Niall Horan and Simon Cowell "enjoyed" Bradley Walsh selling more albums than Zayn Malik last year.
The 56-year-old presenter finds it "hysterical" that his LP ‘Chasing Dreams’ was the only UK debut to sell over 100,000 copies and go gold in 2016, and he received messages of congratulations from the ‘Pillow Talk’ hitmaker’s former One Direction bandmate and ex-record label boss as they were delighted by his record.
Bradley said of his success: "I just laughed when I found out.
"I thought it was hysterical. I am probably the oldest new artist Sony has ever signed.
"Niall Horan was sending me messages, laughing his head off. And I got big congratulations from Simon Cowell. He thoroughly enjoyed it."
The ‘Chase’ presenter believes his success stems from being an all-round entertainer and worries new artists try too hard to be cool rather than create catchy songs.
He told The Guardian newspaper: "It’s just about being an entertainer; it’s about having all those tools over the years to do all sorts: films, musicals, playing a bit of piano, running a quiz show – it just becomes part of the job.
"I like something you can hum along to. I think new artists sometimes miss the point … I can’t listen to rap music, it’s not my thing. They say that they’re the modern poets: of course they are, but it’s not for me.
"Who is the biggest DJ at the moment? I don’t even know what they’re doing, they’re taking two tunes and mashing them up together. They’re not even their tunes! I dunno. I don’t get it."
Bradley sold over 100,000 copies of his album in just four weeks and was delighted to be awarded a gold disc in recognition of his impressive sales.
He said: "I am totally blown away by this. Growing up, I was always in awe of anyone who received a gold disc. Thank you to everyone who took the time to listen to the album and especially to those who bought it."
Simon Cowell ‘enjoyed’ Bradley Walsh outselling Zayn Malik
