Thomas Paul Frederick Dutton (born 16 September 1986), known professionally as Tom Aspaul, is a British singer and songwriter from Wolverhampton. He released his debut album, '' Black Country Disco'' in 2020 to critical acclaim. His songwriting credits include

Kylie Minogue Kylie Ann Minogue (; born 28 May 1968) is an Australian singer, songwriter, and actress. Frequently referred to as the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Princess of Pop", she has achieved recognition in both the music industry and fas ...

, Snakehips, Celeste, and

Becky Hill Rebecca Claire Hill (born 14 February 1994) is an English singer and songwriter. She rose to fame after appearing on the first series of '' The Voice UK'', auditioning with John Legend's " Ordinary People". She joined Jessie J's team and rea ...

, among many others.

Early life

Tom grew up on a council estate in the

Black Country The Black Country is an area of England's West Midlands. It is mainly urban, covering most of the Dudley and Sandwell metropolitan boroughs, with the Metropolitan Borough of Walsall and the City of Wolverhampton. The road between Wolverhampto ...

. Writing songs from an early age, he would play ideas to family and friends, but was not involved in the local music scene. Instead, Aspaul went on to study Architecture, followed by a master's at

Central Saint Martins Central Saint Martins is a constituent college of the University of the Arts London, a public art university in London, England. The college offers full-time courses at foundation, undergraduate and postgraduate levels, and a variety of short ...

College of Art and Design in London.

Music career

Songwriting

Tom's career in music began in earnest while still studying at University in London. Encountering several A&Rs and music managers during his shifts working in an East London pub, Aspaul was eventually drafted to help write new material for the newly reformed

Sugababes The Sugababes are an English girl group composed of Mutya Buena, Keisha Buchanan, and Siobhán Donaghy. The lineup changed three times before returning to the original lineup in 2011. Formed in 1998 by Ron Tom, the manager of All Saints, ...

(then known as Mutya Keisha Siobhan) in 2012. In October 2013, after uploading a demo to

SoundCloud SoundCloud is a German audio streaming service owned and operated by SoundCloud Global Limited & Co. KG. The service enables its users to upload, promote, and share audio. Founded in 2007 by Alexander Ljung and Eric Wahlforss, SoundCloud is ...

, his song "Indiana" was signed to

Little Boots Victoria Christina Hesketh (born 4 May 1984), known professionally as Little Boots, is an English singer-songwriter and DJ. She was previously a member of the band Dead Disco. Since performing as a solo artist, she has released four albums: ''H ...

' label, On Repeat Records. Produced by

MNEK Uzoechi Osisioma "Uzo" Emenike (; born 9 November 1994), professionally known by his stage name MNEK ( ; a gramogram of Emenike), is a British singer, songwriter and record producer. He has been nominated for a Grammy and a Brit Award, and ha ...

, the single attracted support from

Popjustice Popjustice is a music website founded in 2000 by UK freelance music journalist Peter Robinson, who has worked for ''NME'', ''The Guardian'', ''Attitude'' and many others. It is composed of the work of editor Robinson, features editor Michael C ...

and

Pitchfork A pitchfork or hay fork is an agricultural tool used to pitch loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves. It has a long handle and usually two to five thin tines designed to efficiently move such materials. The term is also applie ...

. The song was covered and renamed as "Feels So Good" by Australian singer

. Minogue included it on her twelfth studio album, ''

Kiss Me Once ''Kiss Me Once'' is the twelfth studio album by Australian singer Kylie Minogue. It was released on 14 March 2014 by Parlophone, her first musical effort since her 2010 release ''Aphrodite''. After celebrating her 25th career anniversary, Mino ...

'', with Aspaul contributing backing vocals. Tom signed his first publishing deal soon after. In September 2015, Tom co-wrote and featured on XYconstant's single, "Do It Well", released on

FFRR Records FFRR Records (sometimes credited as Full Frequency Range Recordings) is a dance music label founded as a subsidiary of London Records in 1986, with A&R run by the British DJ Pete Tong. Originally a part of London Records' label roster, F ...

