Paloma Faith on performing in Dundee, the cost of living crisis and returning to stage after Covid

Paloma Faith has revealed how she would quit music if she could no longer perform live.

The multi-award-winning singer has spoken to The Courier about returning to performing post-Covid, and the impact of the cost of living crisis on the music industry, ahead of her show in Dundee next month.

The star will play Slessor Gardens as part of her The Age of Optimism tour – following on from recent performances in Aberdeen and Edinburgh.

It comes after an enforced hiatus during the pandemic.

“I’ve missed it. If there was no live performance (in this job) I would do something else,” the Never Tear Us Apart singer told us.

“It’s a combination of the energy and the instant feedback you get. It makes me feel very alive and human to navigate imperfections.

“I really like the feeling that if something goes wrong I have to deal with it, to either make it work or I have to talk about and really connect with my audience.”

Faith says she believes crowds are more engaged with live performances than they were pre-Covid – after being forced to stay away from gigs for the best part of two years.

‘Unbelievable’ return to live performances

She said: “Considering the weird atmosphere at the moment, it’s unbelievable how well its gone.

“When we were in that two years of lockdown we sort of came out and thought it was all going to be fine; that we’d come out unscathed and be completely unaffected.

“But it turns out everyone has gone mad.

“People have been really going for it in the audience, but I do think people are more emotional than they used to be. I’m feeling euphoria but more tears than I used to.

“Everyone is feeling more.”

If there was one country in the world I could play for the rest of my days it would be Scotland.”

Faith’s show in Dundee on July 24 will be her first in the city, the day after Simply Red perform at the same venue.

She follows in the footsteps of some big names to have played at Slessor Gardens in recent years – including Sir Tom Jones and Little Mix, along with Noel Gallagher and Stereophonics last weekend.

“It’s my favourite, I don’t say to everyone but if there was one country in the world I could play to for the rest of my days it would be Scotland,” she said.

“It’s just the best audience and the most well received I ever am.”

Fans often comment on Faith’s unscripted interactions with her audiences – something she says fans in Dundee will experience.

She said: “I’ve always done it and I’ve never seen anyone else do it. I thought I was a weirdo but then I went to see Dolly Parton perform.

“Dolly Parton does it, and I remember going away from her show and feeling like I had an intimate connection, even though I’d been miles away in the arena.

“I’d never seen anyone do it in an earnest way like I do.”

‘Government could have stopped cost of living crisis’

Her concert in Dundee comes as some other events in Tayside and Fife have had to be cancelled due to a lack of ticket sales – including Party at the Park in Perth and Breakout Festival in Kirkcaldy.

Faith – a long-time campaigner against poverty – believes the UK Government urgently needs to do more to help those who are struggling.

“They should be doing more to support the cost of living for people, and that would affect (live events) naturally,” she said.

“But the key point for me is there shouldn’t be a cost of living crisis, the government could have prevented it.

“It’s politics that has made it happen.”