Rex Orange County

“I met a lot of label people at the start of doing this music thing, and I just realised soon that it wasn't much about music but more so about their paycheck at the end of the day.”

“I wear my musical heart on my sleeve and show all my influences off. I'm happy for someone to point out that my song sounds like someone else's.”

“I'd rather go to school and do loads of music than anything else.”

“I like being at the front - it's where I'm meant to be.”

“I'm not actually as emotional as everybody thinks. The songs are super personal, but that's just one side of me, and I guess people just assume I'm some troubled guy who's constantly sad.”

“The moment you start thinking about what other people and other artists think, you're going to start writing like other people.”

“I want nice songs. I don't want to worry about where I have to place songs on a playlist. I'm looking to make genuine, great songs and put them together into albums.”

“I'm usually just writing lyrics alone in my room, but I'm happy to be producing and writing chords anywhere.”

“I think there's no limit to ambition, and if you want something, you can make anything happen, so go for it.”

“I think 'Apricot Princess' actually came out before 'Flower Boy.'”

“I write songs, I play instruments, and I produce music that comes out for the world.”

“I'm sure there's some awful video of me singing when I was, like, 13 or 15 at my old school that my dad didn't take down off YouTube.”

“I just want to tell people how I am.”

“I grew up in a small village on the border of Hampshire and Surrey. When people ask, I tend to say that I'm from Haslemere.”

“Alex Tumay is a recording engineer who works a lot with Young Thug and a load of other rappers, like Quavo. I'm just a fan of his work.”

“I've been able to do a lot of cool things. That's always the dream for any artist.”

“When I fifteen or sixteen and was in London, moving from a small town and now going to a big city, I discovered so much new music. Finding all of that music and being inspired that much all at once, that was the benefit of being from a small place.”

“I love things that are really linear and perfect and simple.”

“Really I've just gotta be making really great music that I love and not worrying too much about what other people are gonna think about it.”

“I'm quite stubborn, and it's hard for me to let people in - whether that's literally, musically, or with business and work.”