Going to music festivals was a cherished rite of passage for Luke La Volpe when he was growing up. “Some of the best memories I have are from festivals, being there with my friends.
"I remember being younger and seeing performers up on the stage, they seemed like superheroes.
"Now I have the chance to be up there and see TRNSMT from that perspective.”
Luke was forced to cancel his appearance at the Glasgow Green festival last year after contracting Covid: “That was one of the worst days of my life, it’s been a long build up, I was ready last year but I’ve now got five new songs to add in for the set to bring things up a level” he says.
Luke will appear on the King Tut’s stage for the opening day of the festival. His childhood friend Lewis Capaldi headlines the Sunday night this year - after starting out on smaller stages at TRNSMT, Capaldi has worked his way up to top billing while becoming a global success story.
Luke says a new generation of Scottish artists can take encouragement from local artists breaking out to find a wider audience. “In Scotland we’ve always been able to come up with unbelievable artists and I think that has trickled down into the younger generation like myself, it shows what’s possible on the big stage.
“Lewis has shown that you can be whatever you want to be.
"It’s also exciting to have my name on the same bill as Paolo Nutini, one of the reasons I started playing music in the first place when I was a young boy.
“I think Scotland has a really good ladder of venues, and festivals are part of it. Where I’m from in Bathgate, it’s a hotbed of music talent in West Lothian.
"You can start off with the small local venues and then when you are ready, you go to Glasgow to play a venue and you keep going from there.
"The only gigs I’m playing this summer are festivals as it’s a way to get new fans, reach people that haven’t heard you before.”
Luke’s summer has already started, “we have just had Bathgate Gala Day, the full town has a big party. This year we got to see all our mates in the sunshine. It was a total buzz. Everyone just wants to be with each other this summer.”
He has had a lot of time in the house to think about his music and returns to playing live with a renewed sense of determination. “I’ve honed in on what I want to do, I’ve had the time to think about my music.
"It made me realise I haven’t even had an opportunity to show what I’m capable of yet.
"I’m excited to be performing again. I think I’m a lot better singer this year, I’m in a happy place in life.
"I’ve had enough time for practice, now when I go on that stage I will be giving it everything I’ve got.”
Luke La Volpe performs at TRNSMT on Friday 8th July.
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