"Krone" interview

Sam Tompkins: Songs from the tunnel of the inner self

An open book for himself and his listeners: Brit Sam Tompkins doesn't hold back with his emotions in his lyrics.

(Bild: Mitch Peryer)

With his soulful songs, Brit Sam Tompkins has been conquering the internet for almost three years and now also the stages of this world. On Friday, he presented his album "Hy, My Name Is Insecure" at the packed Flex Café in Vienna. In the "Krone" interview, he gives deeper insights into his fragile inner self.

World-famous on the internet - this quite joyful fate befell Brit Sam Tompkins a few years ago. He first went viral on TikTok in 2021 and has since built up a considerable fanbase that is loyal to him and his honest, warm sound. In numbers, this means: around four million Spotify streams per month, around 2.5 million fans on various social media platforms and celebrities such as Justin Bieber, Drake and Fred Again who celebrate him and his cuddly sound. Tompkins started out as a street musician in his native Eastbourne, and his debut EP "Who Do You Pray To?" reached number seven in the British charts in 2022. The singles "To The Moon" and "Lose It All" also went completely through the roof. Not a bad start to a promising career.

Homey Austrian premiere
Tompkins celebrated his Austrian live debut this summer at the Frequency Festival in St. Pölten. Nestled between rumbling DJs and tough rappers, he provided the far too underestimated cozy component of the overall alternative music program during a sunny afternoon slot. "It's always interesting when you play in a country for the first time and get booked like that straight away," he tells the "Krone" in an interview, "you have a really hard disco dance set and then I come on stage straight afterwards and chill people out again. But I like that, because I personally listen to different music. Depending on my mood. The gig at Frequency certainly felt very homely because the fans gave me a warm and friendly welcome."

Tompkins is not only a "rising star" in the singer/songwriter and R&B firmament, but also an open voice for the important topic of "mental health", which runs through all his songs. His debut album "Hi, My Name Is Insecure", released this July, already conveys in its title that you can find thick pants everywhere, but certainly not here. "When I was writing the album, I went through many difficult phases in my life," reflects the singer, "I at least started writing a total of 250 songs, 16 of which remained." Tompkins does not feel any pain of separation from ideas. "It's relatively simple, because when I cut down to one album, the best ideas remain." He stores the rest of the sketches and snippets on his hard drive. "I either work on them again later, or perhaps I leave it to other musicians."

Realization of diary entries
Even if the saying seems trite, music is the most essential form of therapy for the Brit. "I push myself to the other end of my being when I'm writing songs, which in turn makes me a more confident person. All my songs come from me. They are autobiographical because I have experienced them myself or seen them in my environment. The songs are like a realization of diary entries. When I'm writing, I'm in a tunnel and don't think much about it. It's only on stage, when I sing the songs in front of other people, that I realize how they affect me, because they are often so personal that I can't grasp them myself. This sharing of your innermost thoughts with an anonymous public can be both a curse and a blessing."

In the spirit of community therapy, Tompkins not only wants to help himself with his songs, but also others. "Many people feel less alone as a result. That's nice. In my role as an artist, that is the highest form if I succeed in communicating that." Tompkins wrote his first songs at the age of 16 and discovered the right musical direction for himself at around 20. He quickly understood that the greatest impact comes from pouring the most personal thoughts into songs as unfiltered as possible. "But above all, it's about writing down all your worries and problems. Whether you then turn them into songs and publish them is of secondary importance, at best it comes afterwards. Once you've crossed this threshold, releasing your inner thoughts is no longer so difficult."

Strikingthe right balance
However, it becomes more difficult for Thompson when the sometimes harsh reality catches up with him on the road. "I've sung about the untimely death of my father, for example, and sometimes people chat me up and talk to me about it. But there are days when I'm just in a good mood and then when I'm confronted with it, all the painful memories come flooding back. It's hard, but it's also part of going public with your music. When people approach me, they always do it with understanding and good intentions. Someone who writes songs as openly as I do has to expect that they will sometimes have to strike a balance in such encounters. People get to know me extremely well through my lyrics, so I shouldn't be surprised if such encounters occur."

The release of the album also brought a certain sense of relief to Tompkins. The next one, at least he thinks, should be a little lighter in terms of both content and music. "Now I'm celebrating the fact that I've made it this far and that so many people are listening to me. I am a very emotional and sensitive person and I really appreciate how much love and encouragement I receive from outside. But I've also written a lot off my chest now and believe that I'm ready for a new, more positive chapter in my life." The Brit doesn't believe that the best songs are born out of pain. "They arise much more from strong emotions. That can be sadness and anger in equal measure, but also euphoria and joy. The main thing is that you feel something."

Live at Vienna's Flex Café
You can see and feel Sam Tompkins live in Vienna these days. On November 22, he will be playing his very first club show in Austria at the Flex Café in Vienna. Latecomers will have to wait for a da Capo, as the show has been completely sold out for several weeks.