Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

James Blunt says he enjoys social media vitriol

‘It would be a joke to take the two people online who are being mean about me or my music seriously, rather than people who attended the shows,’ musician says

Roisin O'Connor
Thursday 11 November 2021 08:48 GMT
Comments
Ed Sheeran on James Blunt

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

James Blunt has said he enjoys the abuse he receives on social media as he has learnt how to “cash in on it”.

The British singer-songwriter, who is releasing an album of greatest hits this month, has become a popular figure on Twitter over the years thanks to his sharp comebacks in response to trolls and critics.

Describing the abuse as a “joke”, he told the PA news agency that it was easy to ignore when he was able to perform to thousands of fans around the world.

“It would be a joke to take the two people online who are being mean about me or my music seriously, rather than people who attended the shows,” he said.

“It's a joke, because I go on tours around the world and I am lucky enough to play arenas of up to 20,000 people a night.”

Blunt also revealed that his record label, Atlantic, has encouraged him to join TikTok but he believes “the real world probably has more to give”.

“Every album, the label say there's a new platform and that you should be on this platform,” he said.

“Like all these things, they are quite self-orientated.”

He added: “But at the same time, I feel very fortunate to have platforms like these, which mean that I can have direct contact with people.”

Blunt’s album, The Stars Beneath My Feet (2004-2021) is out on 19 November.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in