Gerry Cinnamon: Get to know the Scottish singer
From his biggest songs to his tours
Gerard Crosbie, or as we fondly know him, Gerry Cinnamon, is a Scottish singer-songwriter known for singing with his native accent and having particularly 'honest' lyrics. With hits such as 'Sometimes' and 'Belter', the 40-year-old has proved incredibly popular since his debut album back in 2017.
As he is now one of the UK's biggest independent artists, having taken to the stage at TRNSMT and Leeds & Reading Festival 2024, we're taking a look at some of Gerry Cinnamon's biggest songs, albums and the best moments from his latest tour. The Scottish singer has released two Top 3 albums, 'Erratic Cinematic' and 'The Bonny', and six Top 20 songs in Scotland, including 'Belter', 'Canter' and 'Where We're Going'.
Gerry Cinnamon - 'Canter'
'Canter' was a big hit for Gerry reaching Number 1 in the Scottish Chart. Released on 22nd June 2019, Gerry described the song as: "an upbeat tune."
Going on to explain: "It's just one of those tunes I try and drop some knowledge bombs. When I was a wee guy I was always trying to look for a bit of gold in a song, for a bit of advice, so I think it's me just talking to myself."
The official lyric video of 'Canter' has now had over 18 million views on YouTube since its release in April 2020.
Gerry Cinnamon - 'Sun Queen'
'Sun Queen', featured on Gerry's second album 'The Bonny' and was the second song to be released, following 'Canter'. The song reached Number 2 in Scotland.
Gerry Cinnamon - 'Where We're Going'
'Where We're Going' is the fifth song to come from Gerry's album 'The Bonny', which was released two months after the song. Gerry announced the new music on his socials along with a short black and white video, telling his fans, 'Where We’re Going 🔥 Out midnight Cheers x.'
Gerry released an audio video to YouTube on release, which gained millions of views, followed by the lyric video which includes grainy black and white footage.
Gerry Cinnamon's album 'The Bonny'
Gerry Cinnamon's most recent album 'The Bonny' was released in April 2020, and was another big success for the Scottish singer. 'The Bonny' includes several popular songs by Gerry including 'Canter', 'The Bonny', and 'Where We're Going'.
Gerry revealed details of the new album on Instagram saying, 'New Album. The Bonny. Out Now.🔥 Hope you’re all safe and looking after each other. We’ll get a proper sing song again once this all blows over. Much love. Cheers x.'
Despite being in the middle of lockdown when it was released, the album went to Number 1 in the UK. 'The Bonny' is available in multiple formats, in addition to the usual digital options. There are four different types of vinyl, CD and cassette!
Gerry Cinnamon's debut album 'Erratic Cinematic'
In 2017, Gerry released his debut album 'Erratic Cinematic' which reached Number 17 on the UK Albums Chart and included the singles 'Belter' and 'Sometimes'.
A couple of years after the album's release it became a Silver-selling album and Gerry celebrated the moment by posting on Instagram: 'No bad for a DIY record that only went into the shops last week. No label. No media. No problem. Just folk digging the tunes. That’s what it’s all about. That means it’s real.' (sic)
The singles 'Sometimes' and 'Belter' have since both been certified 2x Platinum.
To mark the album's fifth anniversary, Gerry reflected on how he made the album from his Glasgow flat.
He commented: "The majority of the album was recorded in my wee flat in the East End, the other half in the studio.
"I bought an old Mac and some mics and stayed up for months trying to get my head around using a Mac for the first time, gainstaging, mic placement, room acoustics, compression, reverb decays, delay sync, automation, sampling, mixing, mastering and everything in between."
Is Gerry Cinnamon on tour?
Gerry Cinnamon is not on tour at the moment.
He has, however, had a busy last couple of years. He played a number of gigs and festivals in 2021, as like many artists Gerry had to put his live gigs on hold temporarily due to the Coronavirus pandemic - however he later delighted fans when he confirmed 11 dates for 2021, including dates in Glasgow, Newcastle and London (including rescheduled shows).
Following on from his 2021 show, Gerry also embarked on a 2022 tour, heading around the UK and Ireland.
