7 fascinating facts about everyone's favourite Scotsman Lewis Capaldi
Get to know the 'Someone You Loved' star!
Lewis Capaldi is one of the most beloved artists around. The Scottish singer is known not only for hits like 'Someone You Loved', 'Before You Go' and 'Survive', but also for his down to earth, endearing personality.
Releasing his debut album 'Divinely Uninspired to a Hellish Extent' in May 2019, and his follow-up 'Broken By Desire To Be Heavenly Sent' four years later in May 2023, Lewis took a break before making a comeback to music. Now, he's on tour for Summer 2026 (including his Hyde Park gigs), and has promised to start working on his third album - so let's find out more about Lewis!
1) Lewis Capaldi was discovered through Soundcloud
His manager Ryan Walter found him after discovering his Soundcloud and YouTube accounts. Ryan told Music Business Worldwide: "I spent five months just looking for a special musical talent online. And that’s when I found Lewis.
"The bit I enjoy the least is sitting, trawling through SoundCloud and YouTube for seven hours a day, but that’s what I did. I would open – no joke – about 500 SoundCloud tabs at a time, listening to 10 seconds of each artist to get a read on it.
"About four and a half months into that search, I was in my mum’s house, and I stumbled across a recording of Lewis on SoundCloud singing into his iPhone in his bedroom. Immediately I thought: ‘This is amazing, I’m in.’"
2) If he wasn't famous, Lewis would be working as a fishmonger...
Yep, you read that right! In July 2020, Lewis admitted that if music hadn't worked out, he'd be working alongside his dad in his shop, KP’s Fresh Fish. "My Dad is a fishmonger," he explained. "He has a fish shop, one that sells fresh fish – KP’s Fresh Fish.
"So I’d probably work there. But I hate fish. I hate the smell of fish and I can’t look at prawns in the face."
3) Lewis Capaldi is a vegetarian
Lew told us all about his vegetarianism back in May 2019, admitting that going vegan was "too hard". He said: "I like animals. I enjoyed how they tasted for a very long time. But, now, I’ve decided just to not eat them. It’s not with a big agenda!"
However, in April 2020, Lewis blamed his veggie diet for a weight gain, telling the Daily Star: "I lost two stone at the end of 2018, and I thought, 'Now I'm slimmed down a bit I'll be a vegetarian, I'll keep the weight off and I'll be doing good for the environment'.
"But, oh my God, I got so fat and put all that weight back on as I was substituting meat and veg for the vegetarian option which was pizza and chips."
4) He's related to actor Peter Capaldi
He not only shares heritage and a surname with actor Peter Capaldi - they're actually related too! Best known for his roles in The Thick of It and Doctor Who, Lewis found out that Peter is his dad’s second cousin, and hired Peter to star in the heartbreaking music video for 'Someone You Loved'.
5) His debut album became the best-selling UK album in five years
Lewis released his debut album 'Divinely Uninspired to a Hellish Extent' in May 2019, spending nine weeks at Number 1 in the UK and 49 weeks in the charts altogether. It was the best-selling album in the UK - not only in its release year of 2019, but also in 2020.
6) Lewis Capaldi broke a record with his first headline tour
Lewis became the first artist ever to sell out an arena tour before his debut album was released. Pretty incredible!
7) He appeared in a Taylor Swift music video after a chance meeting
That's right - Lewis had a cameo role in the music video for 'Opalite' by Taylor Swift, after she was a last-minute addition to the guest line-up on The Graham Norton Show that he was booked on back in October 2025.
Appearing in the video as a photographer, Lewis performed 'Something in the Heavens' on the episode in which Taylor appeared as a guest - subsequently inviting all her fellow sofa-sitters to appear in the music video for the song that appears on her 12th album, 'The Life of a Showgirl'.
Graham actually explained this in further detail in an interview with GQ: "The show was fully booked. So we thought, 'We’re going to have to bump somebody'. Word came back from Taylor: 'No one must be bumped'. And that was a good show to be on because everyone ended up in the 'Opalite' music video. Everyone!"
And it seems that inspiration struck for Taylor while sat on the couch after co-interviewee Domnhall Gleeson jokingly suggested that he star in one of her videos one day - and you can see the instant the idea enters her mind at the very end of the music video, where she includes a clip of the interview moment.
READ MORE: 9 of Lewis Capaldi's biggest songs and the meanings behind them 🎶
Scroll through to see Lewis Capaldi's career timeline so far:
Career beginnings
Lewis learned to play the drums and guitar when he was just two-years-old, and started off singing in pubs at the age of nine. At 17, he decided to pursue a full-time career in music, and was discovered by his manager through his SoundCloud account.
2017: 'Bloom EP'
Lewis released his first EP 'Bloom' in October 2017, having worked on it with producer Malay and released 'Bruises' in March that year. He was then signed to Universal Music Group, and was long-listed for BBC's Sound of Music 2018, later supporting Rag'n'Bone Man on his European tour in November 2017.
