"I want people to be liberated from the troubles of life. I hope my music can do that. There are other more complex political, Environmental, cultural, social And spiritual issues that we face but first let’s just be happy and then see we still have issues."

Cam Cole: The Blues of Liberation

Cam Cole is a new age traveler who roams around performing the streets with his one man band show influenced by Folk, Delta Blues and Rock N' Roll. Over 7 million people have watched in awe as they saw Cam's viral video on Facebook of him busking on the streets of London. Now he will tour the UK and Europe! Hailed as “the most impressive one-man band you will ever see” by Unilad when they showcased him to their 44 million followers, Cam Cole is a singer, songwriter, busker and new age traveler from London, UK who roams around performing on streets and venues as his one man band show influenced by Folk, Delta Blues, Grunge and Rock N' Roll.          (Photo: Cam Cole)

His long-awaited debut album "I See" was released on the 1st of November 2019. It contains 10 tracks taken directly from his busking set, recorded raw to capture the magic Cam creates on the streets. The reactions from his long-time followers have been ecstatic, especially as Cam and his team made the bold decisions to record all tracks live in one take to capture the magic Cam creates on the streets. The result is a raw, real record that stands out in a market place of increasingly watered-down rock music, made by an artist who will not compromise on his ethics and message.

Interview by Michael Limnios

How has the Blues and Rock Counterculture influenced your views of the world and the journeys you’ve taken?

The culture of blues never really influenced me or my views of the world, I was influenced musically by the genre though. For me it was mainly rock culture and more of New age and Rebellious alternative Culture that influenced me and my views of the world. I feel very separate to society, always on the outer circle looking in, yet still taking part and contributing something every now and then, and I feel like my journey will always Be like this.

How do you describe your sound, music philosophy and songbook? Where does your creative drive come from?

I go for quite a stripped raw gnarly sound, I put a lot of time into writing the melody’s and lyrics in my songs in the hope that people can feel liberation from sadness. My creative drive comes from an intention to hear and play stuff that wakes me and others up.

What touched (emotionally) you from the one-man band acts and what is the hardest part to be a street musician?

Being able to rock out by yourself is something that I just love doing and it is a very deep musical understanding that I have with myself. The hardest part about being a street musician is having to deal with the wandering crazy people who want to destroy your show and take attention from the crowd. Sometimes you have to stand up for yourself and others in this situation.

"I miss the scenes most of all, I remember when I was a kid, people who liked a genre of music made every effort to look like they were into that genre, nowadays you can go to any night of any genre and you won’t get that much of a vibe for scene. I guess it’s a form of tribalism which is not good but it made the world more interesting. If everyone looks the same how boring is that!" (Photo: Cam Cole)

Are there any memories from gigs, jams, busking time and studio sessions which you’d like to share with us?

 I’ve had some  magical busking moments, One off the top of my head was when I was performing in Notting Hill in London in Mid-winter, It was freezing but without wind and calm, I’d just gathered a crowd and was in that in between moment of silence between songs, usually I would play a banger Or something heavy to get them going at the start of a show, but it was like something just whispered in my ear “take it down, keep the stillness..” so I waited a few more seconds which built the anticipation and then played an acoustic song. Usually in busking crowds can just leave you if your not doing anything loud and crazy, but on this day they just stayed and watched. Halfway through The song snowflakes started falling, creating the most beautiful and magical moment for me and the crowd and I realised how lucky I was to receive that message.

What do you miss most nowadays from the music of the past? What are your hopes and fears for the future of?

I miss the scenes most of all, I remember when I was a kid, people who liked a genre of music made every effort to look like they were into that genre, nowadays you can go to any night of any genre and you won’t get that much of a vibe for scene. I guess it’s a form of tribalism which is not good but it made the world more interesting. If everyone looks the same how boring is that!

If you could change one thing in the musical world and it would become a reality, what would that be?

I would change the concept of selling music through advocating violence, sex and making money. That’s not what music should be about.

"The culture of blues never really influenced me or my views of the world, I was influenced musically by the genre though. For me it was mainly rock culture and more of New age and Rebellious alternative Culture that influenced me and my views of the world. I feel very separate to society, always on the outer circle looking in, yet still taking part and contributing something every now and then, and I feel like my journey will always Be like this." (Photo: Cam Cole)

What are some of the most important lessons you have learned from your experience in the music paths?

The most important lesson for me is to use your ears. They are the greatest tools. Does it actually sound good? All the theory doesn’t matter if it doesn’t move. Its that simple.

What is the impact of music on the socio-cultural implications? How do you want it to affect people?

I want people to be liberated from the troubles of life. I hope my music can do that. There are other more complex political, Environmental, cultural, social And spiritual issues that we face but first let’s just be happy and then see we still have issues.

Let’s take a trip with a time machine, so where and why would you really want to go for a whole day?

I would like to go back to the start of all time with my gear and then just Jam stuff to see what happens. The reason why is to see what this is all about.

Cam Cole - Home

(Photo: Cam Cole)