We spoke to indie pop singer Will Joseph Cook and asked him more about his emotionally-lit sophomore album, the meaning behind a couple of the songs, and how he has grown over the years since his first record deal at 17.
You may have heard of him. Or you may not. But there’s no denying the lit feel-good tracks and deeper maturity level on Something To Feel Good About.
Back from his 2017 album Sweet Dreamer, Will Joseph Cook is here to bring you on a ride with his songs on this Driverless Car. The young 23-year old singer-songwriter from England has just released his sophomore album Something To Feel Good About.
The new record is one packed with emotional cadence with its feel good vibes and colours, while beneath it, lies a deeper and personal undercurrent – from love to broken hearts, and even loss…
‘Last Year’ for instance, is a song that packs a punch to the heart.
From songs like ‘DOWNDOWNDOWN’, ‘Wayside’, ‘Boundary Street’, the viral ‘Be Around Me’, and the cumulative (of emotions) and concluding track ‘Last Year’, we are loving the new sounds and deeper experiences from this now slightly older Cook.
Also read: Review: Something To Feel Good (and everything else) About with Will Joseph Cook!
We asked the talented English singer to tell us more about his songs, as well as how much has changed from his debut album.
AL365: Hi Will, Vanessa here from AsiaLive365. Thanks so much for taking the time to talk to us. Massive congrats on the new album ‘Something To Feel Good About’. Looks like you have a new album, new look (moustache and hair), and everything! How do you feel right now?
Will: Haha – a new man. I feel good! The songs are no longer mine, it’s been really fun seeing everyone’s reaction and interpretation of the album.
AL365: You signed your first record deal when you were just 17. Now at 23, what do you think has changed from being a teen in the music industry to being a young adult?
Will: For me it’s been a journey of becoming more creatively independent. When I started out I didn’t know any collaborators, where as now a lot of my friends are videographers or mix engineers etc. It’s nice having our own network of creatives.
AL365: How excited are you to be releasing this album under your own label, Bad Hotel?
Will: Very! I love the creative freedom it brings. Feels very cool.
AL365: Your first album ‘Sweet Dreamer’ exudes a bit more of a carefree (teen) feel to it while this current album shows your life experiences as a young adult. Almost like a day and night feel, as you called it. Of the emotional dynamics of both albums, which track would you say is your most personal song to date?
Will: I would say the closing track ‘Last Year’ is my most personal. I wanted to talk about my experience as honestly as possible, achieving that meant getting slightly uncomfortable. I’m happy I went there though
ASL365: ‘Be Around Me’ went completely viral on Tik Tok. Tell us more about how that was like for you when you first found out?
Will: The main feeling of when it first went viral (other than excitement) was realising it wasn’t in my control anymore. I’ve never had a song blow up that quickly before so it was a lot to take in at once.
ASL365: Out of curiosity, what were you standing on (or rotating on) in the music video for ‘Be Around Me’?
Will: It was a wooden platform that one of the video team members built. It was human-powered. There had to be someone lying on the ground hand-spinning the platform!
AL365: ‘Something To Feel Good About’ is “such a mood”. The colours are wonderful! Tell us more about the inspiration behind this song and why it was also chosen as the title track for the album?
Will: The title summed up the message of the album really well, easy going and always looking for the positive in a situation. Finding something to feel good about, in spite of everything.
AL365: What about ‘Wayside’? I love how it has a very retro, almost 70s English band feel to it. What was this particular piece about?
Will: Wayside is about the often ridiculous expectations we can have for love. It was meant to be making fun about those really over the top feelings of attachment for you can have in your first serious relationship.
AL365: I am also loving the graphics in your new album. Who was the artist and what would you say the different illustrations were trying to depict?
Will: The artists that created it were Tom Huxley (@huxlet) and Billy Smith Morris (@billysmithmorris), both of them are close friends from my home town/school. The artwork was meant to represent the emotional limbo you can feel in your early 20s. Everything up in the air and all happening at once.
AL365: How did your love for music start and what made you decide to become a singer-songwriter?
Will: From age 13 I started going to a lot of indie rock shows with my Dad. That played a massive part in me falling in love with music. I found the whole world really interesting – the travel, the shows, the excitement.
AL365: Had you not taken the music path in life, what do you think you would be doing right now?
Will: It’s been my thing for so long now, it’s hard to imagine. I never wanted to go to University. Working on a documentary theme has always interested me – definitely something that involves sharing stories and meeting new people.
AL365: If you could invite another music artist or your idol to dinner, to pick the brains of, who would it be?
Will: Ezra from Vampire Weekend, Mark from Eels, Chris from Christine and the Queens.
AL365: What about collaborations? Any dream or planned collaborations in the pipeline?
Will: I am working on finding a good one at the moment. Too soon to share anything yet though!
AL365: You have plenty of fans in Asia, and your song ‘Be Around Me’ has gone viral on the Spotify Viral Charts here. Do you have any plans to tour to this region one day?
Will: Yes! Any chance I get to come over – I’m there. I have a lot of exploring to do in Asia.
AL365: One last question. We know that you love interacting with fans on social media. Give a shout-out to your fans out there!
Will: HELLO EVERYONE. We haven’t met yet but when we do it’s gonna be dope. Can’t for my first Asian shows. Stay safe and see you next year hopefully!
AL365: Well, we certainly hope that we see Will in Asia soon!
In the meantime, listen to his new album below.
Cover photo: Liam Evans