2018: Supporting Niall Horan, festival appearances and 'Breach' EP
After supporting Rag'n'Bone Man, Lewis came to the attention of former One Direction star Niall Horan. The pair became friends and Lewis joined him as a support act for his 'Flicker World Tour' in March 2018, before going on tour as support for Sam Smith two months later.
Lewis took to the stage at various music festivals in the summer of 2018, playing Lollapalooza, Bonnaroo, Reading & Leeds Festival and TRNSMT. He also supported Kodaline in August 2018. Lewis then released his second EP 'Breach' in November 2018, containing songs 'Grace' and 'Someone You Loved', which became Lewis' breakthrough single and was Number 1 in the UK for seven weeks.
2019: Debut album, 'Someone You Loved' and BRIT Awards
Lewis released his debut album 'Divinely Uninspired to a Hellish Extent' in May 2019, and it became the best-selling UK album in five years. He was nominated for the hugely coveted Critics' Choice Award at the BRITs 2019 (which has now been renamed to the Rising Star Award) but lost out to Sam Fender.
In October 2019, 'Someone You Loved' reached Number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, which made him the first Scottish solo artist to top the US chart since 1981. The video for the song was released two months beforehand, and starred actor Peter Capaldi — who is a distant cousin of Lewis'. The singer was also announced as the opening act for Niall Horan's 'Nice to Meet Ya Tour', which was due to start in April 2020. In December 2019, Lewis recruited celebrities all over the world to help make a hilarious video to his song 'Bruises'.
2019: Headline tour
The album was certified Gold two weeks after it was released. Lewis' tour was announced before the release of his album, and he became the first artist ever to sell out an arena tour before his debut album was released.
Lewis also announced his mental health campaign for gigs, LiveLive. 'LIVELIVE' is a mental health support system, which is designed to help fans who have anxiety. The system offers them advice, time out and a gig buddy system is also available. The singer shared a number of Instagram Stories from his tour explaining what fans can expect from 'LIVELIVE'.
Lewis opened up to Grazia about mental health, discussing his scheme to alleviate anxiety at live music events. He said: "I want this to become a thing that can be at lots of shows. I was getting inundated with messages on Twitter and Instagram with all this stuff like 'I would love to come to your show but you know, I get panic attacks or I'm not very good in crowds'. Some people just don't want to come alone. And I just thought that it seemed like some people could miss the out on coming to shows, just because of their anxiety."
Due to this, the 'Hold Me While You Wait' singer announced LIVELIVE; an initiative ensuring that anxious fans would have appropriate support available at large shows, allowing them to feel more comfortable. The commendable scheme meant that for an extra 50p per ticket, fans would be able to receive on-site counselling, with a team available to meet fans at the door, escort them to their seats, and help those who want to leave the concert quickly later in the evening - avoiding busy crowds.
2020: Award wins
He was nominated at the Grammy Awards 2020 for the category of Song of the Year for 'Someone You Loved', unfortunately losing out to Billie Eilish for 'Bad Guy'. When his ex-girlfriend Paige Turley went into the Love Island villa, reports surfaced that his song 'Someone You Loved' was about her — but Lewis revealed it was about his late grandmother.
Lewis was nominated for four awards at the BRITs 2020: Male Solo Artist, Best New Artist, Song of the Year for 'Someone You Loved' and Album of the Year for 'Divinely Uninspired to a Hellish Extent'. He went on to win Song of the Year and Best New Artist.
2021: Social media break
In January 2021, Lewis announced he would be taking a break from social media to focus on creating his second album, the follow up to 2019's 'Divinely Uninspired to a Hellish Extent'. Lewis broke his social media silence in March 2021 to reflect on the previous year. He also announced he would be rescheduling his tour to 2022 due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.
2022: New music, live performances, TV appearances and album/tour announcements
In the update we were all waiting for, Lewis Capaldi revealed that his second album would be called 'Broken By Desire To Be Heavenly Sent' and would be released in May 2023. That's not all, as he also surprised fans with the announcement of a tour in January and February 2023.
Lewis then released 'Forget Me' on 9th September. It was the first single to come from his second album and the first music he has released in three years. On 12th September, he also released a music video for the song, which fans of Wham! might recognise, as it is a recreation of their 'Club Tropicana' video.
Lewis and good friend Niall Horan also created a documentary in 2022, which follows then as they travel around Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. Called Homecoming: The Road to Mullingar, the documentary was released on Prime Video on Friday 21st October 2022 and follows their road-trip and visit to Niall's hometown Mullingar.
Lewis also brought out his own range of frozen pizzas in 2022 — saying that lockdown inspired him to get into pizza making. He has two pizzas in the range, The Big Sexy Meat One and The Big Sexy Cheesy One.
2023: Breathtaking BRITs performance and waxwork
The BRIT Awards 2023 with Mastercard took place on 11th February, with Lewis taking to the stage to perform at the ceremony for the first time since 2020. He was also nominated for Song of The Year at the 2023 BRITs, for his song 'Forget Me', however lost out on the win to Harry Styles and his hit track 'As It Was'.
