JAMES Arthur admits being a dad is the only thing that comes close to the buzz of being on stage.
The chart-topping star, 36, burst back into the charts with the number one album Bitter Sweet Love this year and credits his little girl Emily, one, as his biggest inspiration.
She was born in November 2022.
The musician, from Middlesbrough, learned a lot from his Glaswegian dad Neil and he reckons spending time with his child is the most fun he’s ever had.
And celebrating Fathers’ Day, he said: “There’s not any buzz like being a dad. It’s a completely different thing.
“The cliches are true about feeling a love like no other. When your kid speaks to you and tells you they love you it’s amazing.
“It’s a wonderful thing and I love it. My life is great at the minute, I’m enjoying my music and get to go home to a beautiful little girl so I have no complaints.”
He added: “It’s difficult at this age, she’s doing a lot of developing but the great thing is that last year wasn’t a touring year.
“So I spent the first 12 to 14 months of her life seeing her every day. A lot of the festivals this summer are European things so I won’t be away too long, no more than the average dad doing a nine to five job.
“She can come in and out of a lot of European cities by train. And then the UK is a lot easier. But she can never come to the shows themselves because it’s past her bedtime.”
James, who won the X Factor in 2012, is one of the headliners at this year’s Stirling Summer Sessions.
He will take top billing at the massive event alongside other huge names like Busted, Tom Jones and Shania Twain.
Set against the backdrop of Stirling Castle, the vocalist is looking forward to the start of festival season – his favourite time of the year.
He said: “I’m aware of the history and how beautiful that location is. I do a lot of festivals and have done a couple of things in Europe where an old monument is behind you and it always adds something special.
“It’s very Instagrammable. And for a gig-goer it’s nice to be outside when the weather is nice, plus for me the sound tends to be cleaner.”
Having sold more than 30 million records worldwide, it would be easy to assume James ticked off everything on his music bucket list a long time ago.
But he reveals there was one dream collaboration on his new album that was 12 years in the making.
The song From the Jump, featuring US superstar Kelly Clarkson, 42, comes after he auditioned on the X Factor with her track Stronger over a decade ago.
He said: “I’m not that good at figuring out how well I’m doing. Going out and seeing people turning up at shows is the true meter of where you are.
“For the first time this year I can say I’ve built something myself and it’s a good size as I’ve been doing Wembley and the O2. There’s a few milestones I’ve hit this year where I think it’s coming to the boil.
“It’s been full of full circle moments like playing Riverside Stadium, the home of my football team Middlesbrough. I’m just now coming up for air and it’s been madness. I’d never met Kelly Clarkson before.
“We reached out to her hoping she might sing a verse in the chorus and she did and delivered an incredible vocal. I met her in New York on The Kelly Clarkson show and what an absolute hero she was.
“She thought it was very cool that I performed one of her songs on the X Factor years ago.”
The singer has also teamed up with the likes of Anne Marie and Marshmello in the past. Now he has his sights set on some other famous faces to tick off more items on his bucket list.
He added: “When I think about collaborations I’m open to so many ones and in different genres. What excites me most is hip hop stuff, I’m a big fan of rap music.
“One thing that would be a dream of mine would be to be part of a Drake record, part of an Eminem hook or work with another big hitter in that world.
“Growing up in the 90s Eminem was my guy but I love Drake and Kendrick Lamar and J. Cole. The UK scene is kicking off too and Dave is up there with the best to do it.”
Looking ahead, James hopes to keep making hits and tour the world.
At the end of last year he had downtime and decided to start working on his next album before the current one was even released.
He’s already written a good portion of it and hopes to complete the record this summer to keep the momentum going. But he also can’t bring himself to be away from Emily for too long.
And the tot is already following in her father’s musical by dancing along to the beat – with her favourite artist being rapper Rick Ross and his song Hustlin’.
James joked: “She likes funk and disco music too. She always asks Alexa to play Stomp by The Brothers Johnson and she stomps about the house clapping. She does have a reaction to the music. I think she’s going to be a dancer
“Everyone keeps telling us she’s really smart and ahead of her time, she counts to 20 and repeats any words you say to her so you need to be careful with that one.”
Now he’s already thinking about his best collaboration yet – with his daughter in the future.
James quipped: “That would be fun. I’d be the ‘dadager’ instead of the mumager.”