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Britain’s Got Talent runner-up reveals he was jobless and without a record deal after final – but music star ‘saved him’
The powerful vocalist released his debut single yesterday and has a new album out in May
HE'S become something of a Got Talent legend with successful runs on two of the British series as well as two All Stars editions.
And now vocal powerhouse Tom Ball is gearing up for the release of his debut album, Curtain Call, featuring a collection of self-penned tracks and covers of bona fide classics.
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The record was a labour of love and took much hard graft to make a reality, two years after he finished as runner-up on BGT.
Looking back on the immediate aftermath of that series, former school teacher Tom, 26, acknowledges it was a scary time with no guarantee of a successful singing career.
In an exclusive interview with The Sun, he says: "You leave not really knowing what's going to happen. You have this incredible time and you're constantly buzzing off of those moments you remember.
"For me, it was really scary. I handed in my notice as a teacher; I had to, because they had to find one to take over my job.
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"I didn't have anything after BGT. I didn't have any focus on how I was going to make a music career at that time and I also didn't have a teaching job at that time so it was really quite nerve-wracking.
"Luckily, I wasn't in that situation for very long. Jay, my manager, without him I don't know what I would do. He is truly a mastermind planner, organiser and a great, great friend."
Once upon a time in the world of reality TV talent shows there would be a deluge of record releases from finalists immediately after a series finished.
But Tom, who has also appeared on the Spanish and American All Stars versions of the TV franchise, says the industry has changed a lot and these days labels are more wary about who they hand contracts to.
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Fortunately, his career prospects were given a major boost thanks to the help of one the West End superfan's musical heroes.
"There was nothing, and I don't think nowadays there is very much that's offered straight off the bat," he explains.
Tom Ball’s exhilarating BGT final performance
"I was incredibly lucky to get a phone call from one of my absolute idols to offer me one opportunity to sing one song with him, and that was Michael Ball.
"So Michael Ball phoned me the day after the BGT final. He invited me to go and sing with him that weekend at the London Palladium.
"I of course said yes. That was the one opportunity I was given. Fortunately, while I was there I met The Overtones, who were also supporting Michael that night.
"I got talking with Jay [James] I went onto his radio programme BFBS and I just kept pushing and talking and then eventually was offered management we put together a year plan, a five year plan, a 10 year plan and we worked for it."
Eventually Tom put pen to paper with the Westway label, calling their partnership an "obvious" choice due to its links with the stage.
Indeed, one of the West End's biggest stars, Lucie Jones features on Tom's album.
And she's not the only big name collaborator. The festive track Winter Song was co-written by none other than Take That's Gary Barlow.
Finding the right balance in the tracklist between new material and covers was important to Tom.
He says: "Songwriting is something I'm really passionate about and to have the opportunity to do some covers and some originals is a great position to be in to give people something they know and can expect but also to give them a flavour of what's to come and who I am as a recording artist."
The standout original is the lead single The Best Part, which is out now.
Incredibly catchy and upbeat, the song's chorus hook has shades of Michael Bublé, which is little surprise given Tom's appreciation of the Canadian crooner's music.
He says: "When I went into the recording session I went in with the idea I wanted to write a summer song. A song that is feelgood, I'd play in the car with the windows down and I'd sing along with all my friends in the car.
"Being someone who absolutely adored Michael Bublé he's probably influenced that somewhere down the line. I imagine he snuck in there quite easily."
One of the covers in particular had a lot riding on it, and Tom feared he wouldn't like like the end product.
He explains: "It's one of my favourite songs of all time, that is Bring Him Home form Les Mis, it's absolutely iconic.
"I was really particular about that song and how I wanted to vocal that, how I wanted it all to sound. Going into the recording process I was aware of that and therefore spent so much more time on the details of that song so I was happy.
"Hopefully when people hear it they're also happy with it because it is a little bit different to the original. I tried to put my own stamp on every single song on this album so it is fully my album, and I'm really proud of it."
This new, exciting chapter of Tom's career comes after he underwent a major 'glow-up' and surprised fans with a contemporary new look.
Prior to providing the voice for the virtual Noodle the cat on last year's BGT, Tom got a new trendy hairdo, updated his wardrobe and lost weight.
This last change had the added benefit of helping with the management of his type 1 diabetes - when not enough insulin is produced in the body causing the level of glucose in the blood to become too high.
He says: "After I finished as a teacher I wasn't the healthiest I could be. A large part of it came down to the fact I'm type 1 diabetic, while diet and fitness doesn't contribute to where I can get rid of type 1 diabetes, because there is no cure, being healthy and eating healthy is going to help with that and so that was a driver for me.
"Also I knew if I was going to put myself on stage in front of the world I needed to feel my best, not necessarily look my best, that's an added bonus, but I knew I wanted to feel better about how I looked and how I moved and if I can stand on stage for two hours and not be completely out of breath."
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That's certainly been the case on his sold out UK tour, which has set the scene for an exciting year ahead.
Tom Ball’s new single The Best Part is out now; his debut album Curtain Call is out May 24th.
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