Taken from the Summer 2020 issue of Wonderland. Pre-order your copy of the issue now.
Like many of us, Flynn is finding it difficult having to spend so much time at home. “I like being on the move,” he explains, telling me how — despite ordering a rowing machine, cycling and playing loads of FIFA online — “it’s hard to find the inspiration to be motivated and to write new material when I’m in one place for too long.” Ever the optimist, however, the singer-songwriter is enthusiastic about the new-found positives of being at home, namely the opportunity it’s given him to learn “a lot about [himself] through this whole experience,” as well as to spend more time with his family.
Flynn’s earliest memory of music is singing over cassette tapes, which he would dig out from his uncle’s room as a child. “It’s weird if you think about it; I was basically creating my own demos and I had no idea,” he laughs. The first record he ever owned himself was The Marshall Mathers LP, with Eminem being his favourite artist growing up — and though his music might not sonically match his rap idol’s, the popularity he hopes it will have certainly does. “Alternative melodic pop, with lyrics that mean something to me,” is his answer to the difficult question of how he’d describe his music, citing Pharrell Williams as someone it would be “pretty sick” to collaborate with. Flynn’s eclectic personal taste seeps into his music, and it’s clear he’s a student of the game from the people he aspires to emulate.
Flynn says that he wants people to feel “a sense of belonging” when they listen to his tracks: “I would say I’m mostly inspired by travel, friendship, relationships and just any new experiences or struggles I face in my day to day life,” he explains. “If [people] can relate to what I’m saying and feel like they’re not alone, then that’s good!” His latest single “One of Us” is no different, capturing the cathartic feeling of finally returning to a place that feels like home, with lines like “I’ve been lost and / I’ve been dying to find / A piece of me again / Now I’m back here / And it’s beating inside / I feel it, feel it all again.” [That lyric] is really close to my heart,” he says, emphasising: “home is really important to me.”
As we come to the end of our conversation, we discuss the world’s current near-apocalyptic atmosphere, and what Flynn would do if today was his last on earth. “I would have a big session in the pub,” he laughs, “with all my close friends and family. Loads of music, lots of storytelling and just one big reunion, really.” Perhaps unsurprisingly, his immediate plans post-lockdown aren’t much different, and revolve around being reunited with the people who feel like home to him. Looking forward, he hopes to be able to play live shows again in the future to bring his fans together too. “I think if I’m still writing and releasing music that I love, and playing gigs in a year’s time, I’ll be happy,” he smiles. “A tour would be amazing, though, so maybe that too…”