When Daniel Seavey stepped into the spotlight at the brink of 16, the world was his oyster. Crossing the threshold from American Idol finalist to boyband star, it felt like there was nothing to worry about and nothing to lose. Until he lost a lot of it.
Emerging from the personal and professional storms, the singer-songwriter has since learnt more about what he had to independently offer the world. There is a growing gratitude towards the musical gift he possesses; a means that kept him afloat to overcome those very hardships.
He doesn’t leave his team and family out of the equation, attributing them as the source of his optimism. Which he seemingly has in heaps. The bubbly 27-year-old emanates an adolescent effervescence throughout the conversation. Before he gushes on soccer and meditation as his recent fixations, he settles into a glossy metal chair and kicks us off with an acute observation.
DANIEL SEAVEY: This looks like an electric chair.
ESQUIRE SINGAPORE: Or those sort of lie detector interviews. Have you ever done–
DS: Crime? No.
ESQ: If you were ever to be convicted for a crime, what do you think it would be for?
DS: Looking too freakin’ good, probably.
ESQ: And humility, clearly. Or being a musical genius. I read you played four instruments by age 10?
DS: Affirmative. Um, this is so nerdy, but I’ve always said it kind of feels like a language. Like with grammar structures, music is made up of the same notes just in different places. I feel like my gift is being able to know where a note on a piano lies versus on a cello versus on a saxophone. It just made sense to me at a really young age how they all connect.
ESQ: How many instruments do you play now?
DS: I don’t know. I think if you give me [a new] one, I could learn it pretty [quickly]. Navigating an instrument just clicks really [easily] for me. The music side has never been very confusing; it kind of happens naturally. I don’t know how to necessarily explain what I’m doing; I just do it, you know?
ESQ: Is there one you enjoy the most?
DS: Right now, I love playing the cello. I love that when you are playing it, you literally feel it resonating through you because it’s leaning on [your body]. I still love the electric guitar; it was my go-to for a while but [my favourite] changes for sure. The first instrument I learnt was the piano. And if I was gonna tell someone what instrument to learn first, I think the piano is the best start because the notes are so blatantly in front of you to visually inform you where they are.
ESQ: Well, I tried, and it didn’t go so well.
DS: It didn’t inform you enough? You gotta keep trying. It’ll click, I’m telling you.
ESQ: No, not everybody is like you.
DS: Not everyone’s autistic. No, but it’s been really validating and full circle for me to now get to play all these instruments on stage and watch people care about that nerdy side of me.
ESQ: Is it hard to not seek validation from people for what you do, or does that happen inadvertently?
DS: This business can really be tough on your perception of yourself. In some ways, I was really loved and validated by the amazing fans we had in the band. Then there were sides of me that I was nervous to share with them, so they wouldn’t even know to validate that. At some point, I tried to get over the idea of only doing something for validation. Leaning into my instrumentation; doing less stuff about the looks and more about the music. I had low expectations that people would receive it well. I just wanted to do it for me. The fact that they did and just loved it in the way they have has been life-changing. Easier said than done, of course. I had to unlearn a lot of things and return to this childlike state of just loving something and not thinking twice about any of it.
ESQ: What were some of the things you had to unlearn?
DS: Making songs for the sake of performance. Especially coming from a boy band; it’s so embedded in. It wasn’t a terrible thing, just a different game that I was happy to play then. The music I was making for myself just meant too much to me to turn it into a numbers game. I was really trying to push for something authentic with it.
ESQ: I read that you completely rewrote your debut album.
DS: I think trying to find your identity and sound is a constant process that a lot of artists can relate to. When I first came into my solo career, it was a very bumpy road, and a lot of the crazy stuff translated through my music. I felt like I was almost getting in the way of myself. I missed myself before all the dark chaos, so I did a lot of internal work in my life to try to get back to a point where I could be optimistic. Then naturally, the music started to feel that way as well. I just wanted my first album to be something that felt like the essence of me, and I definitely felt like what came out was a good representation of Daniel. It’s funny, listening back now, there are lessons that I feel like I’m teaching myself. I hear some really raw thoughts, but having my own perspective to add on top of it now feels like it was right to let it sit the way it has. I don’t think it’ll never see the light of day.
ESQ: How differently do you see yourself now after the tough season you’ve weathered?
DS: I’ve been trying to acknowledge the abnormalness of this gift. I really had a tendency to downplay it in some unhealthy ways. Trying to make people feel okay in a room, but sticking out like a sore thumb. Lately, I’m finding a better balance of accepting who I am, leading with good intention and not worrying about the rest. Looking at it with appreciation rather than as this curse that I inherited. I also realised that everybody in their own context of life, has things that make them stand out, that might make others feel weird. So I do think we can all relate to the idea of navigating the world with whatever unique gift we’re bringing to the table.
ESQ: Do you ever wish you could listen to music normally?
DS: For sure. I really envy what it would be like to listen to music without hearing every note while it’s happening. When I hear music, I hear numbers, all the separate instruments. When I’m listening to the verse, I can’t help but think about where the pre-chorus is gonna go. I’m breaking it apart in my head as it’s happening. I would love to hear it for the feeling with nothing else going on, but then again, I also love being able to hear it the way I do.
ESQ: Does that translate to rhythm, i.e. can you dance?
DS: Oh, I got some moves. They’re probably not the best in the world, but I can hold it down.
ESQ: Anyone else in the family caught the music bug?
DS: Not in the slightest. My dad’s nickname in school was tone deaf Jeff. He’d be so mad I brought that up. My mom could sing a little but never admit it. At three years old, when she was spraying my hair to slick it, the sounds it made, I was like, “You’re playing Ode to Joy.” That’s when they were like, “This is a weirdo. We need to get him an instrument.”
“I also realised that everybody in their own context of life, has things that make them stand out, that might make others feel weird. So I do think we can all relate to the idea of navigating the world with whatever unique gift we’re bringing to the table.”
ESQ: Any other memories like that?
DS: There was an extra credit class in my high school for orchestra, but we were really broke growing up. I was too embarrassed to admit that I couldn’t afford a cello, so I just lied and said that I had one at home. I think it’s how I learnt perfect pitch, ‘cause I would go home and I would play the air cello to practice and hear the note in my head. I ended up getting first chair that way. My mom caught me faking her signature for the practice log, brought it to my teacher, and she was like, how have you been practising? She then lent me one of hers, so that was sweet of her.
ESQ: What is it about music that you truly enjoy?
DS: It’s all feeling based. I overthink a lot of things in life, and it lets me just shut my brain off and get into my body, and I love that about it. When I’m playing music, it’s so, so fun for me. Like the way you could watch TV shows forever and there’s always something new and entertaining to watch, music’s the same way. There’s always more to navigate and discover, so it’s just endless fun.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Photography: Shawn Paul Tan
Creative Direction and Styling: Asri Jasman
Hair: Christian M using SCHWARZKOPF PROFESSIONAL
Makeup: Kenneth Chia using LANCÔME
Photography Assistant: Melvin Leong
Styling Assistant: Erica Zheng
