Tom Odell

2.1. Childhood and Early Education

Thomas Peter Odell was born on 24 November 1990, in Chichester, West Sussex, England. His father worked as an airline pilot, and his mother was a primary school teacher. Odell has an older sister. Due to his father's profession, he spent a significant portion of his childhood living in Auckland, New Zealand, and recalls attending school there in addition to his education in the UK. He was educated at Bishop Luffa School and Seaford College in West Sussex. Odell began learning classical piano in 7th grade and started composing his own songs at the age of 13, though he initially kept this hidden as he felt it was "not cool."

2.2. Musical Beginnings and Career Choice

Throughout his school years, Odell was involved in a band where he wrote songs, but the group frequently struggled to maintain a consistent lead singer. This challenge ultimately inspired him to begin singing his own compositions, allowing him to express his musical vision precisely as he intended, rather than relying on others to interpret his work.

At 18, Odell abandoned his plans to attend the University of York, instead choosing to pursue a place at a music college in Liverpool. During this period, he regularly performed at open-mic nights in local bars. After a year, he moved back to Chichester following the redundancy from his job as a barman. Undeterred, he frequently traveled to London using his grandmother's car to perform shows and place advertisements in music schools. He later studied at the Brighton Institute of Modern Music (BIMM) in Brighton, where he performed as part of a band called "Tom & the Tides." Eventually, Odell decided to pursue a solo career, moving to London, as he "didn't want to have to rely on people" to achieve his musical goals.

3.1. Debut and Breakthrough (2012-2013)

Tom Odell was signed to In the Name Of, an imprint of Columbia Records, after being discovered by label head Lily Allen. Allen remarked that Odell's "energy onstage reminded me of David Bowie." He released his debut extended play (EP), Songs from Another Love, in October 2012.

Odell made his television debut in November 2012 as a performer on Later... with Jools Holland, a performance that the show's producer, Alison Howe, later described as "a classic Later debut." In January 2013, he was announced as one of 15 nominees for the BBC Sound of 2013 poll. In the same month, his single "Another Love" was utilized by the BBC to promote their 2013 broadcast schedule. His music also gained exposure by being featured in several Burberry fashion runway shows. Odell was subsequently named the winner of the BRITs Critics' Choice Award, an honor previously bestowed upon artists like Adele and Florence and the Machine. He was the first male artist to win this prestigious award and was interviewed alongside previous recipient Emeli Sandé during the televised ceremony in February 2013.

Odell's debut studio album, Long Way Down, was released on 24 June 2013 and rapidly climbed to the number one position on the UK Official Chart. He was scheduled to support The Rolling Stones at their concert in London's Hyde Park on 13 July 2013, but unfortunately, he was unable to perform due to illness.

3.2. Growing Recognition and Media Presence (2014-2015)

On 7 February 2014, Odell performed a new song, "Alex," at the Plymouth Pavilions, marking the commencement of the final leg of his UK Long Way Down Tour. Although Odell later indicated he had no official name for the song, it was widely believed to be about his former girlfriend, Alexandra Mcdermott.

In 2014, Odell was honored with the 'Songwriter of the Year' award at the prestigious Ivor Novello Awards ceremony. His songs continued to gain significant exposure through various television series and films. "Can't Pretend" was featured in The 100, and both "Can't Pretend" and "Long Way Down" were used in The Blacklist and the award-winning film The Fault In Our Stars. Additionally, "Grow Old With Me" appeared in an episode of Reign and was prominently featured in a 60-second advertising campaign for Kaiser Permanente titled "Thrive." His song "Heal" was included in the films If I Stay and The Miracle Season, as well as the television series NCIS, The Vampire Diaries, and Elementary, with "Another Love" also being used in the latter series.

Odell received extensive publicity when his cover of "Real Love" by The Beatles was selected as the audio track for the 2014 John Lewis Christmas advert. Within hours of the advert's initial airing, the track reached the top of the music recognition service Shazam's trending list. Within three days of its release, it entered the UK top 40 at number 21, eventually peaking at number 7.

In 2015, during the Ultra Music Festival, Swedish DJ Avicii premiered an unreleased collaboration with Odell titled "Can't Love You Again." Avicii had previously stated on Quora that the song was intended for a 2016 album, but both the album and the song were subsequently cancelled. In 2016, Odell's cover of "True Colours" by Cyndi Lauper was featured in a Sony advertisement.

