I have been a victim of racism but I don’t think race is reason why I’ve been in the bottom two

“Until you lose a mother you don’t realise how important they are. I tried to just continue. You still have to go on stage with a smile – you’re releasing Dance Dance Dance, no one wants to be lumbered with your sob story.”

But he admits that eventually all his pent-up grief found a way out.

“It took two years, maybe three. My second or third album, it got very hard. I didn’t realise by that point.

“I didn’t know my anxiety was relating to my mother’s passing. It was very hard to sing and breathe, I went to a few doctors and they said it was stress. I took a break, went to Thailand and then I got to mourn. “That quiet time enables you to shut down and when the noise has gone you deal with whatever you need to let go of. “I didn’t realise stress could do that, be tucked away but affect you.” After a few weeks he was ready to go again, and hasn’t suffered anxiety since. It is the lust for life he has inherited from his mum which keeps him so determined. He says: “It’s where I get my drive from, I am 100% or nothing, and that is how she was. She was never satisfied with being in one place.”

The singer adds: “She instilled in me a sense of, ‘Be proud of who you are’. Like any mother, they guard their chickens. Both my parents instilled in us the idea that ‘You stand up for what you believe in, you are who you are and you’re perfect for who you are. You know who you are and how you feel’.

“If someone has a small mind, they have a small mind. You move on.

“Honestly, I’m a big believer in life. Stuff happens and you find a way of moving through it – you just pick yourself up and move on.”

He is also a big believer in taking risks and facing challenges, which is what Dancing on Ice is about.

His music career has dipped in recent years, although an eighth album is planned. However, Lemar talks easily about “phases of life”.

His daughter and son, aged 10 and eight, are his priority right now, as is their mother Charmaine, who has been with Lemar since Fame Academy. Charmaine is not in the music business and Lemar is determined to keep his family life completely separate from his work – if for no other reason than to keep him grounded. He says: “I still get nagged to put the bins out. I have kids and a family now. My focus is on them. I want to make sure I raise kids that are decent and that takes time and focus. Profile isn’t everything.” He adds: “I said to my kids, ‘I don’t know how to skate, but in life it’s good to take on challenges and push yourself ’. “I say it’s good to give things a try – and make up your mind afterwards. I’m setting an example.” Dancing on Ice, ITV, Sunday at 6pm.