Keane’s Tom Chaplin reveals he’s been in therapy for ten years after drug addiction nearly took his life
TOM Chaplin has revealed he has been in therapy for more than a decade after his drug addiction nearly claimed his life in 2015.
During the Crisis, his wife Natalie told him she loved him in case she never saw him again.
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At an album launch in London yesterday, the singer-songwriter and former Keane frontman, 43, explained how the pandemic had given him time to reflect on the idea of leaving behind his “ young days”.
He said: “For a lot of people it was a period of reflection. It’s funny because I’ve been in therapy for over 10 years now and I thought at that point, “It’s probably time I quit this.” It looks like a natural cut.
“Then during lockdown I was doing it online but all of a sudden a lot of questions started popping into my mind, I think partly because of that cooling off period.
“That’s what constitutes the themes of the album. It tries to explore different angles that this part of life suddenly seems to throw at you almost unexpectedly.
Tom shot to fame with Keane, selling over 13 million albums with the rock band, whose hit singles include Somewhere Only We Know and Everybody’s Changing.
He is set to release his third solo album, Midpoint, on September 2.
Tom, who has two children, Freya and Gabriel, with psychotherapist Natalie, said he was ‘nervous’ about releasing a stripped down album with ‘creaks and mistakes’ but was not more interested in dominating the charts.
About his new track, Stars Align, he said: “When I was younger, the desire to be a big hit band with Keane and reach ‘the highest of the most pop’, as they say the Beatles was like, ‘I want to be up there, I want to be up there, I want the money, the adulation’.
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“Then you realize when you get them that they don’t really bring you much happiness, especially if you’re not happy inside.”
He added, “So this song is about parking all of that, all of that naked ambition, and just trying to be responsive and spontaneous and see what comes in, see where the energy is in life.
“For example, I don’t have another album in me at the moment and I wouldn’t try.
“I wouldn’t be one of those people who tries to write a bunch of songs just for fun.
“There has to be a reason to do it and the same with KEANE. People keep asking me about Keane: ‘Are you going to do more?’ I do not know. I’m just going to see how I feel.
Florence: I took up music to drink
FLORENCE Welch says she was a “chaotic mess” while drinking, so getting sober eight years ago is the best thing she’s ever done.
The Dog Days Are Over singer, who runs Florence + The Machine, said she realized she had a problem when she could only enjoy drinking if she let loose.
She explained: “It took me a long time to accept the fact that I had a problem with alcohol. I was one of those drinkers where it was all or nothing.
“If I like my drinking, I can’t control it and if I control my drinking, I don’t enjoy it. So that was a real wake-up call for me.
“It was early in the Lungs (debut album) days, because it was good to be like a chaotic mess because that’s what it was.
“But then I started growing with (second album) Ceremonials. I thought, ‘Ooh this needs to be contained’.”
But the journey was not easy.
She told Munroe Bergdorf’s Spotify podcast The Way We Are: “Sobriety was really lonely, I had gotten into music to drink. Those two things I loved the most.
“Singing, partying and drinking are the things I was good at.
“The first two years were very difficult, but if someone is out there and struggles, it gets easier.”
DUNC’S JOY FOR LOVED-UP DEN
DENISE Van Outen looked smitten in Marbella, Spain, on her first holiday with new man Jimmy Barba this week.
But the romance is alive and well at home too, as they enjoy double dates with her best friend of 20 years, blue singer Duncan James and her boyfriend Rodrigo Reis.
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The West End actress and TV favorite appeared on Celebrity Gogglebox alongside Duncan, who replaced ex Eddie Boxshall after they split in January because he admitted to messaging other women.
At the premiere of the Jean Paul Gaultier Fashion Freak Show in London, Duncan said he was “so happy” for Denise and property developer Jimmy and was “hanging out” with the new couple.
He said: “Denise and I were filming Gogglebox and Jimmy and Rodrigo went to the pub together. Denise and I came out of filming and we were like, ‘Where did our men go?’
“It was like, ‘Ah, they’re in the fucking pub!’.”
Duncan added: “It’s a new relationship and I’m just happy that she’s happy right now because the last relationship didn’t go to plan and I don’t think Eddie is having it very well. processed, right?
“I know she deserves better and I think Jimmy treats her really well, so I’m really happy for her.”
THE BIG MAC AND PERRIE’S HITS
PERRIE Edwards has called on the big guns to help her return to the top of the charts as a solo star.
The Little Mix singer has teamed up with Steve Mac, one of the UK’s most celebrated songwriters and producers, to work on some new material.
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She spent some time with him in the studio on Tuesday as she worked on her own music after Little Mix went on hiatus in May.
Steve has contributed to over 30 No1 singles including Westlife’s, Flying Without Wings, Clean Bandit’s Rockabye and Ed Sheeran’s Shape Of You, the most streamed song in Spotify history.
And this isn’t the first time he and Perrie have collaborated.
It was produced Woman Like Me, which Little Mix released in 2018.
The pair were joined in the studio by singer-songwriter KAMILLE, who was dubbed the fifth member of Little Mix after co-writing their great tracks including Shout Out To My Ex, Black Magic, Power, Break Up Song and Holiday.
Sharing a muted video on Instagram, Kamille hinted that they already have potential success on their hands.
She wrote: “Crying. It sounds. So. good.”
Perrie’s bandmates Leigh-Anne Pinnock and Jade Thirlwall have yet to kick off their solo efforts – and it looks like nothing is coming any time soon.
Leigh-Anne took to a Twitter account this week and told a fan, “I’m 100% no rush!
“He must be perfect, very excited though.”
I would like at least one of them to do it.
ANA IS NOT FOILED BY THE HEAT
TEMPERATURES hit an all-time high on Tuesday, so it seems a wonder Ana De Armas didn’t find herself cooked like a roast chicken the moment she stripped off that foil dress.
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She wore the metallic outfit to a screening of her new film The Gray Man on London’s South Bank.
Ana was joined by co-star Ryan Gosling, who is back to being herself after transforming into bleach blonde Ken in the upcoming Barbie movie.
Looks like her fake tan has faded as well, which is just as well.
He will have a natural one after spending ages posing on the red carpet in this week’s sunshine.