Within the mid to late ‘90s, only a few British solo recording artists skilled the intense lights and dizzying highs of planet pop fairly like Anthony Kavanagh — higher identified merely as Kavana. With a string of chart hits, excursions alongside international icons, and a loyal fanbase, the Manchester native appeared to have all of it. However behind the polished picture was a much more complicated story — one in every of private struggles, resilience, and reinvention.
Now, in his candid new memoir Pop Scars, Kavana lifts the veil on each the music trade and his non-public life, sharing the hardships that formed him as profoundly because the triumphs. Sincere, uncooked, and infrequently stunning, the e book lays naked each the glitter and the grit of life within the highlight.
“I actually wish to make it clear to those who this e book isn’t a pity celebration, or a woe is me story of how arduous my life was once I was a popstar,” a cheery but candid Kavana tells me simply moments after wrapping up an look on Irish tv. “I personally suppose the extra fascinating chapters are those that delve into realities of coping with issues like habit, grief and loss. For me, these seasons of my life inform a much more necessary story than the anecdotes of me performing out on the BRITs or having some random encounter with a film star at a showbiz celebration.”
“However I assume that fascination all of us have with fame and celeb is what garners essentially the most consideration proper? And I get that, as a result of every time I’m studying a biography or autobiography, I wish to know all the scandal and gossip too (laughs).”
I’VE GOT SOMETHING TO GIVE…
“I first considered writing a e book years in the past, however due to who I used to be, and the way I used to be functioning at the moment, it was by no means going to occur.” Alluding to his nicely documented points with alcohol and habit, the ‘Funky Love’ singer continues: “All people’s relationship with mixing alcohol and creativity is totally different, however for me, writing and habit don’t go collectively! I can promise you, I’m on no account some type of modern-day Ernest Hemingway, who can extensively drink a couple of bottles of wine an evening, after which prove their finest work… my preliminary efforts had been a catastrophe!”
After embracing sobriety in 2022, Kav says that while years of songwriting had taught him tips on how to seize emotion briefly bursts, crafting a full memoir required extra self-discipline, extra construction, and a special sort of inventive stamina. To assist channel his concepts and keep on monitor, he enrolled on a writing course, giving himself each the steerage and accountability he wanted. The expertise not solely sharpened his abilities, but in addition gave him the boldness to sort out his story with readability and goal, turning scattered recollections right into a cohesive and compelling narrative.
“Pouring alcohol into my system for all of these years zapped me all of my creativity,” Kavana admits candidly. “And once I felt like I wasn’t capable of be inventive anymore, the following two issues to vanish from my life had been my confidence and vanity — and belief me, you want these traits and character traits if you wish to put your self on the market and do one thing within the public eye. So enrolling on the writing course felt like the correct factor to do as a result of one, it will assist me to rebuild my confidence, and two as a result of it meant I used to be going to be round different writers and creatives.”
“And it was enjoyable, we had an actual chuckle. There have been 12 different ladies on the course, and me — that entire situation might have develop into a e book in itself, belief me (laughs). However in all seriousness, it was nice. My tutor was superb, she actually helped me to search out my voice, and develop my writing model. Earlier than I met her, all I actually had had been these muddled recollections written up into little scenes. Beneath her steerage I used to be capable of piece the whole lot collectively, and create extra of a imaginative and prescient for a way I needed the e book to be.”
“I keep in mind saying to her at some point: ‘I’m not well-known sufficient to jot down a e book, no one will purchase it.’ And that’s when she instructed me that if I needed this challenge to be extra than simply one other salacious celeb memoir, then I needed to lean into the kitchen-sink stuff, which means I ought to share extra of the tales and points that everybody can relate to. Whether or not that be speaking concerning the relationship between me and my Mum, me exploring my sexuality, or these actual, darkish moments of being caught in habit.”
“That easy piece of recommendation helped me to see, and consider, that I had a worthwhile story to inform.”
With a wealth of songwriting expertise beneath his belt, Kavana was no stranger to shaping phrases into extra highly effective and emotionally resonant prose. However moving into the world of e book writing was a very totally different artwork — one which demanded persistence, organisation, and a far deeper stage of storytelling than a three-minute pop tune might ever permit. As a substitute of chasing hooks and melodies, he discovered himself piecing collectively long-form narratives, revisiting recollections, and sitting with feelings in a approach that was each difficult and cathartic. The method wasn’t all the time simple, however it gave him a brand new inventive outlet — one which allowed him to replicate, heal, and share his story with an honesty that music alone might by no means totally seize.
“Whenever you’re writing a e book, there’s clearly no music, no melody, and no instrumentation concerned, so that you’re relying purely on the ability of phrases to convey emotions and feelings to the reader,” a considerate Kavana explains. “Meaning it’s a must to suppose extra rigorously about the kind of language you employ, and the way one thing reads aloud, quite than simply going with no matter rhymes or synchs to the beat of a backing monitor.”
“Whenever you’re writing a tune, you’re writing to extra of a method, so there are set parameters it’s a must to work to. However with a e book, there aren’t any guidelines actually — you simply get right into a zone, and write till you run out of steam, or the subject material turns into too painful.”
