“I am beyond thrilled and excited to finally be releasing my own music. I feel like I have been waiting for this moment all my life and really hope everyone likes my first single. I met a wonderful German producer who was on holiday in Cape Town this year and we began playing around with some of my songs and ‘All of You’ was the first song we did a demo for, so it naturally became the first one to be ready for release,” Neill said.
After five years of travelling, Neill returned to South Africa with great ambitions to finally start his professional music career and focus on his passions
Unfortunately, the 2020 lockdown and Covid-19 shut down the entire world and much like everyone else, Michael was forced to put things on hold to a certain degree, once again. However, during this time, he began working on his second passion and dream project - Michael Neill Apparel.
Michael Neill Apparel was designed and founded during the pandemic and currently has several retail outlets in South Africa just a short year after its launch.
As the world slowly opened up during lockdown, his musical plans were swiftly put back into place. A key feature of Neill as an artist is his fearlessness: not just as a singer/ songwriter but also as an entertainer/performer.
Speaking about the writing process and inspiration for his debut All of You, Neill explains “I usually don’t know when I am going to write a song, it happens very spontaneously. I remember sitting with my guitar in December 2021 while a friend and I were chatting with a glass of wine and the very first verse just came out of nowhere and I began to write it down on paper. I left it for a month before I proceeded to complete it. The inspiration for the song is self-explanatory in a way but it speaks about revealing one’s true feelings towards someone they have known for some time, who may feel the same but it’s been unspoken, and it’s about letting them know exactly how you feel.”
I caught up with Michael last week…
I am a singer/artist and the creative director for my apparel brand.
Everything
Love and autobiographical experiences
Do it and don’t look back
Being recognised globally for my talent and my music.
My family buys my coffin
Harry Styles
It's all around me all the time, I stay inspired.
Performing on stage.
My latest single, All of You
Dropping a very large and heavy microphone on my big toe. I hit a very high note immediately.
Oprah Winfrey, Celine Dion, Whitney Houston, Freddie Mercury and my mom.
I own my own brand, Michael Neill Apparel - and this is my own iconic style. The best is yet to come…
At this very moment, Austin Butler for his phenomenal performance in Elvis. The devotion and discipline he has for his craft is something I truly admire.
My sense of humour
A glass of Merlot
Las Vegas Residency
Being authentically myself and, according to others, my personality.
Mikey
Comedian/actor
Funny, emotional, resilient, strong, multi-talented
Umbrella Academy
The Path Made Clear by Oprah Winfrey
Bob Marley – Everything’s Gonna Be Alright
My mom
Yes
Having a no 1 album
Learning to believe in myself
Loadshedding
Spiders
A moment in time (when I’m on stage, hence the Las Vegas residency)
Be a showman
Stop worrying about what everybody else thinks because they are probably not thinking about me anyway.
The last year of my life and returning to the music industry
I would love to do a lot more, particularly with an organisation such as World Hunger. That said, my clothing business does donate clothing at Christmas time to charities.
To always be the best of myself and to find a way to always positively impact others’ lives.
