Last month, Gregory Darling released his latest single A New Dream – a reimagined track from his 2006 debut album Shell, which features his long-time collaborator Julian Lennon, who he co-wrote A New Dream with at Julian’s studio The Tree House in the south of France with Anthony Caligagan. Further recent music releases for Gregory include his original tracks Cleaning This Dirty House and Slow Down Trance in 2024, and today sees singer NOANNE’s new single Lullaby, that Gregory produced and co-wrote, release through his record label 2LionStudio. Gregory is involved with the Gift of Love Foundation and is head of artist outreach for Reluvotion, the latter of which he is currently working on a major production with a major artist. We caught up with Gregory, who answered our questions about releasing his reimagined single A New Dream last month, working with music artists including NOANNE and being part of Reluvotion and the Gift of Love Foundation.

On 24th January, you released your new single A New Dream, can you tell us about the song?

The song was conceived in the south of France with our friend Anthony Caligagan at Julian’s (Lennon) studio The Tree House. In a conversation, Anthony mumbled “I need a new dream”, and the melody to his words came to me in an instant. Then we got on our guitars, and wrote down what we were feeling and somehow it all made sense and it was finished in a flash.

With A New Dream having first appeared on your debut album Shell, how was it reimagining it and how long was it in the making?

I dove deeper into the words and reimagined the whole new arrangement and production, which put a whole new twist on the song. I sent it off to Julian, and he’d chime in with a few key changes here and there, particularly on vocal balance, sound and effects.

In regards to time, there was so much going on in Julian’s world and mine personally, we never got around to releasing it, until now.

How did you decide to re-record A New Dream and what was it like hearing the new version complete for the first time?

COVID times had arrived and business and time was slow. Very slow! So I went back into the archives and listened to many tracks from previous recordings and A New Dream came on and my son gravitated to it instantly, and it sparked a new interest and inspiration for me. When it was finished, Julian and myself fell in love with it all over again, but in a new kind of way.

What do you hope listeners will take from the new version of the song, and who do you think it will appeal to?

We’re never too young or too old for rediscovery, reimagining or reinventing ourselves and it’s not impossible to rekindle those childhood dreams and creativity we’ve all had as children.

Society has a way of reshaping the mindset, heart and soul at an early age, thus diminishing creativity, which I believe is in all of us. A beautiful dream is a mysterious form of creativity, and we don’t have to be famous to enjoy it!

What have you enjoyed most about working on the new release of A New Dream?

The incredible feedback from humans all over the world. I always believed there was something special about this song, the performances and its universal message, so it gives me a great high to see the positive response…

The song features your long-time collaborator Julian Lennon, how was it having him be part of the release and can you tell us about your partnership over the years?

Julian is like family to me as well. So to actually release this re-envisioned song to the world is a thrill for me. I feel that people can actually pick up on the chemistry and history which has been developed through the years…

You released a number of original tracks last year, including Cleaning This Dirty House and Slow Down Trance, how is it seeing the fan response to your music and what were the songs like to work on?

I was signed to a record company for many years working with the same producer and musicians. We always had big productions which meant big budgets. So to work on these songs without access to a massive budget for musicians, orchestras etc, forced me to strip things down and go for less is more, which was an incredible experience for me, as it forced me to really hone in on the song without all the bells and whistles…

How do you find the experience working with other artists such as NOANNE and Mary Elle on their careers?

Producing for and collaborating with other artists gives me a sense of objectivity, which can be difficult for artists as we are so close to our own creation. I love reading their lyrical ideas and then creating the music in my head. It gives me a clearer picture on how to create colours which reflect off the theme.

I believe it’s been a mutual learning experience for all of us, as none of us are the masters, only students of the game, sharing mutual love, experience and respect for music and the humans who create it.

What are some of your favourite highlights from your music career so far?

Making a record for Darling Cruel – Passion Crimes, collaborating with Julian Lennon on the Photograph Smile, Everything Changes and Jude records, touring the world and performing with the greatest musicians, which was a gold mine of experience. Working with Tony Visconti and learning the ropes as a producer, touring and writing with Russell Watson, working with Ennio Morricone on Exorcist II as a singer, which need up on Quentin Tarantino’s The Hateful Eight, recording my solo records and jamming with Prince tops it…

We understand you are the head of artist outreach for Reluvotion and involved with the Gift of Love Foundation, can you tell us about this?

YES! My partners/founder of ReLuv (https://www.reluvotion.com), Professor Nick Dungey, and co-founder, JR Smith, brought me into this project during the COVID lockdown. They both had a profound affect on me, as they both come from unknown worlds to me. I was all ears with loads of questions, which helped lead me to a higher understanding of the world we live in. All three of us come from entirely different backgrounds, but when the puzzle is put together, it all makes sense, and mutual love for music.

Recently, we have joined forces with Jody Folz, the founder of the Gift of Love Foundation (https://prolific-fund.org/gift-of-love-foundation). This collective effort will drastically change the course of the music written and the artists produced in the future, as well as many other great causes we support. ReLuv will dive deeper into human spirit, the world we live in and make positive change. This is our initiative!

Where does your love of music come from and how did you get started in the industry?

When I was 10 years old, I was accepted into music school in Los Angeles. I studied there for six years, learning music arrangement, harmony, sight-reading, piano etc. It was this experience which led to multiple tours around California, live television shows and movies like The Exorcist, The Hateful Eight etc…

Do you have any favourite music artists to listen to?

Many! Rufus Wainwright, Earth Quake, Post Malone, Kovaks, Bowie, Jim James, Cigarettes After Sex, Prince, George Michael, Glass Animals, Lorde, Florence and the Machine, Erik Satie etc etc…

What advice would you give a new singer hoping for a career in music?

We’ve got over 100,000 releases a day, internationally. The best option you have is to be yourself, find your own voice and sound. Don’t go chasing something that’s already been done.

How do you like to spend your free time?

Long walks and great conversations…

What are you hoping this year brings for you, and do you have any projects coming up that you can share?

On February 14th, I have a track I produced and co-wrote with NOANNE for her new single Lullaby, coming out on my label 2LionStudio.

Currently working on a major production with a major artist for ReLuv. More info will be divulged soon.

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