Rag'n'Bone Man at O2 Academy Leeds: Singer on how his settled family life provided platform for new album
There was a moment when the unmistakable voice of Rory Graham – Rag'n'Bone Man - was never out of the airwaves. When his hit single Human came out in 2016, Graham, who by that point had already been performing for years, shot to fame, acclaim and public adulation - and in the aftermath his songs seemed to come out of every radio station, TV advert and humming pedestrian.
It is clear, talking to him in early September this year, that while people taking joy from his music is a huge source of pride, the inevitable limelight that to many musicians would be a just reward for their artistry felt to Graham like a burden.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdWith his 40th birthday approaching next year, how does he look back on that period of sudden fame in his life?


“It feels like I’ve sort of come to terms with the bits that are uncomfortable,” says Graham, speaking to The Yorkshire Post over video call from the studio at the end of his garden. “Performing and making music, it doesn't feel like a job, it's really the thing that I love the most. But there are parts of this that have always felt very uncomfortable to me.
“Like doing TV stuff, or being in the spotlight, being in the press, red carpets, photo shoots, all the stuff like that has always just felt really uncomfortable. And I think I've come to a point where it sometimes still feels uncomfortable, but I've got the right people around me that I can just be like, ‘I don't want to be here anymore’, and people understand that.”
Attention is again focused on Graham because last month he released his third album, What Do You Believe In?, and is heading out on tour in support of the record, with the opening sold-out show at O2 Academy Leeds on Saturday, November 16.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdHe is feeling settled in his personal life and, now, just wants to put on great shows for his fans. How best to do that is up for debate, however.


“I’m trying to figure out how to play this new album, but also give people what they want. Because people still want to hear the old songs, but I'd really like to be able to play this record as a whole piece of music. It's hard because you don't want to bombard people with just brand new tunes.”
The album has benefitted, he believes, from his stable home life.
He adds: “I'm in a situation in my life where everything is very calm and I'm very happy in my family situation, I’ve found somebody that I love (partmer Zoe Beardsall) and a family that I love very much. The influence on my music has been really positive.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide Ad“There are some heavy issues in (the album), but generally the backdrop is pretty hopeful. It feels warm and sunny and that was very intentional.
“I basically started with a couple of songs that harked back to my love of soul and hip hop. It feels very soulful and that was also intentional. I wanted to be able to play on stage and to make people feel good. I know I’m still going to always have those moments of ballads that people get emotional to and stuff, but also, I want to bring light to it, and this feels like my moment to do that in this record.”
For all the records he has sold - millions, that is, and chart-toppers too - Graham’s passion, as expected, is all about the music.
“I don't think I strive for success in numbers. Well, I don't think I ever have. I guess I was just lucky to be in the right place at the right time with songs like Human and Giant.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide Ad“It came out at the right time, where people must have wanted it and that gave me a foot in the door. I think now I just try to make the best music I can and not really worry about anything like that. I'm not looking at the charts and thinking, what can I do to get my place in there? If people like it, then fantastic. But as long as I can still go and play gigs to people, then that's the thing that makes me happy.”
One of his favourite tracks on the new album is Hideaway because he loves the production, its horn line but also, he is happy to say, his own vocals.
“I've always been very critical of my vocal takes and I've been one of those people that just goes back and back and back and does it time and time again, but we actually just used the first take of the vocal on that song and I really love it. It was just really natural, the way that it was recorded.”
He adds: “I'm very critical of my own songs but I feel a confidence with this album that I haven't felt before with my music. Not a confidence that it'll be successful but just in a way that I really love it.”
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdAlthough it is uplifting material, some of it was born from grief. Graham’s mother, Jane, died in January 2023 and her influence can also be heard on the album, particularly in Hope You Felt Loved At The End, a ballad about her passing.
“It was a very emotional experience writing and recording it,” says Graham, "but now I listen back to it and I'm like, that's actually really good and it makes me feel better about that whole situation.”
Themes spirituality inspired the title track, too. “I was writing in a studio in Bermondsey and I kind of knew that my mum wasn't going to make it through, basically, and I was trying to navigate what I was going to say to my children,” he says. “It was about how I’m not really a religious person but… being able to tell them that somebody’s gone somewhere else and that’s what happens. But I've always been atheist, I wasn't brought up with religion, I've never read the Bible, that's not me, but there's a part of me in that situation that really wanted to believe that there is somewhere else that you go to and essentially, the final thought of the song is like, it doesn’t really matter what we all believe in, it's the fact that we can deal with these situations collectively with love, and that's how we get through it.”
He is looking forward to starting the tour in Yorkshire, which has previously been good to him with shows at The Piece Hall in Halifax – he is back there, and at Scarborough Open Air Theatre, in 2025 - and the Brudenell Social Club in Leeds.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdAnd what next? Touring in places he has never been to is on the list and returning to America. “I'm not particularly driven to break the US, but I would quite like to go back and tour there again. I want to do a Tiny Desk concert,” he says, referring to the online musical showcase which invites well-known artists to perform stripped back sets in a small shop space.
There is something that has been nagging throughout the interview – a cut-out visage resting on top of a keyboard against the wall behind Graham. Is it Dwight Schrute, a character in the US adaptation of The Office television comedy?
The singer rolls back in his chair, takes the cut-out, wheels back towards the camera and holds up the face. “It’s actually Ian Beale from EastEnders.”
He’s only human, after all.
For ticket information, visit www.ragnboneman.com/live
Comment Guidelines
National World encourages reader discussion on our stories. User feedback, insights and back-and-forth exchanges add a rich layer of context to reporting. Please review our Community Guidelines before commenting.