Of the pangs of disappointment he felt wanting again on sure eras of his life so far, Kav provides: “In fact there are issues I want I hadn’t finished, and conditions that I remorse. Sure relationships ended before I hoped, and a few profession stuff didn’t work out, so yeah, reliving these moments while writing the e book was robust, however actually, fretting over the previous, and worrying concerning the future are two issues I’ve finished all through my complete life, so in a approach it was no totally different to how I’m each different day (laughs).”
“I carried a whole lot of guilt for a very long time, and due to that I’d usually downplay a whole lot of my achievements, I’ll maintain my palms up and say, that’s one thing I’m positively responsible of doing. However on the flip facet of all of the disappointment, it was additionally good to replicate and look again on my popstar days — it jogged my memory that my story isn’t all doom and gloom.”
SOMEBODY SAID THAT I WOULD BE THE KID TO GO ALL THE WAY
Placing all of these misplaced choices, perceived failures, and disappointments to 1 facet, it’s necessary to recollect Kavana not only for the private struggles, and battles with habit that marked sure intervals of his life, however for the real expertise and success that first propelled him into the highlight. Within the Nineties, he rose to fame together with his distinctive voice, magnetic charisma, and chart-topping hits that resonated with a large viewers, incomes him a spot in pop historical past. His artistry and talent to attach with listeners are legacies that deserve recognition past the difficulties he later confronted.
“I cherished being a popstar,” Kav says with out lacking a beat. “I got here on the scene proper when pop music was on the cusp of turning into large once more. You’d bought Take That, the Spice Ladies, Boyzone, and the Backstreet Boys, all of those unimaginable acts dominating the charts, and taking on the world! It was an unimaginable time in British music, and I assume, in my very own little approach, I used to be part of it, and that feels good… pardon the pun.”
“I used to be on the BRITs in ’97 when Geri Halliwell wore that Union Jack costume! I toured with Boyzone, I dressed up as Clark Kent / Superman and carried out at The Smash Hits Ballot Winners Get together, I gained a Smash Hits Award, I travelled the world, I met my idols — the checklist goes on! It was all a little bit of a whirlwind, however a extremely enjoyable one.”
Pausing for a second to replicate, Kavana concedes: “Do know what the issue with me is? I’m a realist. So I all the time wish to be sincere and upfront about issues. So hear, yeah, in fact of the popstar years had been enjoyable, however a lot of the music trade is predicated on bravado and picture, and a whole lot of what you see isn’t actual. What helped me to realised that? After I noticed that my Smash Hits Award was made out of tin quite than gold… gutted (laughs).”
Kavana Stay at The Smash Hits Ballot Winners Get together 1997
As a society, we’re usually led to consider that cash and fame are the final word cures for disappointment, ache, or insecurity — that success within the focus will by some means erase the struggles of on a regular basis life. However the fact is, wealth and recognition don’t all the time assure happiness or fulfilment. As a rule, they will enlarge current challenges, leaving individuals to confront the identical doubts and difficulties, slightly below a brighter, harsher gentle.
“I assumed as soon as I’d gotten myself a supervisor, a document deal and a few good songs recorded, success would comply with virtually immediately, after which I’d be happiest individual on the planet,” Kavana muses. “However I wasn’t. You could nicely get swept up in all the chaos and the relentless workload, however the points and issues you might have don’t simply go away as a result of a few strangers on the road know your identify.”
“The late 90s had been complicated for me, there was loads happening in my head. I used to be battling my sexuality, and I used to be lonely… however how might I really feel something aside from utter pleasure as a result of my goals had been coming true? Feeling the rest would have simply made me an ungrateful brat proper? So I instructed myself I needed to put my head down, get on with issues and suppress my feelings and anxieties as finest I might.”
As he himself admits, music was Kavana’s saviour and lifeline — a sanctuary away from the chaos of fame and the interior struggles he was combating to beat. Within the noise of public consideration and the burden of non-public battles, it supplied him readability, escape, and a way of grounding.
“Music was my factor rising up, it offered me with an escape and it opened my eyes to a complete different world — one I needed to be part of, one I wanted to be part of it. I nonetheless can’t fairly consider I discovered a method to make that occur…”
“I used to be keen to stroll by a brick wall to make my dream develop into my actuality.”
YOU GOTTA REACH OUT FOR THE HIGHEST STAR
Regardless of having no trade connections or insider benefit, Kavana managed to carve out a spot for himself within the cutthroat world of pop purely by dedication, uncooked expertise, and an unshakable perception in his goals. Lengthy earlier than “manifesting” turned a buzzword, he was already residing it — visualising success, placing himself in the correct locations, and holding onto the understanding that he was destined to be on stage. His rise was much less about privilege or luck, and extra about sheer willpower, proving that generally essentially the most highly effective device an artist can have, is the conviction that their imaginative and prescient will develop into actuality.
