By Ellie Baker
It's merely noon when I sit down with Jake. “It’s probably too late for breakfast” he tells me. Confident in his choice, it's fittingly a moment pensive as to why 10 years later he’s still a prominent figure in an industry on the conclusive curve of change.
Your latest single ‘Seven Bridge Road’, what's it about?
It's a song I've written with a band called Doves who are really great guys. It's a song of nostalgia and reflection of the place you’ve come from. Those songs are always quite nice once in a while.
Your sound has explored many avenues. What role does perception play in these choices?
If I worried too much about that then I wouldn't have released a lot of the music that I have. Obviously not all of it is going to go down amazingly - that'd be too good to be true. I think it's important to experiment and try different things. If it doesn't go well you learn something from it.
What’s one song you wish you'd written?
‘Jealous Guy’ by John Lennon
Your love of football is conspicuous and you've recently written the soundtrack for Ronaldinho's documentary. How did the whole process come about?
The Douglas brothers, Andrew Douglas who directed the movie, have filmed previous music videos of mine. They asked if I'd be interested in having a go at it. I wrote a few little pieces. In the past I'd enjoyed working on that stuff, but I kept it to myself. I sent a few bits I'd written and worked on and they liked what they heard.
Did it push you out of your comfort zone?
It’s something I've never done before so there were definitely challenges. The whole experience was incredible, I learnt a lot. It's an offer I couldn't refuse, it's Ronaldinho! You're putting yourself out there, and if it sounds bad there's nowhere to hide. What I really enjoyed was that I got to write music about his life… things he'd done on a football pitch, moments in his life. Trying to underline that with music was an incredible experience.
Who would write the soundtrack to your life?
I'm only 28, so I guess it'd only be a short one! I love Vangelis.
The documentary is named ‘The Happiest Man in the World’. When are you at your happiest?
When I’m playing music. When I'm on stage playing in front of people, or in the studio writing. There's a feeling of excitement you get with that melody or that lyric. That's when I'm at my happiest.
Before lockdown I'd been touring a lot. I didn't think I'd be so happy to get back out on the road. It's been great - we've just finished our UK and Ireland tour, that was amazing. I could sense that the crowd were just happy to be there. It's been a long time.
It’s been an incredible 10 years. What's in store for the next 10?
More albums, more music. To keep pushing forward and to keep releasing music that hopefully people enjoy. There have been ups and downs the past 10 years but I'm looking forward to the next 10. I don't really know what else I'm good at.
Not football…?
As a youngster maybe, but I don’t think I’m going to get that contract at 28!
You can listen to his latest single ‘Seven Bridge Road’ here http://JakeBugg.lnk.to/SevenBridgeRoad/youtube
‘Ronnie Rockstar’ taken from the official soundtrack for Ronaldinho's documentary ‘The Happiest Man in the World’. Soundtrack written by Jake & documentary available now on new Fifa Streaming Service.