EXCLUSIVE: Olly Alexander chats to Downtown's Gary Myles
Find out who Olly was starstruck by during lockdown 🎉
Last updated 29th Apr 2021
Gary Myles caught up with Olly Alexander to chat about his brand-new single ‘Starstruck’.
This is start of a new era for Olly, as it's the first music since Years & Years became a Olly Alexander solo project.
Sharing the news last month on their Instagram, Years & Years explained that continuing as an 'Olly solo project' will involve Mikey Goldsworthy playing at the live shows and Emre Türkmen helping with writing/producing.
Chatting to Gary on zoom, Olly described this new sound: "We've had such an amazing ride, two albums, but in that time we just grew apart, we just changed as people. And we grew apart musically, so we wanted to do different things, we didn't fall out or anything, it just became a natural move forwards."
Speaking about keeping the Year & Years name going, Olly shared how he's still writing music for the band. "I just wasn't ready to stop writing Years and Years songs, I just want it to continue, so it's like a new chapter but its got a new energy to it even though its different."
You can watch their full interview here 👇
"Starstruck is about that feeling when you meet someone new, and you're just really overwhelmed by this person. You think about all these amazing possibilities, that kind of feeling, that yearning, moment of fantasy and love is not something I had been experiencing during lockdown."
One thing that was incredibly popular during lockdown was the hit Channel 4 drama 'It's a Sin' which coincidentally Olly starred in.
"When I read the script, I thought it was amazing, I just loved the story so much. I instantly connected to the characters, and I love Russell T Davis who makes the show, I love everything he's one. He's a genius, so I thought this is amazing."
Working on the show had a powerful influence on Olly's new sound, it was set in the 80s, when music was HUGE.
"I had such a great time listening to all that music again, as a cast we would listen to the 80s music in the mornings. The energy and the spirit in a lot of those songs, iconic dance floor songs from the Petshop Boys or New Order. I just love that energy so I've been trying to put a little bit of it into my new music for sure."
Check out Year & Years new single Starstruck 👇
Find out more about the Years & Years story so far:
Olly Alexander on the red carpet
Olly Alexander played Jason Banks in 2009 film Tormented. He had previously starred in TV movie Summerhill in 2009 and smaller roles in other TV series.
Olly Alexander at the premiere of Great Expectations
Olly played Herbert Pocket in Great Expectations, released in 2012. The film was Olly's first big hit. A year later, he went on to star in popular TV series Skins for two series as Jakob.
Years & Years formed
Years & Years formed in 2010, they are Olly Alexander, Mikey Goldsworthy & Emre Turkmen. The band formed when Emre and Mikey met on a website made for finding band members. Olly only joined after they heard him singing in the shower and liked his voice!
Years & Years release debut album
The band's debut album 'Communion' was released in July 2015. The album debut at number 1 in the UK Official Chart and outsold the rest of the top five combined in it's first week.
The band release 'King'
'King' was the band's first number one single and it went platinum in the UK.
Coachella
The band performed at Coachella Festival in 2016.
Years & Years at Glastonbury
Years & Years performed on the Pyramid Stage at Glastonbury Festival in 2019. During their set, Olly gave a powerful speech about LGBTQ+ history.
Years & Years at The Brit Awards
Years & Years have been nominated for a number of Brit Awards including: British Single Of The Year and British Group.
It's A Sin
Olly Alexander plays Ritchie in the 2021 Channel 4 drama It's A Sin created by Russell T Davies.
Years & Years is now a solo Olly Alexander project
In March 2021 Years & Years announced they would continue as an Olly Alexander solo project. Emre will work as a writer-producer alongside the band whilst Mikey will only join Olly for live performances. The trio have been together since 2010.