Please Cilmi

Sixteen year-old girls (you’ll be pleased to hear!) aren’t one of my areas of expertise, but I do know that there aren’t many of them who’ve been personally invited onto Later With… by Jools Holland, and have more in common with Nina Simone and Janis Joplin than they do pop moppets like Lindsey Lohan and Ashley Simpson.

There are even fewer who co-wrote all the songs on their million-selling debut album, scored a number one first time out in their native Australia, and are several hundred grand better off, courtesy of their breakthrough single now soundtracking a Sure deodorant commercial.
“There have been quite a few ‘Pinch me, am I dreaming?’ moments” admits the young lady in question, Gabriella Cilmi, whose Italian surname is pronounced ‘chill-me’. “I wasn’t nervous about doing Jools Holland until someone told me that Ronnie Wood was going to be on as well, and then I was like, ‘Oh my God, a Rolling Stone!’ I was standing next to The Ting Tings when the group photo was taken and Katie White and me were both giggling like five-year-olds because we were in the same picture as this legend. He gave me a little kiss on the cheek, which meant no face washing for a month! I also got to hang out with Band Of Horses, who are just the most awesome band ever, KT Tunstall and Mutya Buena, so it was quite an occasion.”
Sir Ronnie – the Queen hasn’t knighted him yet but we have – isn’t the only English gentleman rock star that Cilmi’s met.
“I did an Australian tour with James Blunt, who I know has this really bad rep, but couldn’t have been more charming and supportive.”
Wasn’t he just the teensy-weensiest bit up his own hole?
“His own what? Oh, right! No, honestly, he was lovely. The most star-struck I’ve ever been – and this is the teenager in me talking – is when I saw one of the Kings Of Leon in a department store. I didn’t go up to him ‘cause I knew I’d make a complete fool of myself. I adore their Aha Shake Heartbreak album.”
Where does her impeccable musical taste come from?
“My parents, who gave their kids the best possible start in life by having T. Rex, Sweet, Blondie and Janis Joplin records in the house!” she beams. “I’ve always had a fascination for people like Janis, Suzi Quatro, Tina Turner and Robert Plant who really belt songs out.”
Indeed, when Gabriella arrived in England at the tender age of 14, it was with the intention of making a no-frills rock record.
“The short version of quite a long story is a guy from Mushroom Records, Michael Parisi, discovered me singing ‘Jumpin’ Jack Flash’ at a community festival in the suburb of Melbourne I’m from, Dandenong. My first deal was with him, and then I signed to Island in the UK after playing a mini-gig for their M.D. in his office. I was straight off the plane and jet-lagged as hell, so I was too out of it to feel nervous!
“After various different try-outs, they got me to go and meet the Xenomania production team, which I was a bit apprehensive about because their biggest hits have been with people like Girls Aloud and Sugababes, and I saw myself as more of a rock screamer. The moment when it clicked was when their head guy, Brian Higgins, played me ‘The Rain Song’ and said, ‘Even Led Zeppelin had a sensitive side!’ That’s what persuaded me to try new things.”
Next up was a record-shopping excursion to France.
“Yeah, me, Brian and Miranda who’s another person who writes for them went to Paris and bought a load of old psychedelic records, Rhino reissues and stuff like that, which is kind of what led to ‘Sweet About Me’. People have this idea that it’s a soul-y, jazzy type of song but to me it’s a bit more – I don’t know – in your face than that.”
That million-selling debut album, Lessons To Be Learned, was assembled in Xenomania’s rural Kent headquarters, which is famous for more than just the pop stars who’ve passed through its doors.
“It’s a real ‘tea and scones’ old house, which used to belong to Alice Liddell, who Alice In Wonderland was based on. I was literally recording in somebody’s front-room, which made the process far less intimidating.”
A little record company dickie-bird tells me that prior to the Xenomania hook-up, Cilmi recorded an album’s worth of songs in LA that were promptly binned.
“Yeah, we did a load of demos in a toilet ‘cause that’s where the best sound was,” she reminisces none too fondly. “They were funky, acoustic, poppy sorts of things which I hope to God no one ever gets to hear! My excuse is that I was only 13 and pretty – no, make that totally – naïve about what I was doing.”
She may by her own admission have been green round the gills then, but nowadays Cilmi is quite prepared to tell management and the record company where to stick their stupid ideas.
“I don’t want to regret anything I’m doing now later, which I don’t think I will because I’ve such a great team around me.”
One deal that Gabriela was only too happy to rubber-stamp was a Dolce & Gabbana clothing contract.
“How cool is that?” she smiles again. “I’m not a particularly girly girl, but I really love their stuff. Domenico Dolce’s from Sicily like my parents, so maybe that’s where the affinity comes from.”
Summer festival season completed – why oh why didn’t someone from Oxegen or the ‘Leccy Picnic book her? – Cilmi is intent on spending some quality downtime in Dublin.
“I’m going to come over with my uncle, who’s a huge U2 nut, and spend a few days stalking Bono! I’ve had some amazing things happen to me these past few years, but meeting him would be the ultimate!”
Over to you Mr. Hewson...