“Music is so good for my soul…”
Gill Sherry
They say it takes a mere seven seconds to make a first impression. That’s certainly the case when I meet Jai McDowall. I’m greeted with a beaming smile and an unexpected (but very welcome) kiss on the cheek, both of which instantly enamour me to Tarbolton’s most famous son. He is, I decide, a lovely guy.
Jai is best-known for winning Britain’s Got Talent in 2011. What some people don’t realise, however, is that prior to that he also auditioned for The X Factor.
“I’d done X Factor three times. The first time I probably would have been about 16, and then again a couple of years after that. The last time was 2010 when I got through to boot camp.”
Having been brought up in a musical family (his dad sings and his grandparents were also singers) it was perhaps inevitable that Jai would follow suit. In fact, Jai was only nine years old when he first performed on stage.
“We were on holiday in Gran Canaria and there was a karaoke competition… and I won. I was the first kid to win. The video still exists somewhere.”
He sang ‘I Will Always Love You’, not the easiest of songs to master but one that means a lot to Jai and his family.
“My granny passed away the year before we went on that holiday. I was very close to my granny and… you can hear it on the video right at the very end when my mum says ‘your granny would be really proud of you’ so I always associate that song with her.”
In October this year, it will be 30 years since she passed so Jai intends to record the song and release it as a single. In the meantime, he recalls other holiday memories.
“I auditioned for The American Idol Experience… it was an attraction at Disney. I did win. They gave me a golden ticket to get to the front of any audition in the States, but I couldn’t use it because I wasn’t an American citizen. I’ll frame it one day. I keep all that stuff, but where do you put it?”
It’s a genuine question, asked with a hint of embarrassment. After my seven-second first impression, I soon realise that Jai is not only charming and compassionate, but also modest and a wee bit insecure.
“Sometimes, especially on the west coast of Scotland – and I’ve had a lot of it over the years – folk will say ‘don’t get too big for your boots’. It’s never meant in malice, but it’s one of those things. You need that self-confidence in yourself to have the belief to do something like that. And that’s how I got here. You just need to be confident in the gift that you’ve been given.”
We all know there’s a fine line between confidence and arrogance and while it’s been necessary for Jai to have plenty of the former, the latter is non-existent. In fact, far from being arrogant, I don’t think I’ve ever met a humbler guy.
“I’m still having to process that I did actually win. It’s something that doesn’t happen to kids where I grew up.”
But it did happen, and after that famous win in 2011 Jai went on to enjoy a solo career that included performing on the Britain’s Got Talent Tour and The Royal Variety Performance, recording a studio album, two EPs and numerous singles and, most recently, bagging a spot on an Icelandic cruise. There was also one unforgettable moment at Glasgow’s Royal Concert Hall when he was invited to sing ‘To Where You Are’ (the song he performed to win BGT) with the original artist, Josh Groban.
“That’s still one of the best experiences I’ve ever had. I was shi**ing myself because I’d been singing a cut down version of the song for the show, and I had to learn the whole song. We had a few rehearsals beforehand but I was literally standing at the mic shaking!”
And what about the actual TV shows? Does he have a favourite memory from those, besides winning of course?
“For me, it’s the vocal coach, who I still use to this day. She’s called Anne-Marie Speed and she was very good at making me realise how to use my instrument. Beforehand… it was always just ‘here’s a song, learn it and sing it’. She helped me really connect to my voice and actually feel it. That’s something that I’ve always been really grateful for.”
His response is yet another example of how grounded he is. Although he did go on to name-drop a certain One Direction member.
“I did meet Niall Horan. He was very young and slightly annoying.” This is said with affection rather than rancor. “I love his music now, though. Him and Harry Styles are my two favourite ex-1D members.”
This leads to him recalling more snippets from the past.
“I auditioned for a boy band once… and I auditioned for Stars in Their Eyes Kids as well. I was going to sing a Ronan Keating song but my mum and dad didn’t let me do it because of my exams. I was raging!”
The fact that he’s laughing suggests he doesn’t hold it against them.
“Things obviously worked out the way they were supposed to work out.”
Indeed. Speaking of which, now seems a good time to ask about his upcoming tour with G4. Jai joined the group last year, replacing original member Lewis Raines who had to withdraw for medical reasons.
“I struggled a wee bit at first,” Jai admits, “because they’re opera trained and I’m not. The confidence has come, but there’s still that imposter syndrome.”
The way the fans have embraced him must certainly have eased his self-doubt. But it was there in spades when he faced the dilemma of whether to join the group or not.
“Folk normally go from groups to their solo careers rather than the other way around… so I did struggle with it, you know, what are other people going to think? I’m just human so I have those thoughts. I always gauge how the general public are going to think by asking my mum.”