On 5th November 2021, Gerry delighted fans by announcing an extra tour date at Glasgow's Hampden Park Stadium on Sunday 17th July 2022. Gerry said: 'Hampden round two. Finally happening. The Saturday’s been sold out for years so about time I announced an extra night. Some line-up. Some weekend.'
He wrapped up the tour with two huge homecoming shows on 16th and 17th July that saw 100,000 fans flock to Hampden Park to be part of the gig.
Gerry took to Instagram after the shows and wrote: 'Quiet weekend. 😂 Didn’t think it would be that emotional tbh. Not easy to process let alone put into words. The vibe and volume was indescribable. Hope all had a good time and a proper sing song cos that’s what it’s all about.'
Did he play at TRNSMT?
He most certainly did! The singer performed at Glasgow Green's TRNSMT in July 2024. He joined the incredible line-up of Liam Gallagher, Calvin Harris, Sugababes, Rick Astley, Garbage and The Last Dinner Party.
The news was announced on 21st November 2023, with Gerry writing: 'C u sn.x' (sic). For those who need a hand understanding, that translates to 'see you soon'. It was just days later that he also announced he would be headlining both Leeds and Reading Festival 2024.
Gerry Cinnamon breaks Hampden Park record
Not only were his Glasgow shows amazing to watch, the Hampden Park shows also broke a record as he became the first independent act, as well as the first Scot, to sell out multiple nights at Hampden Park.
The gig saw 50,000 people fill the stadium each night in the sold-out shows, bringing in triple the number of fans as Calvin Harris' show at the stadium a few weeks before.
'Live at Hampden Park' album
Gerry's fans can relive 2022's Hampden Park shows thanks to a live album, which has now been released. Titled 'Live At Hampden Park', the live album includes songs such as 'Dark Days', 'Sun Queen', Ghost', 'Where We're Going' and the platinum-certified singles 'Sometimes' and 'Belter.'
The album also features some new music, including previously unreleased track 'Sacred', a tribute to Gerry's hero Billy Connolly with his own rendition of 'I Wish I Was In Glasgow' and fan favourite 'Discoland.'
Now take a look at artists who found fame through social media:
Justin Bieber
A young Justin Bieber had been uploading covers of songs when a talent manager discovered him through YouTube in 2008. Since then he has become a super successful artist around the world with hits like 'Baby', 'Never Say Never' and, of course, who could forget the summer hit of 2017 'Despacito'. More recently, we've enjoyed hits like 'Holy', 'Lonely' and 'Hold On'.
As well as an amazing musical career. Bieber has a number of clothing ranges and he even landed his own docu-series with YouTube.
The Weeknd
The Weeknd, real name Abel Makkonen Tesfaye, is known for his hits, 'Can't Feel My Face' and 'Starboy', and 'Blinding Lights, however before that he made his name on YouTube using the name The Weeknd.
After releasing a nine-track mixtape in 2011, Abel landed his first ever record deal, signing with Republic Records in 2012.
Shawn Mendes
Shawn Mendes started to gain popularity on the social media app Vine by posting song covers. After getting attention online he got his first record deal and his success has continued from there.
Shawn has since had hits such as 'Treat You Better' and 'There's Nothing Holdin' Me Back', and even had some huge hits with his former girlfriend, singer Camila Cabello!
Calvin Harris
He might be one of the highest-paid DJs around the world, but it wasn't always that way. Calvin Harris was discovered after he posted his solo recordings on MySpace. His recordings were discovered by Mark Gillespie, a talent booker for the dance-festival firm Global Gathering. Mark gave Calvin his first signing.
Calvin has now gone on have hits such as 'Summer', 'Feels', and 'Acceptable In The 80s', and of course, he's worked with major artists such as Dua Lipa, Rihanna and Katy Perry.
Halsey
Before teaming up with The Chainsmokers for their hit 'Closer', Halsey had success on social media. The 29-year-old singer started out by posting videos to Tumblr and YouTube. Now she has had hits including 'Him & I' with G-Eazy.
5 Seconds Of Summer
Australian group 5 Seconds of Summer were YouTube celebrities, before seeing success in the charts. The group posted videos of themselves covering songs and later toured with One Direction. 5 Seconds of Summer have now have four albums and three top 10 singles in the UK including 'She Looks So Perfect'.
