Kele le Roc is all smiles as she sweeps round backstage at The Point, in a cloud of perfume and stylishly fluffy clothes. She s one of the most glamorous women I ve ever met. She s only 21, but already has the aura of a big star who knows her worth.
Kele s performance tonight is in aid of Childline, and you can sense that good vibe benefit concert feeling. Alongside Kele, there s a whole rake of teen idols appearing here tonight, including East 17, Westside, Kerri-Ann, Stephen Gately and Denise Van Outen. As I walk through the pre-gig hubbub, I notice Ronan Keating up on stage soundchecking, and I scan the crowd of artistes and media for a sight of Dustin the enigmatic turkey, who s also been booked for this sell-out show.
My allotted time with Kele le Roc comes up, and we grab a table for a chat. TV crews hover, waiting for their chance to pounce on Kele when I ve finished with my humble tape recorder.
Kele is a very focused girl. I ask whether she s always had a dream that she followed.
Oh, always, she exclaims. When I was about three my mum sent me dancing, and I just decided that I wanted to be famous, but I didn t know what I wanted to do. I wasn t specific when I was that young, I just thought I wanted to be famous and be on telly.
But music seemed to hold promise.
As a child I used to write loads of my own songs, she laughs. I mean they re probably corny now. I ve got a tape of me playing these rubbish songs with my dad playing the keyboard. But I used to be always making up songs, and as I kid I used to sing-talk to people, stuff like that.
Judging by Kele s second album, Everybody s Somebody, which came out late last year, the singer has come a long way since those early first attempts. On the album, jazz, soul, R&B and pop songs all get the richly mellifluous le Roc treatment. The singer sparkles with success, but it hasn t come out of thin air.
It s not all glamour, she admits. Everyone sees the glamorous side, but it is a lot of hard work, a lot of early mornings. On a typical day you might have to get up at six because you ve got a television thing, after that maybe you ve got a couple of interviews, then you ve got about ten phoners [telephone interviews]. And when a single first comes out you ve got to do a lot of radio, and I ve got another tour coming up soon which is like three weeks of going to radio stations all over Britain, five radio stations a day, and there s a live acoustic number at every radio station. And it can be really boring and really tedious, but you have to do it.
And that s just trying to get your single out there and trying to get it on playlists and stuff, explains the chanteuse , let alone the creative work!
What do you do when you have free time?
I used to go to the gym about three or four days a week, says Kele, but I don t even get the chance any more. And the time I do get off now I just want to stay at home and rest. I like to read though, and I love going to the sauna. I love it! I also like to go out with my friends. I love social eating, and I love raving and stuff, but a lot of the time when I m working I just don t have the energy. So in my spare time I just go home and watch telly. Chill.
What singers have really inspired you?
Well when I was younger, I d say The Kids from Fame. Kelly chuckles to herself. It was so funny I mean obviously the people it portrayed were kids who wanted to be famous, but to me they were famous. I just wanted to be like Coco. I was also a Michael Jackson fan when I was really young, but when I got older I got more into Prince. I m still a really big Prince fan. There s loads of other people that I like, but he s my favourite.
Did you ever emulate other singers voices in order to train your own?
Yes, and it took me a while to get into my own voice, because I was so used to singing other people s songs that I used to mimic them. So when I actually had to sing my own songs I didn t have a voice for it, because I didn t know who to sing it like. But that came.
How?
Kele looks thoughtful. Well, one day it just happened. Practice makes perfect, and one day my voice just came. My voice that sounds like me.
Was it an instantaneous thing?
No, I think it s more like a progression. You sing a few songs and you think, I don t like the way I sang that, and then one day you realise that you like the way you sang everything, and everything is you, it wasn t like you were trying to sing like anyone else.
Kele is remarkably self-assured. Have you ever suffered from stagefright, I ask?
When I first started I used to get really nervous, but I don t any more. I did a mini-tour of Great Britain about four years ago, which gave me a lot of experience. But the first show I ever did I was so nervous that my legs were knocking, and for the first whole song my voice was like this [she makes a quavering, rattling sound].
But you just battered on through regardless?
Well, you just have to, don t you? But it was a good experience for me, and obviously doing that set me up for now, because now my worklife is a lot more vigorous and more intensive, but having gigged when I was younger, it s a breeze now.
What are your musical aspirations?
I d like to have a number one song, Kele replies. I d love to have a number 1 album. And one day, I d love to do Wembley. And I d love to work with Prince, do a duet or something.
What advice would you give to those wanting to follow their musical dreams?
I d say be persistent, stresses Kele. Practice makes perfect and be prepared for a lot of hard work. n