Parlophone Parlophone Records Limited (also known as Parlophone Records and Parlophone) is a record label founded in Germany in 1896 by the Carl Lindström Company as Parlophon. The British branch of the label was founded on 8 August 1923 as the Parloph ...

in September 2015. The track was featured on several 'Best of 2015' lists, eventually being nominated for the 2016 Popjustice £20 Music Prize, an annual prize awarded by music website Popjustice, recognising the "best British pop single of the previous year". During this time, often in five songwriting sessions a week, Aspaul's other credits include writing singles for

AlunaGeorge AlunaGeorge are an English electronic music duo from London, consisting of singer-songwriter Aluna Francis and producer George Reid. Since 2020, the duo has been on indefinite hiatus, allowing both members to pursue solo projects. Career 2009 ...

, LIZ, ''

The X Factor ''The X Factor'' is a television music competition franchise created by British producer Simon Cowell and his company Syco Entertainment. It originated in the United Kingdom, where it was devised as a replacement for '' Pop Idol'' (2001–200 ...

'' thirteenth series winner

Matt Terry Matthew James Terry (born 20 May 1993) is an English singer and songwriter. In 2016, he was crowned as the winner of the The X Factor (British series 13), thirteenth series of ''The X Factor (British TV series), The X Factor''. His debut single ...

(and the runner-up

Saara Aalto Saara Sofia Aalto (born 2 May 1987) is a Finnish singer, songwriter and voice actress. In 2012, she came second in the first season of '' The Voice of Finland''. In 2016, Aalto finished as the runner-up in the thirteenth series of ''The X F ...

), Snakehips and Celeste, among others.

2014–2019: ''Revelation'', ''LEFT'' and collaborations

After the initial success of "Indiana", on 10 December 2014 Tom premiered "Good Together", his second official single and the first from his debut mixtape. The song, produced by

GRADES Grade most commonly refers to: * Grading in education, a measurement of a student's performance by educational assessment (e.g. A, pass, etc.) * A designation for students, classes and curricula indicating the number of the year a student has reach ...

, received support from

Huw Stephens Huw Meredydd Stephens (born 25 May 1981) is a Welsh radio and television presenter, currently broadcasting on BBC Radio Wales, BBC Radio Cymru and BBC Radio 6 Music. Stephens founded the Sŵn music festival with John Rostron and the yearly s ...

and was named by former

BBC Radio 1 BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and Contemporary hit radio, current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including ...

DJ,

Zane Lowe Alexander Zane Reed Lowe (born 1973) is a New Zealand radio DJ, live DJ, record producer, and television presenter. After an early career in music creation, production and DJing, he moved to the UK in 1997. He came to prominence through pr ...

as his "Next Hype". ''

Revelation Revelation, or divine revelation, is the disclosing of some form of Religious views on truth, truth or Knowledge#Religion, knowledge through communication with a deity (god) or other supernatural entity or entities in the view of religion and t ...

'', the mixtape, was self-released via YouTube 19 May 2015, receiving acclaim from ''billboard''. Also in 2015, Tom released his collaboration with Aeble (alias of producer

Starsmith Finlay Dow-Smith (born 8 July 1988), known professionally as Starsmith, is a British songwriter, record producer and DJ. Smith's best known for co-writing and serving as the primary producer for Ellie Goulding's debut album '' Lights,'' whic ...

), "Better By Your Side", which went on to eventually amass over 20 million streams. Tom released his first full EP, ''

LEFT Left may refer to: Music * ''Left'' (Hope of the States album), 2006 * ''Left'' (Monkey House album), 2016 * ''Left'' (Helmet album), 2023 * "Left", a song by Nickelback from the album ''Curb'', 1996 Direction * Left (direction), the relativ ...

