Teddy Swims: ‘Every day I try to cry a little’

When Teddy Swims arrived at the MTV Awards last September, he was nominated for four awards, including Best New Artist.

In the event, the combined forces of Chappelle Rhone and Sabrina Carpenter deprived her of a single Moon Man trophy — but the singer walked away with something more valuable.

“I didn’t realize it until a few weeks later, but my partner and I got pregnant that night,” he says with a smile.

“We’re due in June and things are great. I think we’re going to crush it.”

Domestic bliss is not a quality that fans would associate with Teddy Swims.

His hugely successful single Lose Control and hit album I’ve Tried Everything But Therapy, dysfunction, addiction and heartbreak.

They were inspired by a toxic, mutually destructive relationship that he had escaped. In the past, he had described it as a “really co-dependent lifestyle” that went “from alcoholic to alcoholic” as both parties “exploited each other’s shyness against each other”.

As he sings in the recent single, “I saved my life when I showed you the door”.

But that was just one chapter in the story of 32-year-old Georgia native Jaten Dimsdale.

This Friday, they release their second album, I’ve Tried Everything But Therapy Part 2, which tells the story of what happened next.

He says, “I have learned that love should not be about highs and lows, fighting and pulling teeth just to be together.”

“The first album was very tumultuous, and there wasn’t much closure. So I wanted to come back and say, ‘Here I am on the other side of this, and I’m doing better.’

“I feel like, as a listener, I want to hear that there’s a way.”

His new partner is also a singer-songwriter, Raeche Wright, whom he met “a few Thanksgivings ago” when she came to one of his shows – and the new album is steeped in a kind of bewildered joy.

,Are you something from a dream or something I made up?“He marvels at the funky R&B groove of Are You Real.

Later, on the acoustic guitar song If You Ever Change Your Mind, he sings, “I love you, I love you,“Quiet honesty rarely found in any pop record.

Musically, the album draws from the same palette as before – a brand of 1960s soul where dusty piano grooves and gargantuan guitar lines are punctuated with a modern pop sheen and a pinch of rock and roll swagger. Is.

But it’s not all hearts and flowers. The grandiose spirit of Black and White appeals to tolerance, inspired by the prejudices of Dimmesdale and his companions – who have mixed black and white heritage.

“I see people seem frustrated about being different colors — especially in the South,” he says.

“But it’s okay to be happy in love with someone who is a different color, or a different shape or size, or the same gender, or whatever.

“Why would you hate it? It’s so backwards.”

Dimmesdale learned about acceptance the hard way. Born in Conyers, an eastern suburb of Atlanta, his grandfather was a Pentecostal preacher who had different views of the world and a difficult transition into family life.

His parents divorced when he was three years old, and although they both remarried, their new relationships were problematic. His mother, with whom he lived, was married to an alcoholic who left suddenly when Dinsdale was 18 and never spoke to the family again.

His father, whom he visited on weekends, married a woman who developed serious mental health problems, including schizophrenia, and required long periods of hospital stay. His father raised Dimmesdale’s half-brothers almost single-handedly.

“He worked 18 hours a day, still completing homework and practicing alone,” he says.

“I can’t say enough about how amazing that guy really is.”

Dimmesdale is a late bloomer when it comes to music. As a youngster, he was a dedicated footballer, until a friend convinced him to audition for the school production of Damn Yankees.

Music gave birth to a love affair with singing. She researched singing techniques on YouTube while enjoying performances by Stevie Wonder, Michael Jackson and Aretha Franklin.

After graduation, he began playing with local metal bands, and adopted the stage name “Swims” from an Internet forum – speak for Someone Who Isn’t Me Someone. Meanwhile, Teddy is a childhood nickname based on his friendly and hugging personality.

But it was a cover of Shania Twain’s country song You’re Still the One that got her her big break.

It has been viewed 197 million times on YouTube. One of those spectators was a talent scout for Warner Bros. Records, who signed Dimsdale to a record deal on Christmas Eve 2019.

He connected the musician with professional writers like Julianne Bunetta (Sabrina Carpenter, One Direction) and Mikki Ekko (Rihanna, Drake) – but he also retained his high school band, Freak Feely, which plays with him to this day.

Three EPs and hundreds of sessions later, they wrote Lose Control, and Dinsdale knew immediately that this was going to change my life.

he was right. With 2.2 billion global streams, it is one of the most successful songs in recent chart history – but it took time to find an audience.

There was no viral moment or TikTok trend associated with Loose Control. Instead, Dimmesdale “did it the old fashioned way”.

“We showed up and did every possible interview,” he says. “We went to every office and radio station and shook everyone’s hand individually. We stopped everyone on the street, driving by bus.”

He believes that the personal touch trumps everything else.

“People love to see their friend win, so if you go out there and make time for them, it’s more than a playlist that comes to your desk, or a little file that comes to your email that says , ‘Hey, can you move this song?’

“And this is the old way of making records before streaming.”

Hesitantly, he admits that the song has made him a millionaire (“So I can’t be mad at that girl anymore, right?”) but he is learning that making money means spending money.

“A million dollars goes by so fast,” he says. “Once you put 66 people on a tour with all the gear and all the lights, it comes out the door just as fast. goes.

“Twenty rupees mean the same thing to me as 20 rupees used to mean, but sometimes the amount of money coming and going is scary to see.”

As we speak, she’s in rehearsals in Pennsylvania ahead of her first European arena tour, which includes two nights at Wembley this March.

The stage has just been built for the first time, and he’s eager to become familiar with all the ramps and video walls. Music…not so much.

“I wouldn’t say I’m tired of the songs already, but we’ve been playing them non-stop for two weeks,” he says. “I can’t wait until people sing along so I can fall in love with them again.”

If you’ve been to the Teddy Swims show, you’ll know that he puts his heart on the line.

there are countless videos like he’s sobbing Presents some things I will never knowA song about abandonment and grief. For the upcoming tour, he’s playing it back-to-back with a new tear-jerker, Northern Lights, that delves into the depths of heartbreak.

He’s going to make a mess – but Dimmesdale says that’s a good thing.

“Every day I try to cry a little bit,” he says. “It’s just pain leaving the body.

“And it’s a constant reminder that, no matter what you’ve been going through, there is happiness on the other side.”

From his bearded and tattooed face, you might not expect such emotional intelligence – but Dimmesdale’s model of masculinity was not afraid to share his feelings.

“I am my father’s son,” he says. “He’s just a sensitive guy. He’ll tell you he loves you, he’ll tell you he’s proud of you. Man, I’d still rather be lying in his arms when we’re on the couch watching TV.”

“He is the most beautiful, humble human being I have ever met. Second only to Jesus Christ.”

So, the obvious question: Is dad excited to be a grandfather?

“He’s doing backflips,” the singer says, laughing.

“I’m almost scared to have him as a grandfather, because I want my kids to think I’m cool, too.”