Paul Child is Wales' biggest independent selling artist. Paul has sang the Welsh National Anthem at many of the Wales international rugby matches at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff. ( When Paul sings, Wales wins!). We are extremely proud to welcome Paul to this year's West Coast eisteddfod in L.A. where he will be headlining and leading the singing of the Welsh anthem at the opening concert on Friday Tickets for the performance can be purchased at the bottom of this page.
AmeriCymru: Hi Paul...many thanks for agreeing to be interviewed by AmeriCymru. We last interviewed you two years ago. Care to fill us in on developments over the last few years?Paul: The last couple of years have been really exciting, with the release of the 'After All These Years' CD in 2009, followed by the 'Best Of...' double CD "My Wales' last Summer. Both CDs have done really well, with the 'My Wales' CD outselling both Cerys Matthews' and Charlotte Church's latest releases. I also performed the Welsh National Anthem for the Welsh football team for the first time last October which was a great honour.
AmeriCymru: You recently performed at Disneyland Paris as part of their annual Festival of Wales, how was that experience and how did it come about?
Paul: Disney in Paris have been holding their Festival of Wales in March for the last couple of years, it's a great 3 day event which sees Minnie Mouse dressed in full Welsh costume for the weekend and lots of Choirs and performers around the park. This year they asked me go go over with my full ten piece band to headline the event. It was a great show with lots of Welsh people who had travelled over for the Welsh weekend as well as a great number of ex-pats living in the area.
AmeriCymru: At Disneyland, you performed "There's a Place," from your "My Wales" album - how was that song chosen and what can you tell us about it's creation?
Paul: Although the 'My Wales' double album is mainly a compilation of the most popular songs from my previous eight albums, we wanted to include a couple brand new songs, just to keep things fresh - Along with "Coming Home To Wales, "There's A Place" is one of my favourites. It was originally written in the Welsh language but we wanted to make it more accessible so it was re-written it in English, it's lovely song. The youtube link below shows a live performance of the track at Cardiff International Arena.
AmeriCymru: You're a father, do your children get to watch you perform? Are they ever able to travel with you? How do they like their dad's performances?
Paul: I'm a very proud father to Michael who is 12 and Kate who is 10. They have been to a few local shows and they like to get involved with the soundcheck and set-up. They are both members of the local youth theatre and Michael particularly loves acting and performing. We have just signed him up to a kids talent agency so we'll see what comes of that!
AmeriCymru: You will be appearing at he West Coast Eisteddfod in September. Is this your first performance in the States? First time in L.A.?
Paul: I am very excited about performing in LA, it will be my first time to do so but I'm lucky enough to have been there a few times in my life - I absolutely love the place! I remember my parents taking me the Disneyland when I was eleven and I made the trip again on my own when I was about 25. In Summer 2009 my wife and I took the kids over, we did Disney, Universal Studios, Seaworld plus of course Hollywood and the beaches. The Strand on Hermosa Beach has to be one of my favourite places in the world - I'd love to retire there one day!
AmeriCymru: Any final message for the readers and members of AmeriCymru?
Paul: Thanks you so much for inviting me to perform at the West Coast Eisteddfod, I am so looking forward to it. I'm sure that it is going to be a fantastic few days that we will all remember for a very long time - see you in September!
2011 West Coast Eisteddfod: Welsh Festival of Arts - Fri 23rd Sept
Opening Ceremonies on Friday, 23rd, 2011 from 6pm to 10pm
in the Barnsdall Gallery Theatre
Featuring Performances by:
"Official voice of the WRU"
Music • Acoustic
Music • Video • Performance Art Installation
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