'' on BLK&WHT records on 4 November 2016, featuring work with frequent collaborators

and

. 2017 saw more collaborations, with Tom's vocals featuring on several EDM/dance and house tracks, including songs by Viceroy, Bronze Whale and Sleepy Tom, the latter of which became one of BBC Radio 1's "Dance Anthems".

2019–2021: ''Black Country Disco'' and ''Black Country Discothèque''

On 14 September 2019, Tom announced the beginning of a new project, '' Black Country Disco'' - a concept album named for the area in which he grew up and inspired by

disco Disco is a music genre, genre of dance music and a subculture that emerged in the late 1960s from the United States' urban nightclub, nightlife, particularly in African Americans, African-American, Italian-Americans, Italian-American, LGBTQ ...

from the late 70s and early 80s. The album was self-released in September 2020 to critical acclaim, named "easily one of the best albums of the year". The record was supported by a short-film titled ''Black Country Disco: The Movie'', shot in and around Wolverhampton. Aspaul was awarded the PPL Momentum Fund in October 2020, sponsored by

PRS PRS or prs may refer to: Science and technology * Peripheral Reflex System, an implementation of autonomous peripheral operations in microcontrollers * Personal response system, in audience response * Phenotypic response surfaces, in medicine * P ...

Spotify Spotify (; ) is a List of companies of Sweden, Swedish Music streaming service, audio streaming and media service provider founded on 23 April 2006 by Daniel Ek and Martin Lorentzon. , it is one of the largest providers of music streaming services ...

and

Arts Council England Arts Council England is an arm's length non-departmental public body of the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, Department for Culture, Media and Sport. It is also a registered charity. It was formed in 1994 when the Arts Council o ...

to help fund a second studio album. He also performed the entirety of his debut album at

Birmingham Symphony Hall Symphony Hall is a 2,262-seat concert venue in Birmingham, England. It was officially opened by Queen Elizabeth II on 12 June 1991, although it had been in use since 15 April 1991. It is home to the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra and hos ...

. In April 2021, Tom released '' Black Country Discothèque'', a remix album re-imagining each song on his debut LP, including collaborations with MNEK,

Kim Wilde Kim Wilde (born Kim Smith, 18 November 1960) is an English pop singer. She first gained success in 1981 with her debut single "Kids in America", which peaked at no. 2 in the UK. In 1983, she received the Brit Award for Best British Female solo ...

Brendan Maclean Brendan Maclean is an Australian singer-songwriter and actor. Music Brendan Maclean's debut EP, ''White Canvas'', was uploaded to iTunes March 2010. In January 2014 he released a second EP, ''Population'', produced by Paul Mac. Its lead single ...

and Bright Light Bright Light. Later that month, Aspaul announced ''Black Country Disco: The Book'', published by Polari Press, documenting the conception, creation and release of the album. Tom embarked on his first sold-out UK headline tour in July 2021, The Revenge Body Tour.

2021–2024: ''Life In Plastic''

On 31 December 2021 Aspaul released the first single, "Let Them (It's All Love)", from his second album, '' Life in Plastic''. Released on 30 May 2022, and named after a lyric taken from the song "

Barbie Girl "Barbie Girl" is a song by Danish-Norwegian dance-pop group Aqua. It was released in April 1997 by Universal and MCA as the third single from the group's debut studio album, ''Aquarium''. The song was written by band members Søren Rasted, Cl ...

" by Danish-Norwegian dance-pop group Aqua, the album saw Aspaul team up with long-time collaborators, Gil Lewis and MNEK. The record was inspired by late 90s and early 00s

Europop Europop (also spelled Euro pop) is a style of pop music that originated in Europe during the mid-to-late 1960s and developed to today's form throughout the late 1970s. Europop topped the charts throughout the 1980s and 1990s, with revivals and ...

trance Trance is a state of semi-consciousness in which a person is not self-aware and is either altogether unresponsive to external stimuli (but nevertheless capable of pursuing and realizing an aim) or is selectively responsive in following the dir ...

and

Eurodance Eurodance (sometimes referred to as Euro-NRG) is a genre of electronic dance music that originated in the late 1980s in Europe. It combines many elements of Hip-hop, rap, techno and Eurodisco. This genre of music is heavily influenced by the use ...

music, noted for referencing artists such as "

La Bouche La Bouche (French for "The Mouth", ) is a German-American Eurodance duo best known for the hits " Be My Lover", " Sweet Dreams", " You Won't Forget Me" and "S.O.S." La Bouche was founded in 1994 by record producer Frank Farian in Frankfurt am Ma ...

