Nice guys finish second, so they say and strictly speaking, where Olly Murs is concerned, that’s true.
Do it his way he certainly did and he maintains that the Svengali-like Simon Cowell was quite happy to let him do his own thing and didn’t try to influence him too much. Even the infamous “Olly wiggle” dance move was left in!
That’s why, too, he was keen to get out on the road himself, tour with a live band and perform in a way that is, in his own words, “credible and cool. I want it to look good but more than that I want to enjoy singing my songs with a live band so that people can hear the music a bit differently.
“We’ve had our ups and downs getting it right, a lot of rehearsals to get things tight and learned the songs from scratch. And once all that work’s done and I get on stage, I can do it the way I want, I can do what I want. That’s what I enjoy.
“We’re not a boy band! We’re a proper live act with our own music.”
And a lot of it is his own music. He’s a singer who writes as well as performs. Busy was written by Olly, with Adam Argyle and Martin Brammer and he thoroughly enjoys the process of collaborating with other artists. So far in his short career, he’s worked with Chris Difford of Squeeze and the legendary Trevor Horn.
“It’s important to write your own songs, it’s more personal and more you. There are things I like and don’t like I don’t like the word ‘baby’ too much or words and sounds that are cheesy. That’s not the person I am. Okay, I do sing ‘baby’ in Please Don’t Let Me Go but it’s more personal than that, I want to sing it with passion. Music is who I am and what you see is what you get.
“Simon was always happy with who I was and didn’t try to change that. No one was trying to do that. Of course, there were tweaks in styling but I wouldn’t wear anything if I didn’t like it or sing it any way I didn’t like.
“People can spot a fake.”
With collaborations in mind, on the performing front, of course, his duet with a certain Mr Robbie Williams during his TV run in The X Factor did him no harm at all!
Once his solo tour ends on June 8, he’s doing some shows with fellow X Factor star JLS as a guest and what he describes as “a few other bits and pieces”. He’s going back home to Essex to continue writing his next album which he reckons will be released later this year.
“I like writing, I do it like a job, 9 to 5, Monday to Friday and chill out on my day off. I’m enjoying it a lot. And my friends and family (mum, dad, twin brother and younger sister) are brilliant. No one’s very different to the way they were before we get together and do our own thing like we always did.”
The 20-something from Essex with the big voice, bigger personality and big line in cheery banter struck a chord with audience and judges alike in the sixth series of The X Factor back in 2009 but finished off as runner-up to Joe McElderry rather than carrying off top honours on the night.
It hasn’t held him, back, though like Susan Boyle, the guy who finished second has ended up on top of the world. His first single, Please Don’t Let Me Go, debuted at No 1 and his eponymously titled first album went straight into the album charts at No 2.
Since then, he’s appeared on TV shows from Deal or No Deal and Soccer Aid to Christmas Top of the Pops and taken to the stage as part of last year’s X Factor Live tour.
He’s taken part in BT Comic Relief’s Desert Trek alongside Lorraine Kelly and Dermot O’Leary, an experience he describes as “overwhelming” and now, in 2011, he’s on the road with a show spectacular of his own that has been selling out all over, including a show at Dundee’s Caird Hall.
All that and his new single, aptly titled Busy and the fourth to be taken from his platinum-selling album, has just been released.
“It’s been really tough!” he admits, albeit with a laugh in his voice. “But I enjoy it I’ve been enjoying every moment!
“It’s very different from the X Factor tour because it really is just me and the band up there. There’s nowhere to hide, no one else to take the strain. But the reactions have been fantastic and it’s just so good to be doing it.”
Two years ago, Olly was a call centre energy adviser turned recruitment consultant who liked to sing in his spare time down his Essex local. For a long time, he says cheerfully, he was more interested in football than singing and having a good time with his folks he still lives at home with them and his mates.
“I loved football, it was a big hobby and I played at a decent level but after I got an injury, I used to get bored sitting around and that’s when I started to sing, do karaoke and stuff like that. The more I did it, the more I liked it.”
He sang all kinds of stuff, Presley and Sinatra covers, Motown, soul, funk and contemporary pop. He and a mate formed their own band The Small Town Blaggers and made a bob or two playing at weekend functions all over Essex.
“I thought I wanted to get into music and do something with my life so applying for the X Factor was really an experiment to see what I could do, to get their help and experience to see if it was right for me, if it was what I really wanted to do.
“I wasn’t that much into music at all seriously really but when The X Factor came along, everyone was watching it and I just felt I had something a bit different to offer. So I decided to go for it. It’s not often you come across an opportunity to change your life.
“It’s the best decision I ever made, real third time lucky stuff.”
It was at the third time of asking that Olly made it through into the X Factor big time. He auditioned once, failed; auditioned again, was turned down and then, after a period where he jacked in his job and went travelling, came back refreshed and had his third and final go.
He sang Stevie Wonder’s Superstition and hit the jackpot. Simon Cowell, not noted for dishing out fulsome praise, said it was the easiest “yes” he’d even given on the show.
Olly went on to reach the final, bypassing the infamous Jedward along the way, making a huge impression with his voice, the way he looked, his uncompromising and highly personal fashion style natty hat, skinny trousers and smart polo shirt with braces and his personality.
He was later signed to Cowell’s own label, Syco, and to Epic Records and from there, he hasn’t looked back.
He reckons, “The X Factor is an amazing thing but you have to be sure you want what it offers you. Some people think they want it but when they get there, they realise it isn’t really for them. I would definitely say to anyone who was interested to have a go but it’s not as easy as you think. It’s not everything great happening suddenly.
“You need a bit of luck but you also need to know who you are and what you want. If you’re determined, you believe you’re better than those around you, you have to have the courage to stand up and do it. Without that, you won’t make it, you’ll just stay where you are. I could’ve been back in Essex working but I just thought, ‘I can do this, it’s for me, I’ve got something for the UK market but I’ll have to do it my way.’ I can only be what I am and I don’t want to be any different.”