Dave
Before becoming a household name in the music scene, rapper Dave actually started by releasing music on different musical platforms including YouTube! The singer then got his big break when he performed on SB.TV in 2015.
Of course, since then, Dave has taken the world by storm, releasing hits like 'Location', 'Streatham', and 'No Words'.
Troye Sivan
Australian singer Troye Sivan rose to fame as a YouTube personality, he later had teamed up with DJ Martin Garrix on his song 'There for You' and enjoyed a top 5 EP in 2015 called 'Wild'.
Charlie Puth
Charlie Puth saw initial success from his videos on YouTube. Charlie's YouTube channel had comedy videos and acoustic covers. Since being discovered Charlie has gone on to have three albums and a string of top 10 hits including 'Marvin Gaye' featuring Meghan Trainor, 'Attention' and 'Summer Feelings' with Lennon Stella.
Carly Rae Jepsen
Canadian singer Carly Rae Jepson competed on various TV talent shows, before she reached mainstream success after the release of her song 'Call Me Maybe'. The song was catapulted to the Number 1 spot when Justin Bieber tweeted about it, as well as uploading a video to YouTube of himself and Selena Gomez miming the lyrics as the song played.
Justin's manager, Scooter Braun, soon signed Carly to a record deal, with the singer later releasing huge bops like 'I Really Like You', 'Run Away With Me' and 'Cut to the Feeling'.
KSI
Rapper KSI, now known for huge hits like 'Don't Play' and 'Holiday', actually started out on YouTube, with his accounts dating back to 2008! The rapper became popular on the streaming platform for a slightly different reason, however, uploading gaming–commentary videos from 2014!
Megan Thee Stallion
Megan Thee Stallion built up a following by posting her freestyle raps on social media. She became hugely popular with her fanbase and quickly racked up plays on Soundcloud and YouTube which led to her signing a record deal in 2018.
Saweetie
Rapper Saweetie got discovered by posting her rap videos on Instagram, where she now has over 13 million followers. In 2016 she rapped over the beat for 'My Neck, My Back (Lick It)' by Khia, and the song went viral. This rap was then turned into her iconic song 'Icy Girl'.
Mimi Webb
It's no secret that the icon that is Mimi Webb owes the skyrocketing of her career to popular social media app TikTok. As well as sharing videos of her songs, the singer also became known for sharing her friends and family's reactions to hearing her tracks for the first time - with the clips going viral on the app. On top of this, her track 'Before I Go' featured on popular creator Charli D'Amelio's video, leaving fans wanting more. Mimi quickly shot to superstardom, with huge tracks like '24/5'. 'House On Fire' and 'Ghost of You'.
Sam Ryder
Sam Ryder rose to fame after posting covers on TikTok during the Covid pandemic, gaining the attention of major artists and going on to sign a record deal. Sam then famously represented the UK in the 2022 Eurovision Song Contest, finishing in second place with 422 points as he became the highest scoring UK Eurovision entrant.
Mae Stephens
Mae Stephens shot to fame when her track 'If We Ever Broke Up' went viral on TikTok, after sharing a clip of the song on the platform towards the end of 2022. Mae used to work in ASDA and left her job after achieving incredible viral success, going on to sign her first record deal with EMI in 2023.
Caity Baser
Caity Baser began posting videos to her TikTok page during lockdown, with her track 'Average Student' gaining popularity on the app in 2020. In 2023, Caity teamed up with Mae Muller and Stefflon Don on Sigala's track 'Feels This Good', as well as featuring on Joel Corry's 'Dance Around It'.
Cat Burns
Cat Burns gained popularity on TikTok with her track 'Go', which went on to reach Number 2 on the UK Chart. She was nominated for three awards at the 2023 BRIT Awards, where she also performed.
You can hear songs by Gerry Cinnamon on Northsound 1.
Now read:
Gerry Cinnamon makes history with his huge Hampden Park shows
Gerry Cinnamon fans surprised at hearing his song in The Umbrella Academy
Everything you need to know about Gerry Cinnamon's huge Hampden Park shows