Ace of Base Ace of Base is a Swedish pop group formed in 1987, originally consisting of siblings Jonas, Linn, and Jenny Berggren, with Ulf Ekberg. They achieved worldwide success following the release of their debut album, '' Happy Nation'', in 1992. L ...

, Steps,

Whigfield Whigfield is an Italian dance act fronted by Danish singer, former model, songwriter, and record producer Sannie Charlotte Carlson (born 11 April 1970), known by her various stage names, including Whigfield, Sannie, or simply Naan. She is best ...

, ATC" and the band who inspired its name, Aqua - as well as Romanian pop music, Balkan pop music and the

Eurovision Song Contest The Eurovision Song Contest (), often known simply as Eurovision, is an international Music competition, song competition organised annually by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) among its members since 1956. Each participating broadcaster ...

. Described as a "monster pop record" and a "party from start to finish", ''Life in Plastic'' received acclaim for its consistency and "

Y2K aesthetic Y2K is an Internet aesthetic based around products, styles, and fashion of the late 1990s and early 2000s. The name Y2K is derived from an abbreviation coined by programmer David Eddy for the year 2000 and its potential computer errors. The Y ...

", as well its eclectic influences. For ''The Independent'', Isobel Lewis wrote "''Life in Plastic'' is a pure

bubblegum pop Bubblegum (also called bubblegum pop) is pop music in a catchy and upbeat style that is marketed for children and adolescents. The term also refers to a more specific rock and pop subgenre, originating in the United States in the late 1960s, th ...

record – but not without substance". In ''Line of Best Fit'', Aspaul was praised as a "shining example of an independent artist making the music they want to make". On 17 October 2022 the album was re-released as ''Life in Plastic, It's Expanded'', a deluxe edition with 8 new tracks and a music video for the song "Thessaloniki". In support of the album's release, Tom performed across the UK, North America and Europe, including Mighty Hoopla, the

2022 Commonwealth Games The 2022 Commonwealth Games, officially known as the XXII Commonwealth Games and commonly known as Birmingham 2022, were an international multi-sport event for members of the Commonwealth of Nations that took place in Birmingham, England betw ...

, held in Birmingham and his second headline tour, the Planet Fantastic Tour which opened in Paris on 19 April 2023.

2024–present: ''Cabin Fever''

In November 2024, Aspaul released the first single from his third album, both called "Cabin Fever".

Artistry

Aspaul is a pop singer and songwriter, though his music has straddled pop, R&B and electronic/dance. Aspaul is noted for using vocal harmonies extensively and his songs often feature his own voice layered several times. His vocals have been described as having an "unapologetic queerness" as well as being "unique", "soulful", "smooth", "versatile" and "effortless". He frequently cites

Rodney Jerkins Rodney Roy Jerkins (born July 29, 1977), better known by his stage name Darkchild, is an American record producer, rapper, and songwriter. He has collaborated with a broad range of popular artists. Jerkins has won two Grammy Awards from 19 nomi ...

Janet Jackson Janet Damita Jo Jackson (born May 16, 1966) is an American singer, songwriter, actress and dancer. She is noted for her innovative, socially conscious and sexually provocative records, as well as elaborate stage shows. Her sound and choreogr ...

and

Jennifer Lopez Jennifer Lynn Lopez (born July 24, 1969), also known by her nickname J.Lo, is an American singer, songwriter, actress, dancer and businesswoman. Lopez is regarded as one of the most influential entertainers of her time, credited with breaking ...

among his favourite musicians, although more recently, the likes of

La Roux La Roux ( ) is an English synth-pop act formed in 2008 by singer Elly Jackson and record producer Ben Langmaid. The act's debut album '' La Roux'' (2009) was a critical and commercial success, winning a Grammy Award and producing hit singles s ...

