Signing off!
That’s all from George Ezra
How much control do you have over videos and album covers?
Joshua Rooney asks:
Artists nowadays are becoming more in control of their “brand”. How much creative control do you have over your music videos, album covers etc, and who/what are influencing you and inspiring you in this direction?
Guardian contributor At the end of the day, I think any artist has the final say of what's going on in and around their name - that's from music to artwork to appearances. It really helps when you have an idea and a vision of what you want it to look like - it gets confused when the person at the head of the operation doesn't know quite what it is they're aiming to achieve. The thing that's inspiring me the most at the moment is pushing myself to be as honest as I can be. It takes a bit of a running jump, but I think it's worth it.
What is the relationship between you and your brother, Ten Tonnes, like? Would you ever consider going on tour together?
Guardian contributor I love him to bits. It's funny because he's doing things that I would have done four years ago, but it's a lot more exciting to hear that he's doing it. When you're in the middle of it you're too involved to take in what's happening, whereas when I hear what he's doing, I get very proud.
Who is your favourite rapper?
jajones7 asks:
Who is your favourite rapper and why?
Guardian contributor I really do appreciate listening to Kendrick Lamar - I think he's a very inspiring person. His work ethic, his approach to producing music in particular, is really impressive. There's also a chap I've been enjoying listening to recently called Joey Bada$$ who's based in NYC, he's just released a record that's a really good insight into living in Trump's America.
Hello George, you’re one of my favourite artists ever! I just wanted to know: where did the idea for the journal come from?
Guardian contributor So there's a comedian called Richard Herring, and he has committed to writing out a journal entry of sorts every day, which is amazing and very inspiring. Unfortunately I can't commit to doing it daily, I don't think I'd be able to keep it up, but the idea of writing honestly, at length, once a week, really appeals to me. And it's also brilliant because I get to be involved with some creative writing once a week, which is a good practice, I think. I'm glad you're enjoying it, thank you!
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AxelleIsInParadise asks:
What’s your favourite song on the new album and why?
When you’re in Belgium fancy going for beers and chocolates?
Guardian contributor There's one song called Hold My Girl, which kinda still affects me now when I hear it the same way as it did when I first wrote it, which is always a good sign. And the opening song on the album is Pretty Shining People, and it's the perfect way to open a record, I've got a place in my heart for that song. And beers and chocolates - why not!
ohmymymy asks:
Who’s your favourite Beatle? Favourite Beatles song?
Guardian contributor Favourite Beatle... I'm gonna say George Harrison. And song - the one I love the most is Paperback Writer, because I distinctly remember being about 14 and hearing it for the first time. I couldn't believe what I was hearing, and kept on playing it.
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RachelMurray2 asks:
What made you wait so long to release new music? Did you have to travel around to get more inspiration like your first album or did you just relax and enjoy playing festivals?
Guardian contributor I went on a few different adventures. At first you have to figure out what it is you want to write about and that takes a bit of time, and also there was a naivety on my part of just how long these things can take, but I can't tell you how happy I am that I finally get to announce it and share it with everyone.
richardyendell asks:
Pork pie or Scotch egg?
Guardian contributor Ooh, scotch egg. There's a pub in Shepherds Bush called the Defector's Weld, and the scotch eggs are just... noteworthy, they're fantastic.
'I've recently started a podcast – guests include Craig David and Ed Sheeran'
franhunny asks:
Any non-music plans for the future?
Guardian contributor Yes indeed - I've recently started recording a podcast where I sit down and talk to other musicians. There's a lot of podcasts I listen to that are comedians talking to other comedians, and it's very inspiring to hear them talk as candidly as they do about the world of performance, and it helped make me come to terms with performing myself. They're very frank and honest with it, and it's really healthy, I think. So I thought, I want to see if I can do the same with musicians, to see if they'll open up as much. There's smoke and mirrors in music, which I think is necessary - I like that there's some mystery to music - but it's also been a real pleasure to sit down and talk to people about the highs and the lows of what they love to do, which is perform. Guests so far include Hannah Reid from London Grammar, Rag'n'Bone Man, Craig David, Mr. Ed Sheeran... I think I'm sitting down with Elton John in the not-too-distant future. And hopefully I'll be releasing the first one within a month, and I can't wait for people to hear it.
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TheShiftyShadow asks:
Do you prefer building sandcastles or snowmen?