“I cringe even saying it, however perhaps I used to be ‘manifesting’ earlier than any of us actually knew that manifesting was a factor,” Kav laughs rolling his eyes. “Way back to I can keep in mind, I walked round telling everybody I used to be going to be a popstar! Perhaps I used to be delusional and overly cocky, however I used to be adamant that I used to be going to be managed by this one specific man, and that at some point I’d be on High of The Pops, and the duvet of Smash Hits, and… I don’t know the way, however all of these issues occurred. There have been some sliding doorways moments in fact, and I positively labored arduous and hustled my approach into a whole lot of rooms, however like I wrote within the e book, regardless of the chances stacked in opposition to me, I believed in myself, and I used to be keen to stroll by a brick wall to make my dream my actuality.”
“As we’ve already mentioned, I had an excellent time — the 90s had been a whole lot of enjoyable — however I quickly realized that ‘popstar fame’ can generally be fleeting, and there’s no denying that after ‘Will You Wait For Me?’ bought to quantity 29 within the charts in 1999, curiosity in me and my music began to dwindle — the cellphone wasn’t ringing as a lot, my schedule was starting to decelerate, not one of the massive TV exhibits or magazines appeared to need me anymore, and everybody round me felt to be pulling away. Finally I bought dropped by my document label, and… that was it.”
“You must keep in mind, all I’d ever needed to be was a popstar! I didn’t have a plan B, or something to fall again on. So once I’ve bought individuals telling me my dream was over, I used to be crushed. I do know there are far, far worse issues that may occur to an individual, however I’ll be sincere, at the moment it felt like my life was over.”
I GOT A ONE WAY TICKET OUT OF INNOCENCE
After parting methods with Virgin Information on the daybreak of the brand new millennium, Kavana might have simply adopted the acquainted route taken by a lot of his friends — popping up for the odd public look, making an attempt his luck at presenting, or venturing into musical theatre, earlier than ultimately fading into the huge pop abyss. However following the group was by no means Kav’s model. As a substitute, he doubled down, packed his baggage, and set his sights on Los Angeles with nothing however grit, expertise, and the audacity to chase greater goals. On reflection he now says the transfer was much less about escaping his previous, and extra about reclaiming his narrative quite than letting the trade dictate his destiny. And so, at simply 22, he charged in the direction of his future with the identical spark that first made him a star.
“I wasn’t ready to let ‘failed popstar’ be my destiny, I simply wasn’t having it,” a defiant Kavana explains of his choice to up sticks and go away the UK. “I had aspirations and different goals I needed to fulfil. Okay, issues hadn’t labored out for me in Europe with the second album, however I used to be having fun with unimaginable success in Asia, notably with songs I’d written with American songwriters and producers, in order that gave me the boldness to discover the potential for working with different musicians and creatives within the States.”
By his personal admission, relocating to LA additionally gave him the chance to expertise a very totally different lifestyle, one far faraway from the UK pop scene. And so, away from the pressures of the music trade, he was capable of breathe, reset, and start to really discover himself, surrounded by new cultures and inventive vitality, affording him the liberty to develop each personally and artistically.
“I discovered peace in LA, and I loved having extra management over my life,” Kav smiles. “I moved into an unimaginable house, I started courting for the primary time after which discovered myself in a correct, loving relationship — it was like I used to be residing out my faculty or college years however in my 20’s, and it was great.”
“There was a lot hope and optimism in these early days, I felt like I’d been given a second probability. In actual fact I keep in mind being on Sundown Boulevard at some point, the solar was shining, and I simply regarded up on the sky and stated: ‘thanks God for my life’.”
With the great thing about hindsight, we marvel how does Kav look again on that interval of his life now? “I name these my ‘halcyon days’ (laughs). I did some nice work out in America, and I used to be given some improbable alternatives. It was a very good time in my life, I imply in the direction of the top issues had been a bit bleak, primarily as a result of I used to be starting to expire of cash and behaving in methods I shouldn’t… so when my visa was up for renewal I made a decision sufficient was sufficient, and it was time to come back again residence.”
THIS WAS MY DREAM
With the discharge of Pop Scars, Anthony Kavana efficiently manages to free himself from the shackles of his previous.
Via candid tales, uncooked recollections, and insightful reflections, he delivers a profoundly sincere memoir that refuses shrink back from ache, but additionally celebrates the enjoyment, humour, and resilience which have outlined his story. It’s a robust reminder that the boy who as soon as appeared untouchable was, actually, achingly human.
“I don’t wish to sound corny, or for individuals to suppose I’m simply reeling off a bunch of clichés for the sake of promoting a e book, however I actually have learnt loads about myself all through this entire course of,” Kav says with a half smile, half grimace. “I’m far more resilient than I assumed, and I’ve found the significance of getting compassion, not only for others, however for myself too.”
Shifting the main target away from himself, he provides: “However perhaps none of that is really about me. Perhaps that is extra about individuals realising that life is all about discovering silver linings, and believing that change is feasible, irrespective of how dangerous issues get — you simply should have hope.”
Pop Scars: A memoir on fame, habit and the darkish facet of 90s pop by Anthony Kavanagh, is out now, £22 (Blink Publishing), additionally accessible in eBook and Audio (learn by the writer).
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