, Empire of the Sun and

Daft Punk Daft Punk were a French electronic music duo formed in 1993 in Paris by Thomas Bangalter and Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo. They achieved popularity in the late 1990s as part of the French house movement, combining house music, funk, disco, tech ...

have influenced his work stylistically - as well as

Chic Chic (; ), meaning "stylish" or "smart", is an element of fashion. It was originally a French word. Etymology '' Chic'' is a French word, established in English since at least the 1870s. Early references in English dictionaries classified ...

Grace Jones Grace Beverly Jones (born 19 May 1948) is a Jamaican singer, songwriter, model and actress. She began her Model (person), modelling career in New York State, then in Paris, working for fashion houses such as Yves Saint Laurent (brand), Yves St ...

and ELO.

Other work

Tom launched a music and pop culture podcast, ''Bottle Pop with Tom Aspaul'' in 2017. He is the host, with fellow singer-songwriter guests including MNEK,

, Siobhan Donaghy, Anita Blay and

Clare Maguire Clare Rita Mary Maguire (born 15 September 1988) is an English singer-songwriter. She was signed to Universal Music Group, Polydor Records in 2009. She was rated in fifth place in the BBC Sound of 2011 list of the top 15 most promising new artis ...

; as well as music journalist guests such as

. Since 2018 Tom has been sporadically presenting on the internet only radio station, FUBAR Radio. In 2020 he began hosting a weekly show on Gorgeous FM, an LGBTQ+ station for Birmingham, the Black Country and Shropshire. In 2021, Tom was part of United Kingdom's jury in the

Eurovision Song Contest 2021 The Eurovision Song Contest 2021 was the 65th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest. It took place in Rotterdam, Netherlands, following the country's win at the with the song "Arcade (song), Arcade" by Duncan Laurence. The Netherlands was se ...

Personal life

Aspaul is gay. He lived in

Thessaloniki Thessaloniki (; ), also known as Thessalonica (), Saloniki, Salonika, or Salonica (), is the second-largest city in Greece (with slightly over one million inhabitants in its Thessaloniki metropolitan area, metropolitan area) and the capital cit ...

Greece Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...

as part of his master's degree.

Discography

Studio albums

Remix albums

EPs

Mixtapes

Singles

As lead artist

As featured artist

Music videos

Songwriting credits

indicates a background vocal contribution indicates an un-credited lead vocal contribution indicates a credited vocal/featured artist contribution

Tours

;Supporting act * Louise Heavy Love Tour (UK, 2020) *

Self Esteem Self-esteem is confidence in one's own worth, abilities, or morals. Self-esteem encompasses beliefs about oneself (for example, "I am loved", "I am worthy") as well as emotional states, such as triumph, despair, pride, and shame. Smith and Macki ...

I Tour This All The Time (UK, 2023) * Dagny (UK, 2023) *

Kesha Kesha Rose Sebert (born March 1, 1987), formerly stylized as Ke$ha, is an American singer and songwriter. Her first major success came in 2009 when she was featured on rapper Flo Rida's number-one single, "Right Round". Kesha's music and ima ...

, House of Kesha (UK, 2025) ;Headline * The Revenge Body Tour (UK, 2021) * Planet Fantastic Tour (UK, Europe, North America, Australia 2023-4)

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Aspaul, Tom 1986 births Alumni of Central Saint Martins English expatriates in Greece English gay musicians English LGBTQ singers English LGBTQ songwriters English male singer-songwriters English podcasters English singer-songwriters Gay singers Gay songwriters Living people Musicians from Wolverhampton