Daniel Powter is a Canadian musician who has recently become internationally recognized. He released his first album in 2005. His song "Bad Day" was a top-10 hit in music charts across the world. Powter recently performed in Washington, D.C. where VOA's Larry London talked with him about his recent success.
Daniel Powter's song "Bad Day" went to the top of the music charts almost immediately after its release in 2005. But he says it's about more than just having a number-one hit.
“Anytime that you write a song that people are connecting with, it's humbling, it's like amazing, you know. It means a lot to other people, and it means a lot to me to be communicating with them.
Even though Powter's first record wasn't made in a studio, he is still very proud of his work.
“The record was primarily made in a small apartment with my best friends. So for the record to be doing as well as it has, based on that, it's been really self-satisfying, you know. And I think you just keep going. I mean, it's only my first record.”
Powter's mother also was a talented musician. She helped him with his difficulties in school by playing music with him.
“Instead of concentrating on arithmetic, or something that I was terrible at, she would concentrate on music, which I loved, and we would focus on that. So every day after school, I would come home and play violin with my mom, and she would play piano, and that's where I found a lot of love in my life.”
Powter says he loves being able to connect with his audience, regardless of the language they speak.
“Sometimes you forget how lucky you are to be able to do this. I love being able to go to other countries and travel and tour and, you know, get to play for different people. But it's really interesting, like, even though in a lot of places [they] might not understand what I'm saying, there's this real commonality around the whole world where everybody's, like, they're there and they're singing with you.”
Being a musician has allowed Powter to travel to many foreign countries.
“My favorite places are, I mean, they're everywhere. I mean, France. I love France. I love England. And I love Japan. But I got to go to Thailand, spent some time, got to go to Hong Kong. Just different places that I normally probably wouldn't have gotten an opportunity to go and it's afforded me that opportunity.”
Powter says he loves making music. “It's been a real pleasure, I'm the luckiest person in the world.”
Some video courtesy of Warner Brothers