Every couple of years since Michael Buble’s eponymous debut in 2003, the affable pop-jazz singer has treated fans to a brand new album. His latest record, To Be Loved, hit shelves in 2013.
Now that 2015 is upon us, fans might be itching for Buble’s bi-annual release. But the 39-year-old — who will perform at Dubai International Stadium on March 12 and 13 — told tabloid! that there’s no such luck. He’s ready to put his career on the backburner for now.
“I know my management won’t like that, and I know my record company probably doesn’t like that. I don’t feel like I have another choice,” he said over the phone on Wednesday. “I’ll work as hard as I can, and I’ll put as much effort as I can into this job, but it’s a job. It’s not what defines me. I’m a father, number one, and a husband, and that’s what I gotta do.”
Four years ago, Buble married Argentinean actress, model and singer Luisana Lopilato in Buenos Aires. Two years later, they welcomed son Noah Buble into their family.
On the morning of his interview with tabloid!, Buble was still in bed with Noah as he did promo for his upcoming gigs in Dubai and South Africa.
“I’m going to be honest with you: there is no balance,” he said. “Either you put everything into your career, and you sacrifice the time you have with your family, or you sacrifice your career. My choice is to sacrifice my career.”
The singer, who’s been on the road since June 2013, said he had to route his current tour differently than the ones before it.
“I never would’ve seen my kid,” Buble said. “That’s something that I wasn’t comfortable with.”
Despite the fact that he’s hitting the brakes to be a family man, the Buble train won’t be stopped forever. The Canadian national said he will do everything he can to keep his career going, even as he wraps up his tour at the end of the month.
If you want to get your fill of him while you can, read what he had to say about being a hopeless romantic, geeking out over hockey players and the award ceremony that changed him forever.
Q: First things first, you’re visiting Dubai for the first time. Do you have a tradition for when you go somewhere you’ve never been before?
A: I just try to really be open to trying new things, and to making sure that I can learn as much about their culture as possible. You can read a million books and you can watch documentaries, but there’s nothing — there’s nothing — like being there. You learn so much travelling and the world becomes a very small place. I’m very proud of that, that I get to go to so many places and really learn about them that way.
Q: But how do you deal with jumping between time zones?
A: I think it’s mind over matter. I think it’s one of those things that you try not to let it get to you. And I mean, I know it sounds funny, it’s just, I do it so much, and I lose so many hours, that I really try to just get my sleep when I’m tired and not think about it. I really try not to think about it … I think the mind is a very powerful thing, you know? You can stop yourself from letting it affect you too much.
Q: Your music has become synonymous with love and romance. Is that something you’ve always felt strongly connected with, or did it just strengthen over time because of your music?
A: No, I think I’ve always seen myself as a hopeless romantic. I listen to the radio and look at somebody like Bruno Mars, and the common denominator through so many of his songs is how romantic they are. I mean, if you go and look at his repertoire, really the common denominator is love. He doesn’t just write great songs, but there’s a message there, and I think it allows people to dream and to hope and to fantasise. And that’s what we’re supposed to do, we’re supposed to take people away.
Some of my favourite artists out there, it’s the same. I mean, Ed Sheeran writes really beautiful romantic stuff, and John Mayer is the same way. It’s funny, if I look at Bruno — it’s probably not as synonymous with Bruno, it’s not the first thing you think of. But it’s the first thing I think of. I listen to his songs and I think, “God, how beautiful. How sweet and romantic is this.”
And I look at the Ed Sheeran song, Thinking Out Loud, there’s a great video for it, and I mean — it’s just what people love. And it’s not just girls, it’s guys, too. It’s something that we can all relate to. It doesn’t matter if you’re young or old or rich or poor or black or white, love is something that we all feel, and we all strive for a romantic [feeling], this kind of deep sensation, and I love that we can give people that in music.
Q: Let’s talk Canadian things: hockey. When you were growing up, you were a huge fan of the Vancouver Canucks, and you were playing with the guys just last month. Is it weird to hang out with people you might’ve idolised?
A: Oh, it’s so cool. I’ve met the Queen, I’ve met the biggest movie stars of the world and the biggest musicians, but I was never as nervous as when I met Wayne Gretzky for the first time. For me, I was just terrified and thrilled. Even now, I bought a hockey team [Vancouver Giants]. It’s a life trip for me to go to games. I’m tired this morning because I stayed up until 3.30 in the morning last night watching hockey. It’s never going to end for me, I’m a passionate, passionate fan.
Q: You’re up for a Fan’s Choice Award again at the Juno’s [exclusively Canadian award ceremony] this year. As someone who’s won four Grammy awards, what does being nominated for a Juno mean to you?
A: It really means everything to me. You know what’s funny? I’ve won four Grammys and I’ve kept none of them. No, I never actually showed up to even pick it up. It’s not that I don’t think being nominated for a Grammy is a huge achievement. I look at the names that I’m up against and they’re icons. But the Junos for me — it’s where I’m from.
One of the greatest memories of my whole career was getting the first Juno, I won for the Best New Artist. It was something that they could never take away. An accolade that would change me forever. I realised that I had something that I had always hoped for and never expected. The fact that I’m nominated again for Fan’s Choice is awesome.
