One day, St. Lundi walked out of his humdrum job on Hayling Island, packed a bag of clothes and his guitar, and headed to London with what can only be described as a completely inadequate amount of money to his name. Ambitions certainly aren’t achieved overnight and they’re not easy, but St. Lundi’s seven-year journey has already delivered more than he could’ve ever hoped for in that moment – collabs with Kygo and Seeb, huge shows with Take That, ever-growing headline gigs of his own and a million monthly listeners at Spotify.
Now comes a true landmark moment as St. Lundi releases his debut album ‘The Island’ today. It’s a set which explores many of the personal experiences and emotions he went through during the course of that adventure.
St. Lundi says, “When I started writing ‘The Island’ I had no idea that it would end up being so autobiographical. For so many years I ran away from my life and wanted to create another reality. I experienced some times of struggle growing up and I think that led me to feel that I didn’t want to have anything to do with my hometown, probably because going back there brought everything to the surface. But in the making of this album, I worked through all of those feelings and the relationships surrounding them and came out of the process feeling really proud to be from ‘The Island’.
I fell in love with writing more upbeat/anthemic tracks after my collaboration with Kygo back in 2020 which led to me writing songs like ‘Nights Like This’. When listening to ‘The Island’ you can expect a mix of upbeat and euphoric tracks of devotion towards loved ones through to slightly more downtempo, hard hitting-tracks about those tougher times.”
The stories of ‘The Island’ are often common, relatable tales but they’re very much St. Lundi’s own experiences. It takes us from a one-in-a-million odds as he sets out to pursue his dream before covering family adoration and estrangement; falling in love and fearing being hurt; and running away but being ready to return if need be. And as the album fades with its outro, St. Lundi has returned home as a new man with a fresh mindset and endless possibilities for his future. St. Lundi wrote or co-wrote every song on the album, and has production credits on numerous tracks.
The album’s focus track on release will be ‘Nobody Like You’, which encapsulates the heartfelt fervour and sleek, addictive piano-pop melodies that gives St. Lundi’s music such a positively charged feeling. The affecting tribute to his mother is even more powerful given the context provided by his earlier single ‘Different Houses’, its story of divorce now almost a footnote in the story given how their relationship has blossomed since.
St. Lundi adds, “‘Nobody Like You’ is the first song i’ve ever written for my Mum. I’d been speaking to her a lot around that time about the past and It felt like she was still so cut up about things. I wanted to write something to basically say, ‘you’re amazing and look at how much you have achieved since.'”
Beyond the sheer persistence and dedication it took St. Lundi to make ‘The Island’ a reality, it was a process that benefited from such moments of fleeting chance. Upon arriving in London he spent the evening drinking with some Australian backpackers, who he ended up living with for two years. He also worked in a SEN school where he learned about why people behave how they do, but when lockdown struck he spent his days at home writing song-after-song. There was no looking back from that point, with Radio 2 airplay, tastemaker acclaim, and shows alongside the likes of Kodaline and Tom Gregory.
Having just completed an extensive UK and European pop-up tour that sold-out in moments, St. Lundi’s upcoming full band headline tour starts in October. He starts 2025 with a second pop-up tour, this time across North America where all 500 tickets for each of his shows in New York, Chicago, Toronto, San Francisco and Seattle have already been snapped up. He will play:
OCTOBER – FULL BAND HEADLINE TOUR
23rd – Utrecht, Tivoli Vredenburg
25th – Cologne, YUCA
26th – Hamburg, Nochtwache
28th – Berlin, Prachtwerk
29th – Munich, Strom
NOVEMBER – FULL BAND HEADLINE TOUR
1st – Zürich, Papiersaal
5th – Glasgow, The Rum Shack
6th – Belfast, Ulster Sports Club
7th – Dublin, The Workman’s Club
8th – Cork, Winthrop Avenue
12th – Manchester, Gullivers
13th – Portsmouth, Wedgewood Rooms
15th – London, The Courtyard Theatre
18th – Bristol, The Louisiana
JANUARY 2025 – POP-UP TOUR
27th – New York City (SOLD OUT)
28th – Boston
29th – Philadelphia
30th – Baltimore
31st – Chicago (SOLD OUT)
FEBRUARY 2025 – POP-UP TOUR
3rd – Toronto (SOLD OUT)
5th – Los Angeles
7th – San Francisco (SOLD OUT)
8th – Portland
9th – Seattle (SOLD OUT)
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