James Arthur wants to ditch pop for a rock ‘n’ roll band.
The 33-year-old singer/songwriter revealed he is passionate about rock and hip-hop but feels he has been unfairly labelled as a pop star.
He said: “I’m passionate about rock and hip-hop. Once you have a hit which is an acoustic pop ballad, people put you in a box which is hard to get out of.
“I’ve been chipping away, trying to introduce guitars because the radio stations in all honesty don’t want to play rock or that kind of thing. If I could, I’d probably drop the whole solo pop thing and start a band
James also admitted that writing about his relationships can be challenging.
He and longtime girlfriend Jessica Grist – who started dating in 2012 when she was a backing dancer on ‘The X Factor’ – recently ended their relationship but James admitted he will continue to write about love as that’s what people like hearing from him.
He told The Sun newspaper’s Bizarre column: “The challenge is, people like storytelling from me, the love stuff, but it’s trying to work out how I can dress it up in a cooler way.
“I put a lot of myself into the music, a lot of my story, but the hope is it will help other people too.
“I’ve never wanted to involve people in my personal life, even though I know it comes with the territory, but I’m fine about putting myself out there.
“I’m a big ambassador for mental health.
“Uncomfortable as it makes me feel to talk about my personal struggles, I’ve seen how helpful it can be so I’ll continue to do it, whether through music or interviews.”