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Every Monday we will be bringing you interviews with unsigned UK or Ireland artists for Independent Music Monday. Recently we caught up with unsigned Bolsover singer Anthony Parsons to find out more…

Where are you from and how did you first get into music?
I’m from Bolsover in Derbyshire.

I started out by recording videos of me singing cover songs and posting them on YouTube. The first video I recorded was ‘Your Song’ by Elton John. I’ve always been musical and played guitar and keyboard as a kid but I never really believed that I could sing. People told me I could but there was always that self doubt.

One day, I just decided to do the song; it was a spontaneous thing and I did it with no music and just sang acapella. I sat with my laptop, recorded it with my webcam and uploaded it to YouTube.

I had some really positive comments and things just grew from there. I’m now writing and releasing my own original music.

Who were your musical influences when you were growing up and who are your influences now?
One of my biggest influences has always been Celine Dion. I’ve covered a couple of her songs, ‘I’m Alive’ and ‘Ashes’ from Deadpool 2.

My influences are people like Maroon 5, Olly Murs and Bruno Mars.
That’s the kind of style I aim for in my own music now.

How would you describe your sound?
Going back to my influences, I definitely see myself as a modern pop singer along the lines of Olly Murs and Maroon 5. I like to write and sing upbeat songs.

What is your latest release called and what was the influence behind it?
My new single is called “Doin’ It Right”. It’s a fast upbeat pop song and it’s basically about a guy who becomes infatuated with a girl who he meets on a night out.

What’s your local music scene like?
There’s a very vibrant and busy music scene around the Notts area but I don’t think there’s much of a platform for unsigned acts in North Derbyshire.

What do you have planned for the next 12 months? Any albums or festivals?
I’ve got my first CD coming out this year. All of my previous releases have been digital so I’m excited to have a physical CD coming out.

I also perform around 200 gigs a year but I’d love to get onto the festival circuit next year. That’s definitely one of my aims for 2020.

Is there anyone you’d love to collaborate with?
I’ve mentioned Olly Murs and Maroon 5 being big influences on me but I’d probably have to add Celine Dion here. It was my cover of her song, ‘I’m Alive’, that first got me noticed – my video of ‘I’m Alive’ was spotted by talent scouts in America and they invited me over there to do some shows.

It would be great to collaborate with her on that song.

Any funny stories surrounding your live performances?
Not really a funny story but one that really sticks out in my mind; I was standing behind the curtain at Fantasy Island waiting to go on stage. I remembered back to when I was a kid and I used to come here with my family. I’d watch all the singers on stage and I’d always wish one day I could be like them and do something like that and now here I was all these years later waiting to go on that very same stage. I wondered if there would be any kids out there looking up at me and wishing they would be here one day.

It was a very surreal but great moment.

What is the one thing that you want readers to know about you?
The fact that I do music for a living and that I’m doing something I always dreamed of and never thought possible. If this is something you want to do then you can achieve it, too.

You can find out more about Anthony on his website or via Apple Music, Facebook, Instagram, Spotify, Twitter or YouTube.