Lucy Spraggan and 10 Questions with TotalNtertainment.
Lucy Spraggan burst onto our TV screens in 2012 when she auditioned for reality show X-Factor. Eight years later and a lot has changed for the singer-songwriter. The last twelve months have seen her divorce from her partner, give up alcohol and take up a new fitness regime. All of this has lead to the release of her new single “Sober” with her album “Choices” due to drop in 2021. Ahead of the release of the single, TotalNtertainment spoke to Lucy to find out about this new chapter in your life.
1. Thanks for your time Lucy. The release of “Sober” marks the start of a new chapter in your life. How excited are you for the future and how different is your outlook to say twelve months ago?
My outlook is very different. I’ve had a real lifestyle change and the album reflect that too. The album was written about that lifestyle change. I’m excited for people to hear to it and, to be honest, I’m just excited to get this f*****g year over with.
2. How different were things for you twelve months ago?
I was already sober this time last year. I was on tour. I was actually at the beginning of my journey to change things. I was still struggling a bit there. At the beginning of becoming sober, I was very emotional. I was still coming to terms with the emotions and becoming sober but, before that, I was pretty negative and I didn’t know what I was doing with my life.
3. Was there a trigger to you giving up alcohol?
It was a culmination of things really. I went on a night out and got absolutely smashed and it was full of drama. I woke up the next day feeling dreadful and decided that was it and I haven’t drunk since then. I don’t like who I am when I’m drunk. I knew there was a better version of me underneath the drinking one.
4. Given the new lifestyle, has it changed what you write about?
Yeah. Everything I write about is always about me. It’s autobiographical. There’s the song “Sober”. There’s a song called “Run” which is about running. The song material updates about me with each album and where I am. I think this album is definitely a lot more mature.
5. How hard is it to avoid the alcohol and partying given the industry you’re in?
I think if you don’t want to drink but find it hard not to drink then it is really, really difficult. The whole industry is built on that. Before you get paid to make music, you play a show and they give you beer tokens, and that is how it goes. That’s the currency in this industry. For me, I don’t tour like I used to. I tour quite comfortably. I’m not crammed in the back of a tiny car. If I’m on a tour bus it means there is a rider with non-alcoholic beer on it. It’s easier for me because I can dictate my surroundings but, I guess, for others, then it’s probably not so easy.
6. You’ve talked about your new fitness regime. What was it like taking that first step and what advice would you give somebody in that position?
I went to Vegas with my friends back in January and I think I was about six months sober. I woke up really early and everyone was still in bed hungover. I got this feeling that I needed to do something so I decided to go for a run. I’d never run before. I did 2.4k and I felt disgusting afterwards. I hated it. After that I kept going and going and going and I found the love for running. With that came everything else like strength and conditioning and skipping and biking. It just happened really. I think if you force yourself into things then it won’t happen but if you just let it happen naturally then it will. I also believe that there is a massive corrolation between a fit lifestyle and not drinking. That’s the truth.
7. What keeps you motivated?
The desire to be better. I don’t wake up every day and feel the motivation to go to the gym. What I do feel is an extreme discipline so I have a lot more discipline in my life with my diet and sobriety. Even if I don’t want to go, I still go because there is nothing more important than being better than you are. The album is about that, there is a lot of resilience throughout the album and doing what builds you up.
8. I read somewhere that you’re running half a marathon a week?
I was during lockdown yes. That was pretty psychotic of me [laughs] and I’m not doing that anymore. I signed up for the Brighton marathon but it lies right in the middle of my tour next year and I don’t think it is a good idea to do a marathon right before a show at the Shepherds Bush Empire [laughs].
9. Just for fun. If you could go into the house of one of your family or friends houses during lockdown and remain unnoticed, what would you do to annoy them?
“Oooh, I’d probably say my Mum and I’d move things around to make the place messy. Thinking about that though, the house is pretty messy already so she probably wouldn’t notice [laughs].”
10. Thanks for your time and good luck with everything. Just to finish what are your plans for 2021?
Well, the album is out in February and then we’ve got the tour in April. Who knows what’s happening there though? Same shit, different year. Tour the album across the world. Come back and get stuck into album number seven.
Get all the details on the new album and the 2021 at Lucy’s Official Website
