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KT Tunstall

KT Tunstall 20 years on from 'crazy' hit that changed her life and exciting new plans

The singer-songwriter turns 50 this year

Laura Benjamin
News Director
January 26, 2025
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It's hard to believe that KT Tunstall's biggest hit, 'Suddenly I See', turns 20 this year. The Scottish singer-songwriter's career exploded after that particular tune featured on the soundtrack to hit movie The Devil Wears Prada

Meryl Streep and Anne Hathaway in The Devil Wears Prada© Everett Collection Inc / Alamy Stock Photo
The Devil Wears Prada catapulted KT to international fame

Born and raised between Scotland and the US, after finishing school she spent some time busking before studying Drama and Music at Royal Holloway. Post-graduation she moved between different independent bands before releasing her debut album, 'Eye to the Telescope', in 2004, which went on to win the Mercury Music Prize. 

Showered with more awards including a Brit for Best British Female and an Ivor Novello songwriting honour, she soon achieved worldwide fame and moved to the US in 2015. 

KT is working on an exciting new musical project© Getty Images
KT is working on an exciting new musical project

Now working on the forthcoming West End production of Clueless the Musical, KT, 49, talks to HELLO! about her creation process, how she will soon be achieving a lifelong dream and how she plans to celebrate her forthcoming 50th birthday…

Have you always been a fan of musicals? 

I loved the movies, like Bugsy Malone and Oliver, but whenever I saw stage productions I found them a bit too much. Then I went to see The Book of Mormon and that completely changed my mind; I thought it was brilliant and if you were allowed to do that, you could do anything. 

Tell us how you were invited to work on the Clueless musical.

I had been working on the musical Saving Grace – based on the 2000 film with Brenda Blethyn – with lyricist Glenn Slater for several years. Glenn called me at the start of lockdown and asked if I would be interested in doing the music for Clueless and he would do the lyrics. It was an absolute, immediate yes.

And what did you think of the original film?

I have always loved it. I was 15 at the start of the 1990s and it was omnipotent to kids growing up at that time. 

The original film is a cult classic© Clueless
The original film is a cult classic

How does writing a musical compare to composing an album?

It's wildly different. It would be a mistake for an artist to think they can just write some songs and then waltz off. Being a solo artist, it's a steep learning curve to be collaborating with a team as you are all bringing your A game for the vision of the director. 

You are sometimes writing about an argument or having a realisation in the narrative. And that is the tricky part. All that musical training I had when I was a kid is actually massively useful now as I can read a score, I can do arrangements for strings etc. 

Later this year, you are playing some concerts in the UK to mark the 20th anniversary of your hit debut album, Eye to the Telescope. Are you excited for these shows?

They are going to be extremely special; you can't take it for granted that anyone will care about your record 20 years later so it's just an absolute miracle to me that it still means so much to people.

KT has been performing on stage for many years© Getty Images
KT has been performing on stage for many years

You turn 50 this year. What are you doing to mark such a big birthday? 

I have never headlined the Royal Albert Hall and it's my 50th birthday on June 23 so I had this dream to play an anniversary gig there on my birthday and it came true! It's a really special time and I am really excited about it.

What the highlight from the last 20 years? 

I think the night I won my Brit Award in 2006 was really amazing. It was such a mad night, my parents were there, I was in a category with PJ Harvey and Kate Bush, Prince performed.... It had been 20 years up to that point of trying to get somewhere and it was a really beautiful night.

KT won the award of best British female solo artist in 2006© Getty Images
KT won the award of best British female solo artist in 2006

And you got a very special Ivor Novello award, for Outstanding Song Collection, last year. Tell us about that.

I wasn't expecting it at all. When they called me and said there were no other nominees, that it was my award, it was amazing as I could just sit back, relax and enjoy every single moment. To be nodded to by the most prestigious songwriting award in the UK was this amazing hug for all the times I have just kept my head down and not done what other people I wanted to do.

You have said that Suddenly I See changed your life…

It had always been a huge dream of mine to go back to the US -  I had lived in the Valley when I was four and went back when I was 17 for my last year of secondary school - but as a British artist conquering America it's always the most daunting task. I got the call saying it would be on The Devil Wears Prada and then Japan asked me to tour there and it kicked off America… It was crazy as the song became more famous than me. 

WATCH: The Devil Wears Prada trailer

And what else are you working on? 

I'm writing a book at the moment. It's a memoir up to this point in my life. I am telling my life story in the structure of a song and this is the bridge part where you don't know what's going to happen. It really feels like I have no idea what's going to happen next and I am really excited about that.

Clueless, The Musical opens at London’s Trafalgar Theatre on 15 February 2025. Tickets from cluelessonstage.com

To read the full exclusive interview, pick up the latest issue of HELLO! on sale in the UK on Monday. You can subscribe to HELLO! to get the magazine delivered free to your door every week or purchase the digital edition online via our Apple or Google apps.

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