Guardian contributor Much prefer building snowmen, I think probably because I haven't been able to do it very often, so there's a treat element to it. But also, whilst the idea of a white sand beach and the ocean is very appealing, I hate getting sand all over me. (Though I heard a great life hack recently - if you've been in the sea and you're covered in wet sand, apparently a bit of talcum powder helps dry the sand out and it falls off.)
GeoffreyFlynn asks:
Top or bottom? Bunk, that is.
Guardian contributor On the tour bus there are 16 bunks, and they're all on top of the other, the whole way down the bus. I always opt for the far left, at the back of the bus, on the top, because it's the furthest away from the party if you want to get your head down. I'm not a giant, but I'm also not small, and waking up and having to go from lying on the ground to standing up as the first thing of the day is really not the best, so I'd rather jump down out of the bunk than jump up.
Nepthsolem asks:
How do you keep your skin so soft and youthful?
Guardian contributor Only recently did I discover that washing your face helps! It was one of those things I kind of bypassed most of my adolescent life, and it really does help. It's no potions or lotions, it's just giving your face a wash. No flannel, just my hands. But I'd recommend using your own hands.
Paperbookworm asks:
How would you describe your character?
Guardian contributor I think as long as somebody else is in control, I'm very relaxed and I enjoy letting things pan out the way they naturally unfold, but as soon as I'm in a situation where people are looking at me to be the leader, I do it, I can do it, but I'm rarely relaxed with it, I'm quite by the book. I'm rarely late for things, so when I am I don't handle it very well, but on the whole I'm a relatively chilled out chap.
Will we see you at Glastonbury again?
Feverfew asks:
Where have you been, you lovely young man? And will we see you at Glastonbury again? Your last performance there was stunning.
Guardian contributor Thank you very much. I hope whenever possible I get to play at Glastonbury, it's one of my favourite places to play. It's frustrating because often people that have been to Glastonbury insist on telling you how amazing it is if you haven't been, and unfortunately after going once you do become one of those creatures, it is a beautiful place. I know this is the aim of every festival, but it really does feel like its own town, and it really doesn't feel like there's anybody there that isn't there to escape for a second. I love it.
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YamiKuriboh asks:
Do your close family call you “George E boy”?
Guardian contributor They do indeed. They also call me Gorgeous George - my dad does...
unclearleo asks:
Have you ever thrown your guitar to the floor with the words “nem tudod kezelni az igazságot”?
Guardian contributor Not to date! But we are at the dawn of a whole new record, and who knows!
OohNaNaWhatsMyName asks:
What’s your opinion on the new layout of the Guardian?
Guardian contributor I was absolutely blown away! I think it makes sense - to me it feels a little more accessible, a bit less daunting. I did pick up a copy two days ago.
Michael__Patterson asks:
Your success has only relatively recently become international – have you found that the international music industry differs from that of Hungry? If so, how?
Guardian contributor I don't know about Hungary specifically, but it definitely differs from country to country - the importance of festivals over concerts, or radio appearances over TV appearances. But I think the thing that stands out is that no matter where you go, live performances are still at the heart of it all - it kind of doesn't work without that, which I like.
LeaderOfTheFree asks:
You’re playing at Westonbirt Arboretum this year – it’s a beautiful place to play. How much does the venue influence the type of concert it will be, if at all? Fancy a pint after the show?
Guardian contributor When there's a venue that stands out or has a twist, it definitely affects the kind of magic of the show. Westonbirt is unlike other festivals because we will be in the middle of the forest, so it'll be hard to escape a fairytale atmosphere. I've played all sorts of strange places - a botanical garden in Brussels, which was amazing. I remember a mouse ran across the stage, which I quite liked.
Regarding the pint - why not!
'I hadn't been to Budapest before I wrote the song'
SteveinSE13 asks:
Have you been to Budapest and did you like it?
Guardian contributor Yes and yes! I hadn't been to Budapest before I wrote the song. For the first record, I travelled around Europe for a month to write it and Budapest was the only city I planned to visit that I didn't make it to - I got very drunk watching the Eurovision final in Malmo and missed my train. So Budapest is a song that is a list of things I don't have that I'd give up for somebody - a fictional list. I first went there - we did a thing with a few fans where we got the train from Bristol to Budapest, and we stopped in London, Brussels, Paris, Munich, Budapest, and we picked up fans along the way and stayed on the same train, and I did a gig in every city we stopped at along the way - including Budapest. I was extremely tired when I got there as I'd been enjoying the trip a lot...! Since then I've seen people from the train at other gigs, which is really sweet, and you really recognise them because we'd go for lunch with them.