His mum correctly pointed out that G4 is a long-established, successful group and that there was no reason whatsoever why Jai shouldn’t join them. I must admit, when I heard he was doing so, I thought it was a perfect fit and, from Jai’s point of view, he has no regrets.
“I love doing my own stuff,” he tells me, “because I can let go a wee bit and I don’t have to worry about blending in. But it’s also nice to be on stage with the other guys and just have them to bounce off. Doing a tour like that – 73 dates, five nights on, five nights off – when you get to the fourth night, you’re keeping each other up and that’s good.”
He’s referring to the G4 20th Anniversary Tour, but there’s also a local gig he’s particularly looking forward to. On 13th November, G4 will be appearing at Ayr Town Hall as part of the group’s Christmas Tour.
“We haven’t finished the set list… but expect hymns and carols and possibly a bit more pop.”
This prompts me to ask about G4’s genre. Originally a barbershop quartet, Jai explains how the group has evolved since finishing second in the very first series of The X Factor in 2004.
“The term ‘popera’ is what they use. It’s not opera but it’s not pop. It’s a sort of classical crossover.”
I can’t help but notice he said ‘they’ rather than ‘we’ but decide not to pick him up on it. He’s already admitted that his sense of belonging is growing and it’s clear that the other members of the group are more than happy with his contributions and performances. In fact, they’ve adapted their set list to accommodate Jai’s particular style of singing. That in itself speaks volumes and I, for one, am really looking forward to that Christmas concert. Having heard Jai sing as part of The Ayrshire Lads in February, I have no doubt it will be amazing.
“I absolutely loved that,” he says of his performances with Jeremy Levif, The MacDonald Brothers, and Blair Gilmour. “From the get-go, we all got on really well. We all talk on a regular basis… it’s been great to watch how much they’ve all grown over that space in time.”
He’s also still in touch with Ronan Parke who finished runner up when Jai won the big prize in 2011.
“Wee Ronan… we’re still talking which is nice 13 years on. Through the years, I’ve met other contestants and become really good friends with people who’ve done the show, even before me or after me. It’s just because they get it, they know the process. They know what it’s like to go from a wee boy living in Tarbolton to somebody on the TV.”
He admits it took some getting used to when he was first thrust into the limelight all those years ago.
“Where I grew up… it’s quite a sheltered life if you’re not used to travelling, so London and the TV studios was all a bit nuts!”
Especially as he went into the competition with no expectations: “It was stage by stage. Then, by the time you get to the semi-final they’ve taken you shopping and you’ve got all these fancy clothes and they say ‘if you get to the final, you get to keep these’. I got a leather jacket and I was like, I just want to get to the final for the clothes! I didn’t really care about anything else.”
He tells a similar story about his X Factor experience when, rather than setting his sights on winning the contest, he just wanted TV time so he could share it on YouTube.
“At the time I was still working in the care sector and I was quite happy with my job. I just thought, if it doesn’t work out, it doesn’t work out. But thankfully it did.”
Had it not have worked out, we may still have been watching Jai singing locally in pubs and clubs. That is, after all, where it all started. He was just 14 when he began singing with his dad and his then bandmate, Ernie.
“It’s where I learned to do what I do. I cut my teeth there. One of the very first gigs I ever did was in the Cassillis in Maybole.”
These days, his travels are taking him far and wide. And, if all goes to plan, he’ll be visiting Nashville next year.
“My favourite music to listen to is country. I’ve got a few friends in Nashville… so the hope is I’ll got next year. The idea is to write more and see what happens.”
And that’s not the only thing he has up his sleeve. After meeting a couple of authors on a recent cruise, there’s the possibility of an autobiography to consider.
“I’d never actually thought about it, because you don’t think your life is that interesting… but it’s nice to have the prospect and that someone believes enough in my story to tell it.”
It’s another modest response, as is his next declaration: “I’m very grateful for the experiences I’ve had, the places I’ve been, the people I’ve met, and the friends I’ve made. I genuinely wouldn’t have done it if it hadn’t been for the show. I’ll never take it for granted how lucky I am. But as much as I am very blessed to do what I do, sometimes I just miss being at home with my dog.”
He may have won Britain’s biggest talent show, but Jai McDowall’s feet are still firmly on the ground. Not only that, he’s finally beginning to put himself first and stop worrying about what other people think.
“I’ve started realising that I need to take care of my health and my mental wellbeing. Life is good at the moment. It’s taken a long time to get to a point where I’m comfortable in my own skin. It’s my life, it doesn’t matter about anyone else’s opinions. This is what makes me happy and what brings me joy. Music is so good for my soul and I’m very blessed and very lucky to have the ability to heal myself through music.”
My first impression was spot on. Jai McDowall is a lovely guy.
