Glasgow singer-songwriter Luke Marshall Black recently dropped his emotional new single Losing Sleep and has already landed a slot at Glastonbury Festival this year. We caught up with him to talk about what it's like to be the new kid on the block in the pop industry.

Luke Marshall BlackLuke Marshall Black

For those who may be new to your music, how best would you describe your sound?

I would describe it as soulful pop, pop music that has something a bit deeper going on. Especially my new single Losing Sleep. I'd love my music to sit somewhere in between the soulfulness of Paolo Nutini and the emotional rawness of The Adele/Sam Smiths you know.

What challenges have you faced in the music industry so far?

I think the biggest challenge has been just learning to move at my own pace and not get pressured into releasing music before I'm ready. It took a while to get to the point of releasing the first single but there were several points where I was feeling pressured into doing it sooner than I felt ready to. I'm glad I held faith and waited till I knew it was the right time for me to step into the musical landscape. There can be a lot of pressure to do things a certain way from people who don't really care that much about you so it's been important for me to follow my own path and do things the way I want to do them.

How difficult would you say this career path is in terms of making a name for yourself?

I'm still very much at the start of the process so I'm not sure. My motivation so far has been that I'm just trying to make good art that I am proud of so if I manage to do that I'm happy. Whether or not people like it is not really anything I can control (although I hope they do).

How important is it for you to have creative control over the work you produce?

Yeah it's very important. I mean, creating things is always better when you work collaboratively because you end up with something more rounded but I think working with people who understand your vision and know what you're trying to achieve is really important and that's where your creative control is.

Where do you draw influence and inspiration from for your work?

Ehm, from everything really! I try and just write all the time and find that whatever's happening in my life just finds its way into my work. There's a lot of great musicians and artists I stay tuned into because they inspire me to be a better songwriter but the main thing is just being present and showing up to do the work. Everyday we see things or feel something and all of that ends up coming back out of you at some point, especially if you're there, ready to write about it.

If you could collaborate with anybody going forward, who would you choose and why?

There's a tonne of people. I'd love to write with Joel Baker. I think he's a brilliant artist and seems very tuned into the process of writing consistently and letting life be reflected in his work. There's also loads of songwriters who I think are just great craftsmen; Ed Holloway, James Earp, Jez Ashurst.

Tell us a random, funny fact about you that not many people know.

I can whistle and hum at the same time. Weird party trick. Although I met someone recently who could do it too so I'm starting to worry it's not that unique.

Do you have definitive aims or goals for your career?

Yeah I'm working towards the point of making an album but If I can get a couple of solid EPs out and get out touring them, I'll be really happy.  I'd like to be able to play across Europe. (The US would be nice too but that's really just because I want a holiday).

Where do you hope to be this time next year?

This time next year I'd like to have gained a bit of industry traction and be in the process of EP2.

What should we expect from you in the coming weeks and months?

I've finished a project so I'll be releasing a few singles with some awesome live videos the first of which - Losing Sleep is available now which I'm very excited about. I'll be here just trying to keep creating and figuring out my artistry moving forward. There's lots of great music to come.