DWFan1 asks:
What’s your favourite Pixar film?
Guardian contributor I'm a Toy Story boy. I love it, and I think they've done an amazing job of not killing it even though they've committed to continuing on the story. I properly believed it as a kid, loved it. The original has got to be the best. I think I was more of a Woody guy than a Buzz guy as a kid.
OohNaNaWhatsMyName asks:
When was the last time you shaved?
Guardian contributor Last night! I actually have to shave more than everybody else to get rid of the adolescent fluff that grows on my face. I think if I wanted to do Movember this year, I'd have to start now and give myself a headstart.
MollyMeakin asks:
I love your work, not only because of the lyrics and the music but also because of The Voice. And I always wonder, how come someone in his mid-20s sounds so mature? Experience? Lots of whisky and cigars? Genes? Gravel? God?
Guardian contributor Thank you, that's very kind. I think when other people hear my voice, it seems to shock them that I would sound like that but I never really put that much thought to it. I remember reading the back cover of a Leadbelly record and it said that his voice was so big you had to turn your record player down. I loved that idea so I tried to sing with a deep voice, and I could. I didn't ask any questions - I just carried on.
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What music did your parents pass on to you?
mrsintolerant asks:
My son, aged 26, introduced me to your music and I absolutely love it so feel he’s passed something on to me. But my question is, what music/artists did your parents pass on to you that you love and so influenced you?
Guardian contributor That's very kind of you, thank you very much. I was very fortunate to grow up in a house that was constantly playing different music in different rooms, and when my parents found out that I had found an interest in writing lyrics in particular, they recommend I listen to Bob Dylan. There was a lot of Van Morrison in the house and Billy Bragg, and as a result of listening to Dylan I went on to listen to a lot of Woody Guthrie and American artists. But at the same time, in the UK, there was a lot of indie bands, so that's what me and my friends were listening to, and I loved it - the Arctic Monkeys, the Kooks, Maximo Park, all of that, plus some amazing local bands.
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Scott McLennan asks:
Your name is an anagram of “zero reggae”. Does this reflect your own feelings towards the genre?
Guardian contributor Absolutely not! I love nothing more than a bit of reggae - in moderation. I went through a little stage at school when people used to pass around awful remixes of anything with a reggae twist. I was a bit 4-4-2, I liked Bob Marley and the Wailers.
harveyWinston asks:
When you were at school did the teachers sometimes get your name the wrong way round when taking the register?
Guardian contributor Ezra is in fact my middle name, so Barnett is my surname, so that was never a problem. I didn't go as George Barnett in music as there was a few of them around, and Ezra has a Z in it so it's much cooler! There was a few PE teachers that just called me Barnett (and my dad's a PE teacher, but he didn't do it).
rdasilva16 asks:
Hi Geoff, what’s the funniest moment you’ve had while touring?
Guardian contributor There was a show very early on in Exeter where I had my eyes closed and the whole audience started laughing at me and I didn't know why, and it turned out that a young Spanish woman had got on stage and was grinding up against me, and I hadn't seen. She was escorted out of the venue, which I thought was quite harsh. So if she's out there, tell her I found it quite funny.
George is with us now…
… and ready to answer your questions
Post your questions for George Ezra
“It’s not very cool to be happy,” George Ezra told BBC Radio 1’s Annie Mac last year. “I’m going to bring it back!” He has every reason to be – after breaking out in 2013 with the song Budapest, his debut album, Wanted On Voyage, became one of the top 10 biggest selling albums in the UK in both 2014 and 2015.
It’s easy to see why listeners fell for Ezra’s loping folk-pop and irrepressible personality, endlessly documented through social media – so much so that Ezra banned himself from the sites for two years to write album two. The fruits of his hiatus finally emerged last June with Don’t Matter Now, a lilting, ska-tinged call to shut out the bad news and focus on the good stuff. He later explained that he was concerned about a generation exacerbating their anxiety by obsessing over rolling news. And he’s not just proposing his songs as a salve – on tour last year, he donated £3 from every ticket sale to mental health charity Mind.
As Ezra gears up to release his new album Staying at Tamara’s on March 23, and with new single Paradise out on Friday, you can ask him about them or anything else in a live webchat from 12.30pm GMT on Friday 19 January – post your questions for him in the comments below.
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Thank you very much for joining us and writing in! Hopefully you're all well and happy and the record that I've been working on for the last year or so is now available to pre-order, and I hope that you enjoy it. Thanks to the Guardian for having me, and don't go changing! All the best, George x