Sam Ryder looks back: ‘I thought I should put a smile on my face, no matter how I felt’

The singer-songwriter on growing up as an outsider, the arrogance of youth and his Eurovision odyssey

Born in Essex in 1989, musician Sam Ryder found fame covering hits on TikTok during the 2020 lockdown. In 2022, he represented the UK at the Eurovision song contest, finishing second to Ukraine with his hit Space Man. The following year, he was nominated for best new artist at the Brit awards. Ryder headlines the Ovo Arena, Wembley, on 6 November, and his new single, OH OK, is out now. He lives in Essex with his partner, Lois Gaskin-Barber.

This was taken at The Underworld in Camden, north-west London, when I was in a band called the Morning After with my friends from school. The gig was probably awful – but what we lacked in tightness, we definitely made up for in enthusiasm.