Quotes from Dean Lewis

The day I write a totally happy song... I'll retire.

There's a cafe in Mosman near where I lived and if I have any days off I go there at 10 in the morning with my notebook, sit in the same chair, order the same breakfast and coffee, write my thoughts down, and chat, have the same conversation with the owner.

I visualize songs like a little movie scene and I try to almost talk through the scene. What emotions am I trying to get across?

I was writing songs in my room for like six year, not showing anyone.

When you first start out, it's a big thing you're always like 'does my voice sound good?'

When I recorded 'Waves' I was in England, and I was there for months.

I wasn't the kind of guy who was like 'here's my demo,' or 'listen to my demo.' I just never thought it was that good.

I didn't really gig my way in. I was just in my bedroom writing songs for so long.

You can't come back to Australia and be like, 'I've been doing this and I've been doing this.' 'Cause they'll be like, 'Who do you think you are, mate?' Which is good! It keeps you really, y'know, grounded, I guess.

I started realizing that when I played festivals I didn't want to be writing all these down, sad songs.

There's only been a very few times when I'm recording something and I get shivers.

When I'm working on an idea I have a very high level of expectations. If we do a video it has to be high level. Artwork has to be really good.

I have this unyielding desire to do high-quality work.

Everyone wants to be chosen for Up Next. You get on a billboard in Times Square and in Los Angeles! This helps get your name out there on a huge scale.

When something is great, then you can sit back after the work is done and relax, but during the process I definitely am making sure everything is really, really good.

I guess I'm a pretty honest person, but I think my friends were surprised when they heard my stuff for the first time. I'm not super expressive when I'm just going about my life.

I mean, sometimes it's really good to listen to something like Tom Petty, that's purely blissed out. But that's not me.

You can write a song for someone, and then their mom doesn't like it, and then it doesn't get released. It could be the best song that you've ever written. I hated that, because I didn't have any control.

I'm very lucky to have signed to Island records U.S.A. It's one of those pinch yourself moments.

I've been writing a lot of sad songs, and I got to the point where I was like, 'You can't write another one or you're lying.'

People know my song but they don't know the guy who sings the song.

There's nowhere else in the world that's quite like that, where they encourage going after your dreams, especially in Los Angeles. I think it's really cool.

I spent five years watching every Noel Gallagher video that was on YouTube.

Especially with 'Be Alright,' that's about a bunch of relationships and some people that I'd never even met, there was some stories friend and family had told me over the years, that I put into the song.