Billie Eilish helped Tom Odell deal with the pressure of touring by introducing a dog petting area to enjoy a pooch cuddle before their concerts. Tom felt at the “centre of the world” supporting Billie on the road but was glad she was doing the hard work of selling tickets. His new album is an invitation for others to feel.
TOURING with Billie Eilish gave Tom Odell a new appreciation for fame and dogs. The former BRIT Award winner supported Billie on her Hit Me Hard And Soft Tour, and the singers would enjoy a cuddle with a few pooches beforehand.
BRIT Awards winner Tom revealed: “They do this thing sometimes where they bring rescue dogs into a pen backstage, all these puppies. So my band and some of her band and Billie and I were just sat there amongst eight dogs just chatting. Dogs jumping all over us. That was really sweet. She’s so lovely and it was a joy to do the tour.”
Sounds like there was more Pedigree Chum than booze on that tour rider.
Tom is a headliner in his own right and hadn’t supported anyone since 2012 before being asked by Billie to join her.
Loving the challenge he spilled: “It’s amazing. You kind of feel in a strange way, like, you’re at the centre of the world each evening, which is certainly a new feeling for me. It’s also nice to be the support act, there’s something so unnatural about walking into a venue and seeing your name in giant letters on the front that I don’t think I ever feel completely comfortable with. And so to be on a tour where Billie’s doing all the hard work, the heavy lifting, takes the pressure off!”
Tom was impressed by the way Billie performed in the round: “I’m always learning.”
When Tom’s career first started he was being touted as a mainstream pop star but he has managed to side step the celebrity side since.
“I fear that,” he said reflecting on how he’s changed. “I fear I would be a bag of nerves were I to get any more face recognition than I already have. In the first six or seven years of my career you just wanted to keep the party going. Which is fine for a bit, but it’s better to kind of come down. Now I do quite a lot of meditation and stuff like that. I’m like a monk.”
Tom’s no slouch though with over 14 billion career streams already. Ace new album A Wonderful Life is set to got stratospheric.
“I started writing the album on tour and a lot of the words were written on planes in a notebook,” he revealed. ”(The album) is unpolished and it’s much more live. I always like to feel slightly uncomfortable with sharing the songs. Not in a strange way, but it has to reveal something. I’ve realised that I want my music to be an invitation for others to feel.
“To not be afraid to feel anything, to feel sadness, to feel joy, anxiety at times, pain. fear. More and more, I feel like my duty is that.”
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