3.3. Subsequent Albums and Tours (2016-Present)

Tom Odell's subsequent career has been marked by a consistent output of studio albums and associated tours, each exploring new lyrical and sonic territories.

In 2015, Odell began working on his second studio album and previewed new songs during the Forest Live concert series held in England's forests. On 4 April 2016, the first single from the album, "Wrong Crowd", was released, simultaneously announcing the upcoming second studio album of the same name. Odell also confirmed a tour across the US and Europe. The album's second single, "Magnetised", followed on 15 April 2016. The following day, Odell revealed his sold-out shows would be part of the "No Bad Days Tour," which commenced in London on 20 April 2016. The full album, Wrong Crowd, was released on 10 June 2016. In an interview on This Morning, Odell shared that international audiences in some countries had misinterpreted the album's title as an insult, believing it referred to them as a "bad crowd" or the "wrong crowd."

During his No Bad Days Tour, Odell indicated that he was writing material for his third album and performed several new songs live. In November 2017, he toured Germany as part of the New Fall Festival in Düsseldorf and Stuttgart, and announced that the album was finished, with a first single imminent. On 20 December 2017, Odell confirmed in a BBC Radio 2 interview that the album was slated for release in mid-2018. The album's first single, "If You Wanna Love Somebody", was released globally on 14 June 2018. The third album, Jubilee Road, was then released on 26 October 2018. The album's title and themes were inspired by his past neighbors and the community of a terraced street in East London where he once resided. While Odell initially wished to use the street's real name, his neighbors expressed concerns that it would become a tourist attraction, leading him to create a fictional name. As part of the Jubilee Road tour, Odell performed a solo piano concert at Shibuya Stream Hall in Japan on 14 March 2019.

The first single from Odell's fourth album, "Numb", was released in February 2021. On 27 February 2021, an interview with The Gentleman's Journal revealed the album's title as Monsters. Odell stated that this album would incorporate darker, electro-pop tones, with lyrics drawing inspiration from artists such as XXXTentacion, Drake, and Travis Scott. The second single from the album, "Monster v.1", was released in March 2021. The record explores challenging subjects and difficult experiences Odell faced during a "fever pitch" period in his life, particularly his struggles with anxiety and panic attacks. Monsters was released on 9 July 2021.

On 8 September 2022, Odell announced his fifth studio album, Best Day of My Life, which was subsequently released on 28 October 2022. The album was preceded by the singles "Best Day of My Life", "Sad Anymore", "Flying", and "Smiling All the Way Back Home."

In 2023, Odell continued to release new music. He released the track "Butterflies" featuring Aurora on 27 January 2023. This was followed by a reimagined version of "Streets Of Heaven," a track previously included on his 2021 album Monsters, released on 18 August. The single "Black Friday" was released on 22 September 2023, and "Somebody Else" on 13 October. Alongside the release of "Somebody Else", Odell announced that his sixth studio album, also titled Black Friday, would be released on 26 January 2024. Prior to the album's full release, he released additional singles including "Answer Phone" on 17 November and "The End" on 22 December 2023.

4.1. Musical Influences

Odell's musical journey began early, as he grew up listening extensively to Elton John. He has cited Goodbye Yellow Brick Road (1973) as one of the first albums he ever heard. His diverse range of influences includes iconic artists such as David Bowie, Jeff Buckley, Bob Dylan, Arthur Russell, Leonard Cohen, Leon Russell, Billy Joel, Randy Newman, Tom Waits, Rodríguez, and Bruce Springsteen. Beyond these legendary figures, Odell is also a known admirer of contemporary bands and musicians, including Arcade Fire, Adele, James Blake, Cat Power, Blur, Beach House, Radiohead, Coldplay, Arctic Monkeys, and Ben Folds.

4.2. Lyrical Themes

Odell has openly discussed the inspiration behind his lyrics, stating that they are often rooted in his personal life, particularly his "inability to sustain a relationship with someone for longer than six months." He finds that he writes "much better songs when I'm being honest, and writing about things that happen to me." While acknowledging that this candid approach can sometimes lead to awkward situations, especially when friends or former partners realize a song is about them, he refers to this as "artistic licence," allowing him to explore deeply personal narratives in his music.

7.1. Studio Albums

7.2. Extended Plays

7.3. Singles

7.4. Promotional Singles

7.5. Guest Appearances

7.6. Other Certified Songs