write and record an album as he envisions it in his head. “I'm about to go back into the studio to write the second album,” he says.
“I feel very confident with the direction I've been going in, and the songs I've been writing in the past three months have more of a soulful vibe than I've ever dreamed of. I've had a picture of what I've been trying to create for a while and this is the year I finally get to put it on a record.”
Asked what his picture of the new album might look like, Conrad explains his desire to create stadium anthems along the lines of Simply Red, Journey, Rod Stewart and Phil Collins.
“Artists that were white boys with soul that wrote big songs that stadiums could sing-along to, that's my dream,” he says.
“That's what I've been working towards and you saw a little bit of that in 'Healing Hands', but I want to go more real with it and have a whole horn section, and have whole bunch of uplifting anthems like that.”
Conrad as revealed that all profits from merchandise sales for this tour will be donated to Australia Red Cross and Australia Zoo Wildlife Hospital, in light of the bushfires crisis.
Conrad Sewell 2020 Tour Dates
Sat 25 Jan - Garden Hotel (Dubbo)Sun 26 Jan - Kinross Woolshed Hotel (Albury)
Thu 30 Jan - The Gateway Hotel (Geelong)
Fri 31 Jan - York On Lilydale (Melbourne)
Sat 1 Feb - Village Green Hotel (Melbourne)
Thu 6 Feb - Mt Pleasant Hotel (Mackay)
Fri 7 Feb - Magnum's (Airlie Beach)
Sat 8 Feb - Dalrymple Hotel (Townsville)
Sun 9 Feb - Edge Hill Tavern (Cairns)
Thu 13 Feb - Hamilton Hotel (Brisbane)
Fri 14 Feb - Parkwood Tavern (Gold Coast)
Sat 15 Feb - Villa Noosa Hotel (Sunshine Coast)
Sun 16 Feb - Fire Fight Australia benefit concert (Sydney)
Thu 20 Feb - The Basement (Canberra)
Fri 21 Feb - Waves (Wollongong)
Sat 22 Feb - Cambridge Hotel (Newcastle)
Sun 23 Feb - Central Coast Leagues Club (Gosford)
Thu 27 Feb - Country Club Showroom (Launceston)
Fri 28 Feb - Granada Tavern (Hobart)
Fri 6 Mar - Coopers Alehouse (Adelaide)
Sat 7 Mar - Dunsborough Tavern (WA)
Fri 13 Mar - Kingscliff Beach Hotel (Northern Rivers)
