A few years ago a good friend of mine got a record deal at Sony BMG.
Cue a year of partying, a life of luxury.. touring with some of the biggest bands in Britain… everything that aspiring musicians aim for. For whatever reason, Sony decided to drop Will and the People a year later, having never really given them a fair chance…
It was probably the best thing that could have happened to Will. By his own admission, he couldn’t write during that year… he couldn’t find inspiration…he had been given a boundary in which he had to play his game and Will’s not the sort of person to thrive under any one’s constriction but his own.
I was in France with Will in the summer of 2009. His Sony funds were coming to an end.. and, despite an upcoming UK tour with Paolo Nutini, an uncertain future was facing him.
Driving away from Bordeaux airport Will put on a CD of some of his new songs…this was on there, I still think it’s one of the greatest things I’ve ever heard…
I think during that time in France Will did a lot of soul searching. At one point he admitted he was thinking about the possibility of having to get a real job.. but realistically that was never going to happen.
Will will win the game. People around him have come and gone, his surrounding environment has crumbled and been built back up. The lows are too low to bear, but the highs completely outweigh them. Will has never lost focus on what he wants…and whether it happens tomorrow or in 20 years..everything that’s happened to that point will have been completely worth it.
Keep on playing the game!