Craig David expresses interest in working with Usher: “It would be one to say we ticked that box”

Lis Sinatra

Craig David has expressed his interest in working with Usher, revealing that collaborating with the singer is on his bucket list.

Speaking to BANG Showbiz while at Capital’s Jingle Bell Ball this year, David shared that he has dreamt of collaborating with the ‘You Make Me Wanna…’ singer ever since they performed a freestyle together on a French radio station.

“For me, having grown up listening to Usher, I feel that would be a great … we would create something special,” he told the outlet (via Music News).

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He continued: “We had a moment at a place called Skyrock at a radio station over there in Paris and we did a little freestyle on the radio back when I was releasing ‘Fill Me In’, ‘7 Days’ and he had ‘You Make Me Wanna … ’ and about to go into his ‘8701’ album so it was a moment.

“Everyone was like: ‘You guys need to [do something together]’. It would be one to say we ticked that box.”

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Elsewhere in the chat, David shared his best piece of advice for any aspiring musicians out there. “The one thing that’s served me really well is being out and performing live in front of crowds. There’s one thing about creating your songs – there are so many people who can create music when you are in your safe space – but when you go out and you get to perform it’s like a different world.

“And I feel like that’s really served me well I was DJing before my rise to fame with ‘Born To Do It’ so when I saw a crowd in front of me I was like: ‘Ah I know this’.”

He continued: “And I feel that’s one thing I would say to any new and aspiring artists, try to be comfortable with crowds early on because if you have a big hit all of a sudden and they throw you on stage at the Jingle Bell Ball in front of 16,000 people that’s a big one and some people can rise and fall to.”

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In other news, David recently teased his next musical “chapter” by sharing a snippet of a country-inspired song on his social media.

The legendary UK garage star David hasn’t released new solo music since 2022 when he dropped his first-ever Christmas song, ‘Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas’. In the same year, he released his eighth studio album, ’22’, which NME awarded four stars.

“Craig David could have dangerously made a gimmicky throwback album,” NME wrote in a review. “Yet, in a time when many UK R&B fans are crying out for great music and recognition, [David] not only feeds that appetite but uses his platform to laud up some stars to watch too.”

He has since featured on former Love Island star-turned-pop star Wes Nelson’s Top 40 single ‘Abracadabra’ earlier this year.

David recently announced that he will embark on a UK arena tour next year. He will kick off the run at First Direct Arena in Leeds on February 2 and make stops at many venues including the new Co-Op Arena in Manchester, before ending in the iconic O2 in London. Tickets are now on sale — visit here to buy yours.