Five minutes with… Britain’s Got Talent contestant Calum Scott

After doing Hull proud by finishing sixth in the final, Calum will be cheered on by his home-city crowd when he sings at Thursday’s official Christmas lights switch-on ceremony.

Prior to what promises to be an exciting performance, Calum chats to HEYToday about post-BGT life, his plans for the future and death-staring Simon Cowell.

Are you looking forward to performing in your home city for Thursday’s Christmas lights switch-on?

Of course I am. Me and a friend went last year and there’s a huge difference between being in the audience and being the one that helps turn them on and performs.

There’s normally quite a huge turnout, especially with the kids, so I’m looking forward to it. It’s going to be quite a privilege really to stand in front of the Hull people and turn the lights on and be there when it all happens.

What can your fans expect from your set on Thursday evening?

It’s probably a dead cert that I’m going to sing my (BGT) audition song (Robyn’s Dancing On My Own) since it reaches so many people.

I’ll potentially do another one from my BGT set but then I want to demo one of my new songs. It’s not something that I’m necessarily going to release.

What’s life been like for you since Simon Cowell pushed that golden buzzer?

To be honest in terms of my lifestyle and what I do for a living it’s been a re-birth, it’s a completely new thing for me.

I worked for the council for eight years, was just a normal guy, did all the teenage things like going out and getting drunk, and when I started finding my feet with work and taking that seriously.

Now I can’t believe I get to do what I do for a living. I get to go out and perform for people, do appearances. I’ve supported McBusted, gone abroad and performed overseas.

It’s been a whirlwind of emotions and I’ve enjoyed every single bit of it. Every fan that I meet, every photograph that I sign, every picture I do and every song I sing – every single bit of it I love. I couldn’t be happier.

How difficult was it to go out on stage and perform immediately after your sister’s unsuccessful audition?

It was the driving force behind the way I performed. Jade went on, she sang, she got stopped, she picked herself up and sang again, she got stopped. I don’t think she was given the opportunity to feel the song and get herself into it.

It was kind of rude by Simon and he’s said in an interview since that he felt horrible about it and that she should apply next year. At the time, that hit her really hard.

Ant and Dec said (to me) ‘I’m sorry mate, but you’re going to have to go on now’, so I had to leave my sister like that, which was horrible anyway, but then to go out and face the same judges and audience, knowing that Simon shot down my inspiration. It really hurt.

There was a point in the audition, if you look closely, where I properly death stare at Simon. I didn’t mean to do it, I was just being an over-protective brother.

Have you spoken much to Simon Cowell since the BGT final?

We try to. There was the show and then that was over by June and then I started taking my work in July and August and they were really busy months for me.

I wanted to explain that the little blips in the final weren’t necessarily all my fault, I wanted to explain what happened but then Simon’s mother unfortunately passed away and then Simon started filming for The X Factor so by then it was difficult for me to be able to get in touch.

As massive as Simon is, he’s not the be-all and end-all and there are other opportunities and other things that I can explore. There are other ways into the industry without Simon. I’d love to have Simon’s help and backing, but I was lucky to have his backing throughout the show and it made me shine a bit brighter.

I’m happy with my run-in with Simon and how long it lasted for. I wish it had lasted a bit longer but I don’t regret and I look forward to meeting him in the future, hopefully with a record!

What’s your advice to other singers considering auditioning for programmes such as BGT and The X Factor?

What people need to realise about The X Factor and Britain’s Got Talent is that you just don’t stand there, wait, sing, come off – life’s great. You’ve got to prepare yourself.

Me and my sister are both ends of the spectrum and the example of what can happen at one of these shows.

That drastic difference between me and my sister is exactly what can happen and it’s about being prepared for both (outcomes). Go in with the right attitude and the right mindset.

I would definitely, definitely recommend going if you’ve got a talent or any sort of burning passion and you believe in it and your family believe in it.

What are you future plans?

In terms of releasing music, that’s not the be-all and end-all (at the moment). Right now it’s about finding my sound, finding my originality and creating a building block for the future.

I take this very seriously and I really want to make my mark on the industry so I guess it’s all about timing and doing it right. I’m not in a massive rush to get stuff out so I’m going to demo a track I’ve been working on and see how people feel about it. It’s a bit more upbeat than what people normally hear from me so I’m looking forward to seeing people’s reactions to it.