Singer JAMIE MILLER talks getting out of Cardiff, coming out and breaking out

Cardiff lad and 2017 Voice bronze medallist Jamie Miller has gone places in every sense since his onscreen moment. His streaming stats will fry your calculator and he’s tapped into the globally lucrative K-pop market too, with songs on Korean TV show Snowdrop. As he gears up for a bumper 2022, Carl Marsh spoke to him.

You’re a Cardiff born-and-bred who made the leap, after appearing on The Voice, to move out to Los Angeles – alone, and at such a young age! Are you still living there now?

So, I’ve relocated back to London right now as I’ve just brought out a new single, I Lost Myself In Loving You, and we’re about to start doing some European promos. LA is very different because, being from Cardiff, you’re subject to only a small minority of people. And then moving over to the capital of the entertainment industry was a scary thing for me. But I feel like everything’s gone well.

“Cardiff will always hold a special place in my heart, but I had to flee the nest to achieve my ambitions”

Jamie Miller

When were you last in Cardiff?

I was there for Christmas for the first time in three years, which was mad, but it was lovely to be back in my hometown.

Do you miss living here?

As a kid, I had the hopes and ambitions to be successful. Cardiff will always be my home with my family and friends there. But at the same time, I feel like once you have a dream to be a singer, you have to go out of Cardiff to try and achieve those dreams. So, Cardiff will always hold a special place in my heart, but at the same time, I can’t stay there; I had to flee the nest to achieve those ambitions. And that’s exactly what I’m doing right now. So, I’ll be back!

I Lost Myself In Loving You is, lyrically, a tale of blind love, and seemingly very personal to you. What was it like sitting down with two other people – the song’s co-writers Sierra Deaton and Jon Hume – and just opening your heart to them?

I feel like that’s the music industry, mate. You go into a studio, and you almost have to pour your heart out to whoever’s in the room. And for me, I felt I felt like an immediate connection with them both, writing about something so personal.

I went through a tough little breakup in 2020, ‘21. And yeah, Sierra – bless her heart! – was my little diary. And I just blurted out all of these words, and I Lost Myself In Loving You came to fruition.

So now I’m really excited – it’s been a whirlwind of a journey, and this is the first time that I’m releasing a song and feeling like this is really going to connect.

What was the catalyst for “blurting out all of these words” as you put it?

I came out as bisexual last year. And that alone was one of the most challenging things to do. I found myself falling in love with a guy for the first time. And yeah, it was one of those situations where I was like – it is what it is.

I wasn’t embarrassed about it – I was at first, as I was nervous. I had all these thoughts going through my head on the day. And then, unfortunately, I found out the guy was with someone anyway, and I was like, “why did I do this!” [laughs]. So it taught me a side of myself – that whether I fall in love with a girl or a guy, it’s opened a world of possibility and that you can fall for anybody if they make your heart skip a beat.

I Lost Myself In Loving You is out now via Atlantic. Jamie’s debut album is planned for release later this year.

Info: www.jamiemillermusic.com

words CARL MARSH