Tom Chaplin paid a heartfelt tribute to his family while performing at The London Palladium on Wednesday night (17.05.17).
The former Keane frontman – who embarked on a solo career after the rock band went on a hiatus in 2014 – thrilled his fans as he presented his debut solo album ‘The Wave’ on stage as part of his ‘Carried by the Wave’ tour.
The 38-year-old singer, who released the record in 2016, confessed that he couldn’t be more excited about the opportunity to be back on stage and play in such an illustrious venue.
He shared: "This is the first time I’ve ever set foot inside these hallowed walls. I’m so excited. I’m so excited I’m doing the show here tonight. I do want your help, you know, I want you to swing and clap and sing along all night."
The star opened his show with the powerful track ‘Still Waiting’ and admitted that he had "a lot of nervous energy tonight".
However, the stage fright didn’t get the better of him as he impressed his thrilled fans with an almost two-hour long performance.
For Tom – who has battled with drug addiction in the past – the night was a very special moment in his life as the show was attended by the people most important to him.
He said: "I’ve already seen some familiar faces here tonight. I’ve even seen my Mum and Dad."
The singer then shared a heart-wrenching message to his beloved wife Natalie Dive – whom he married in June 2011 and has a three-year-old daughter with.
He declared. "One very important and special person is here tonight, my very long suffering wife. And see, this is a night of celebration, I’m not gonna remind her of all the terrible things that happened and I put her through. I wrote this next song as a kind of apology to her, it’s a love letter to her."
Tom then performed a duet with alternative pop singer JONES – whose real name is Cherie Jones and who released her debut single ‘Indulge’ in 2015 – to sing his album track ‘Solid Gold’.
Later on, the ‘Nothing In My Way’ hitmaker declared how much he missed being on stage and opened up about the "darkest places" that he had found himself in. He said: "I’m just enjoying this, I’m just taking it in, cause you know, these things don’t come around that often. You might think about the darkest times and the darkest places I found myself in. This feels so far away – but I know it’s dark in here. Metaphorically speaking, this feels so far away from that, it’s a room full of joy and happy faces."
Tom then disclosed that the love for his family helped him to finally overcome his drug addiction.
The track ‘Worthless Words’ describes how Tom’s little daughter helped him to eventually "step back from the edge".
He said: "It’s a song about finding myself in the worst place – which I did with my problems. But having that small soft voice of my little daughter saying ‘Daddy, step back from the edge’ – I just wanted to articulate that in a song."
The Hastings-born star also indulged his fans with some of Keane’s greatest hits such as ‘Silenced by the Night’, ‘Souvereign Light Café’, ‘Somewhere Only We Know’ and ‘Everybody’s Changing’.
Tom Chaplin’s heartfelt tribute to family at London gig
