Sam Docherty is a 18 year old singer/songwriter/producer from Northamptonshire.
Sam is currently unsigned but is enjoying the freedom of being able to write, record and produce everything he releases.
I caught up with the young rising star to chat about his music, who influences him and what he hopes to achieve in the future.
Did you always know you wanted to become a singer?
Musician, yes… singer no. Singing was never something that felt natural to me, I just did it to go with my music. I thought about finding someone who is primarily a singer but I also loved songwriting and wanted my songs to come from me rather than someone else.
What are your earliest memories of music?
I’ve always been surrounded by music as my family are very musical. I first started playing drums when I was 7 years old and went to a music school to play with others alike. I kinda grew out of playing the drums after a year or so and moved on to play the guitar because it was the most poplar instrument to play in my school year. Whilst I loved the guitar my dad played piano and I always used to watch him and try and play along. So I eventually started learning songs on the piano by ear as I couldn’t then and still can’t read music now.
Describe your sound in three words?
Haha I don’t really have a set sound at the moment it varies.
Who are your musical influences?
Tom Fletcher, Ed Sheeran, Coldplay, John Mayer, Alex Goot, Boyce Avenue and Twenty One Two.
Who is your favourite band/singer at the moment?
Twenty One Two. They’re a band that do a similar thing to me. They record everything themselves are unsigned and produce all their work… Very inspiring!
What is currently your favourite song?
Probably one of Ed Sheeran’s old tracks – “Let It Out”.
Do you have any celebrity crushes?
Hmm Vanessa Hudgens.
Apart from music what other things do you enjoy?
I go skateboarding a lot so if I’m not in the studio, I’m probably skateboarding somewhere.
Would you ever consider entering a talent show such as the X Factor?
No there’s so many talented singers that go on there and I wouldn’t necessarily class myself as a singer… just a musician. Another reason is I’d prefer to make a career out of music off my own back.
Would you rather have a number 1 single or win a BRIT?
Number one of course!
What would be your dream venue to perform at?
I like making music videos at different venues. Wembley stadium would be awesome!
If you could change one thing about the music industry what would you change?
I would change how much a musician can earn from royalties. I retweeted a tweet the other day from James Blunt who is just one of many earning a ridiculous royalty £00.0004499368 per stream.
Do you think free streaming is damaging the industry?
In some ways… I think we should maybe have to pay a small subscription to stream so it supports the bands/artists living.
What would you like to achieve in the next ten years?
In the next ten years I’d love to be able to make my own music as a career and have enough supporters that enjoy my music and want to buy my tracks.
You can listen to Sam’s new single ‘U’ here:
‘U’ is available to download now.
You can follow Sam on Twitter @SamDocherty_