Gary Kemp, the guitarist-songwriter most famous for his role in steering Spandau Ballet to glory has just spelt out the tough road ahead for any musician aiming to emulate his success.
Kemp, of course, has a new album out. This Destination is his third solo work featuring direct bass input from Guy Pratt, his partner on his much-loved Rockonteurs podcast, and less direct input from UK music legend Richard Hawley…
While enduring one spate of writer’s block, Kemp was interrupted by a phone call… “It was Richard Hawley. We chatted for a while and I told him I’d been going round in circles trying to write something that day,” explains Kemp on his blog.
“He said ‘Okay, here’s what you do. Go over to the piano and sit down. Put your hands out over the keys. I’m going to go now, and you’re going to write a f_____g brilliant song.’”
Sure enough, the intervention led to Gary producing Work – a semi-autobiographical tune in which he celebrates the unsung heroics of a parent’s everyday life – and one of the album’s standout tracks.
But even with celebrity help and a reputation spanning decades, it seems that Kemp finds today’s musical landscape a tough climb.
Speaking with Chris Difford of Squeeze on his I Never Thought It Would Happen podcast (supporting the Help Musicians charity) he spells out the situation, explaining that a social media presence is seemingly now more essential for a music career than raw talent, and how touring – once the saviour of working musicians whose record salesevaporated in favour of pennies from streaming - has, basically, become unaffordable.
Indeed, artists such as Kate Nash have recently gone to rather radical extremes in order to self-finance promotional tours with the help of their fans.
In fact, the inability (and necessity) of performing with an actual band is now such a pipe dream that Kemp “now no longer build[s] a song with a band in mind”.
"What people want is the warts and all"
So Kemp won’t be playing live to promote his new work? “Touring is a big expense… I’m not even sure what size venues I can play. I don’t know what I can afford, and if it would just be me blowing £100,000 on something to give me pleasure,” he admits.
And social media increasingly becoming the only promotion avenue that makes any sense is not a situation that Kemp is entirely happy with.
“They [record labels] rely on your social media, and the numbers really do count.
"So, if you’re an artist that’s ignored theirs, it’s difficult for a record label to know how to truly sell you,” he advises. “What people want is the warts and all. They want ‘behind the scenes’ all of the time - but how far are you willing to go?” he ponders.
“Back when I was a kid, I didn’t want to know what Bryan Ferry’s kitchen looked like… Or David Bowie’s. You wanted them to have mystique.”
You can find out more about Help Musicians or to make a donation to support its work, on their website here.
And you can listen to the latest episode of the podcast with Gary Kemp here.
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