Nathan Carter: I aim to be back playing in April
As the music star hosts a festive Keepin ’er Country tonight, he reflects on a strange year that brought both its major ups and downs. Stephanie Bell reports
ROCKING around what must be one of the biggest indoor Christmas trees in a private home in Northern Ireland, Nathan Carter is determined to make this festive season as fun as he can for his fans.
The country music heart-throb has let the cameras into his palatial Fermanagh country pile, giving people a glimpse of how Christmas is celebrated Carter-style.
He and his brother Jake, who spent lockdown together, are set to co-host a special festive edition of the popular BBC series Keepin ’er Country at Christmas which goes out tonight.
After a year like no other, the brothers have thrown themselves full-heartedly into the festive season by decorating the mother of all trees — a massive 18-foot spruce which sparkles in the grand hallway alongside a stunning grand piano.
Nathan (30) said: “We don’t normally get a tree that size but because of the show and because we both really wanted to go out and chop down a real tree, we went for the biggest one we could find.
“We eventually got it back to the house and then getting it through the door and on to a stand was a complete nightmare, a real challenge in itself.
“We put it up on December 6 so the poor tree might be dead before Christmas!”
Liverpool native Nathan is a sensation in country music circles.
The release of his biggest hit Wagon Wheel in 2012, which spent 53 weeks in the Irish singles charts, propelled him to stardom.
This year alone he had 90 sellout gigs booked, all of which had to be cancelled.
Disappointed fans will be delighted to hear that most have been rescheduled for next year — Covid permitting.
Cautiously optimistic about what 2021 will bring, he said: “We hope to start performing again from April onwards but who knows what will happen? We are keeping everything crossed.
“It will be great to get on stage again. It has been a tough year for everyone and the music industry just stopped.
“It will probably be the last to get going again and I really feel for everyone — musicians, promoters, managers, sound men, venues — the industry has just been wiped out. “
While the company of his brother Jake has helped him through lockdown, Nathan has also kept busy with his music, working on a new album.
Nathan Carter Anniversary Collection (The Best of the First 10 Years) was released on November 12 and has shot to the top of the Independent Irish Charts, much to t he modest s t ar’s amazement.
He confessed: “We are delighted. It has been number one for the past two weeks and that is a big surprise. Normally I would be out promoting it and doing signings and trying to shift copies at concerts and I haven’t been able to do that so I am still a bit gobsmacked it has done so well.”
Nathan has also kept fans happy by streaming concerts on Facebook Live, which had thousands tuning in from all over the world.
However, even before Covid struck, he suffered a devastating start to 2020 when in February one of his closest friends and his music industry mentor Nicky James passed away suddenly in his sleep.
Nathan was so distraught he could not work for several weeks and when finally persuaded by his manager to go back to writing during lockdown, he penned a powerful tribute to his pal called Wings to Fly.
He admitted: “Nicky had been my mentor since I was a kid. He paid for my first album and he brought me to his gigs and got me to perform.
“Even when I moved to Northern Ireland over the last 10 years he and I remained great friends. It was a complete shock and so out of the blue, he died in his sleep. I stopped singing for a few weeks.
“My manager persuaded me to go back to work and I came up with the song and I’ve had an amazing response to it from people who it has resonated with because they too have lost someone they loved.”
The antics of Nathan and his brother Jake during lockdown have been enjoyed by thousands through online videos and TV shows.
The boys will be bringing that same feelgood factor to tonight’s special edition of Keepin ’er Country at Christmas.
As well as witnessing their struggle with a giant Christmas
tree, they both attempt to bake a Yule log which Nathan confesses was a bit of a disaster for him.
In fact cooking the Christmas dinner will be their biggest challenge this year as the boys fear their might miss out on spending the holidays at home with family in Liverpool.
Nathan said: “Neither of us can cook and we’ve said if you could order takeaway turkey on Christmas Day then that’s what we would do.
“Christmas is going to be very different this year as there are normally about 15 of our family around the table.
“We haven’t seen our family in nine months which has been hard.
“My Nan and granddad are not getting any younger and my Nan is usually on tour with me helping out and so it has been very difficult not seeing them.
“We are considering getting the boat to Liverpool but we are not sure.
“If we spend Christmas here alone we will both attempt to cook a turkey although I have no idea how that will turn out. We will have to go online for some instructions! We don’t know yet what we will be doing but whatever it is we will try and make the most of it.”
Regardless of how they will spend next Friday, today the brothers hope to help kick-start the festivities for local people when their BBC Christmas show airs tonight.
Nathan added: “The show will be a festive country music-inspired celebration from my Fermanagh home.
“It’s goi ng to be an a ction-packed Christmas show and it was great fun filming it.
“Viewers will see me and Jake struggling with the Christmas tree and doing our baking challenge. My Yule log is a complete disaster.
“Apart from all the festive music, there’s lots of different craic going on as well and I’m welcoming people to come and share a bit of my home. I’ll be duetting with Jake on a couple of songs, including Feels Like Christmas, and I’ll be singing with one of our special guests, Lisa Mchugh.
“The band will be in the house so I’ll be doing a bunch of songs with them, and also joining us at the festive house party are Cliona Hagan and Robert Mizzell, who will be singing their favourites.
“Even though we can’t go on tour as normal, we can still play to an audience as some of our biggest fans will be joining us via Zoom for this festive evening of music, song and lots of great craic.”
‘Christmas will be very different this year... we haven’t seen our family in nine months which has been hard’