Also in 2023 Lewis came face-to-face with his waxwork at Madame Tussauds Blackpool, saying: "It is weird to look at myself like this, I wish I'd never had this haircut, but it is forever immortalised in this wax figure. I love it," he said. "For fans, I think it will be great, they can come and touch my bum!"
2023: Lewis releases his second album
Lewis released his highly anticipated second album 'Broken By Desire To Be Heavenly Sent' on 19th May 2023. It was the fastest-selling album of 2023, debuting at Number 1 in the UK and has been certified Platinum by the BPI with 300,000 sales in the UK. The album included a love song with Ed Sheeran called 'Pointless'.
2023: Lewis cancels commitments in lead-up to Glastonbury
At the beginning of June 2023, Lewis shared a statement announcing that he would be cancelling his upcoming commitments in order to prepare for his performance at Glastonbury Festival. In the statement, he wrote that he needed time to 'rest and recover' before the performance that was three weeks away. In the difficult message, he also revealed: 'I haven't been home properly since Christmas and at the moment I'm struggling to get to grips with it all.'
2023: Lewis performs at Glastonbury Festival
On Saturday 24th June 2023, Lewis took to the stage at Glastonbury Festival! He performed a selection of his greatest songs, including 'Forget Me', 'Pointless' and 'Before You Go'. Towards the end of Lewis' set, he began to struggle with his Tourette's Syndrome. Due to his tics, the singer struggled to sing his hit track 'Someone You Loved'. In an emotional moment, the adoring crowd began to sing the song at the top of their lungs, helping Lewis finish his set.
2023: He announces a break from touring
On 27th June, three days after his performance at Glastonbury, Lewis shared a statement to announce he would be 'taking a break from touring for the foreseeable future.' In the emotional statement, he thanked the festival, as well as his fans for 'singing along when I needed it and for all the amazing messages afterwards'.
Lewis didn't reveal when he would return to touring, saying: 'The truth is I'm still learning to adjust to the impact of my Tourette's and on Saturday it became obvious that I need to spend much more time getting my mental and physical health in order, so I can keep doing everything I love for a long time to come.'
2023: Lewis wins a National Television Award for Netflix documentary
Lewis Capaldi announced his Netflix documentary in March 2023 — which gives a raw and honest view of Lewis' career pressures and mental health struggles. The programme is called Lewis Capaldi: How I'm Feeling Now and was later released on Netflix on 5th April 2023.
In September 2023, it won the National Television Award for Best Authored Documentary. In a video message following his win, Lewis said: "Thank you so, so much if you voted, or even if you just watched the documentary. Thank you so much for voting and thank you for everyone who made it. A massive shoutout to my fellow nominees. You're all incredible. Making a documentary is not easy in the slightest, from what I've learned. It's an honour to be nominated alongside you. I'll see you soon."
He then shared a health update at the end of the year. Taking to Instagram, Lewis explained that he had been working with professionals to help manage his Tourette's and anxiety, adding that he has noticed a 'marked improvement' in his symptoms since taking a break. He also announced the release of 'Broken By Desire To Be Heavenly Sent' (Extended Edition)', which includes five extra songs.
2025: Lewis returns to the stage after nearly two years
In early 2025, Scottish singer Lewis Capaldi appeared on stage in Edinburgh at an intimate phone-free gig, where Tom Walker and Nina Nesbitt were performing. This was his first performance since his huge Glastonbury set in 2023. He performed six songs including 'Someone You Loved'.
Lewis then returned to the Glastonbury's Pyramid Stage in the summer, and performed several songs as a surprise performer. The singer told fans: "Second time's a charm on this one. I just wanted to come and finish what I couldn't finish last time." Contrasting to his 2023, Lewis reflected on his performance in August 2025, telling us that it was: "Maybe the best day of my life."
Although he wasn't announced to perform at BST Hyde Park, in July 2025, Lewis joined Noah Kahan on stage to sing 'Northern Attitude', normally sung with Hozier.
A few days after his surprise appearance at Glastonbury, Lewis then announced a tour for September 2025. Starting in Sheffield on 6th September, Lewis continued on to Aberdeen, Glasgow, London (for three shows), Manchester, Birmingham, Nottingham and Cardiff, ending his tour in Dublin, on 30th September. The tour completely sold out within a couple of hours of the tickets going on sale. Just days into his 2025 tour, Lewis then announced several summer dates for 2026.
2025: Lewis releases EP, complete with comeback single 'Survive'
In June 2025, Lewis made a huge return to music with a powerful track which delves into his struggles with mental health. 'Survive' dropped on Friday 27th, and Lew shared the track on Insta, alongside the caption: 'It's been a while.'
Then on 14th November, Lewis released his EP 'Survive', which featured four songs, 'Survive', 'Something In The Heavens', 'Almost' and 'The Day That I Die' — all of which were released as singles.
Also in 2025, Lewis met his very own LEGO Lewis likeness! The singer spent time at the LEGO Chalet of Play where he met the model made out of 41,254 bricks.
2026: Lewis released his first song of 2026
Lewis released his first song of 2026 on 17th April. The release of the song called 'Stay Love' coincided with his sold out performance at Madison Square Garden in New York City.