Sheridan Smith has teamed up with Ed Sheeran’s songwriter Amy Wadge on her second studio album.
The 37-year-old actress-and-singer is set to release her follow-up to her self-titled debut album on November 4, ‘A Northern Soul’, which saw her recruit songwriters to the stars, including the ‘Shape of You’ co-writer, James Bay producer Jimmy Hogarth and Eg White – famed for his work with Adele and Florence + The Machine.
Speaking about the personal collections of songs, Sheridan said: "I’ve loved getting back into the music.
"It feels great to be able to sing a song while telling a story in three minutes.
"I’ve been working with some amazing people who can get inside my head and help me write these great songs about my life."
The former ‘Gavin and Stacey’ star previously said she found it "quite weird" having to be herself on her new album.
Last year’s ‘Sheridan’ was comprised of covers from musicals, but she admitted it’s more challenging penning lyrics about her own life than portraying a character on screen or stage.
She spilled: "When you’re playing a character you immerse yourself into someone else. That’s the first thing I found quite weird about doing an album – having to be me."
The former ‘Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps’ star – who battled with extreme anxiety when her father passed away in December 2016 – said it had been like therapy channelling how she is feeling through her music.
She said: "That’s a way of releasing stress and stuff and you know, putting it into music so I can’t wait – it’ll be nice to do the two opposite things."
The record is expected to be focused on the ‘Cilla’ star’s real life experiences with songs set to be inspired by the tragic death of her dad Colin Smith, and her recent engagement to insurance broker Jamie Horn.
Sheridan landed her deal with East West Records after impressing with her vocal talents on stage and screen, with roles in musicals ‘Into The Woods’, ‘Little Shop of Horrors’ and ‘Legally Blonde’ and most notably when she played late singer and TV presenter Cilla Black in the 2014 TV series ‘Cilla’.
Cilla’s hit ‘Anyone Who Had A Heart’ was covered by Sheridan and was one of the highlights of the LP along with ‘City of Stars’ from ‘La La Land’, ‘And I Am Telling You I’m Not Going’ from ‘Dreamgirls’ and ‘For Forever’ from the contemporary Broadway smash ‘Dear Evan Hansen’.
Sheridan’s first record reached number nine on the UK chart and also earned her two Classical BRIT Award nominations.
Sheridan is also the subject of a brand new ITV documentary which will be televised on the album’s release date.
The lead single ‘Priceless’ is out now.
Sheridan’s ‘A Northern Soul’ tracklisting is as follows:
1.’A Northern Soul’
2. ‘Handle With Care’
3. ‘Priceless’
4. ‘Are You Just Sleeping?
5. ‘Remedy in the Melody’
6. ‘Rock Bottom’
7. ‘Why Can’t I Fall In Love’
8. ‘Ain’t That Funny’
9. ‘Sweetest of Thieves’
10. ‘Listen to the Rain’
11. ‘The One’
12. ‘Don’t Beg For Love’