Aston Merrygold Wants To “Show People The True Me” [VIDEO EXCLUSIVE]

British pop star Aston Merrygold launched his career with the boyband, JLS, were runner-ups on the UK’s fifth season of The X-Factor. Now he is spending his time in the studio songwriting and being the best dad he can be to his son, Grayson.

Merrygold’s popularity rose again recently after Samsung used his song “Get Stupid” in their commercial for the new Galazy S9 Smartphone. The song first gained popularity during it’s initial release in 2015, however, it is gaining popularity once again. “A whole good percentage of people saw it and found it like when I first released it, it just came back around again in a massive way,” Merrygold says in an exclusive interview with uInterview.

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The music video for the song, which also was filmed in 2015, took place in a Los Angeles mall. Merrygold thought filming there was like fulfilling a childhood dream. “It was kind of like that thing when you’re a kid and you’re like, ‘I wonder what it’s like to get trapped in a mall’,” he said. “And it was literally, we just had free reign of the whole place, it was really weird.”

However, since 2015, Merrygold has been working on new music, not just for himself but for other artists as well. He helped produce the single “Bounce” for the South Korean pop duo TVXQ. As for his own music, he’s working hard in the studio to “make the sound something [he’s] in love with.” He is most known for his upbeat sounds, but that is “just one side” of his music.

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When making new music, his inspiration and role model is Michael Jackson. “He’s the epitome of a popstar and an all-around entertainer and artist,” Merrygold said.

Music is not his only passion, recently Merrygold became a father for the first time with his partner, Sarah Lou Richards. They had their son Grayson Jax earlier year, and he has been loving every moment of fatherhood. “It’s amazing man, the best thing I ever, ever done,” he said. “It’s like my biggest accomplishment by far.”

Read Aston Merrygold’s full interview with uInterview below.

What is the story behind “Get Stupid”?

Aston Merrygold: The origin of that single, funny enough, I wrote that song back in 2015. And had the whole big release there, and the video kind of came out. Normal kind of roll out procedure, which is cool. And only recently it started to really, really pick up traction, due to it synced to the new Samsung advert. So it was kind of just thrown into the stratosphere, you know what I mean, and it had really, really taken off. A whole good percentage of people saw it and found it like when I first released it, it just came back around again in a massive way. So yeah, no complaints.

What was it like shooting the music video?

AM: Oh it was amazing, really good. We were south of L.A. somewhere. We literally watched everyone leave the mall around six o’clock in the evening and it was getting shut down. It was kind of like that thing when you’re a kid and you’re like “I wonder what it’s like to get trapped in a mall” and it was literally, we just had free reign of the whole place, it was really weird.

Did you enjoy competing on “Strictly Come Dancing”?

AM: The experience was good, really, really good. The competition was fierce, it was really fierce. It always is with that show and I just had a lot of fun. I gained a lot of knowledge which is great, obviously for the day job itself, going on stage and performing and dancing and whatever else. You kind of get a whole new set of tricks for the arsenal, an added extra to your performance every time which is nice because it’s a whole new realm of training you would have to pay for when you’re young, but it’s like a crash course the whole series. It was really good.

Who are your biggest influences as a performer?

AM: For me, the best ever, Michael Jackson, he’s the epitome of a pop star and an all-around entertainer and artist. From dissecting songs, to writing them, never just kind of putting stuff out there like “yeah this is kind of a good song”. It had to be from a feeling first, he had to really feel it before it ever left the studio. You can see from his music videos, he’s one of the best movers of all time and one of the best performers. For me, vocally as well, he’s just up there with the best and very ambitious and very, very inspired by everything he’s put his hands to.

What have you been working on?

AM: Yeah I have worked on a lot of stuff for the past year, just back in the studio, writing, not even for myself, just for a lot of other acts as well. I just had a song, a #1 in like thirteen countries, with a band called TVXQ, from Korea. So yeah, they just had a massive hit with a song I wrote for them. As I put my album together, and make the sound something I’m in love with, I really want to showcase it to people and show people the true me, “Get Stupid” is just one side of me, everything is kind of out there and wacky and whatever else, but when it comes to vocals I do love a good ballad and everything up tempo as well, even more up tempo than “Get Stupid”, I do love to dance. But yeah just working on a whole lot of new music and kind of getting it going over the summer as well actually, all in due course.

How has fatherhood been treating you?

AM: It’s amazing man, the best thing I ever, ever done. It’s like my biggest accomplishment by far, he’s adorable. It’s really weird, because I’ve always been that person to be like “I’m happy to go wild or be on the road for a year”, now it’s like he has to be with me. It’s such a crazy feeling, it seems quite obvious to people that “of course you’re not going to leave your child” and when you’re in that bubble, it’s just like the most amazing feeling. I can’t wait to get back to see him.