Adventures of a Welsh Fangirl: Breakthrough Tour and Sunday Brunching

My latest adventure involved going to see David Bulley perform as a support act on David Coslett's Breakthrough Tour in Birmingham and London! You may remember this post that I wrote in April after seeing David perform live for the first time - having been completely blown away by his talent at Foxy, I was more than excited about seeing him perform once again.

We arrived in London on Saturday and after checking into our hotel, we made our way over to Birmingham. The gig was at a venue called Alfie Birds - I've never been there before but it was really chilled out, they even had shelves full of books downstairs so that you could read over a cuppa, which definitely appealed to me as my other favourite hobby is reading! Once we arrived at the venue, we were greeted by David and his pianist Rob and guitarist Jack who were super lovely! We passed on the 'Breakthrough Tour' cookie we'd bought for all of the boys then let them prepare for the gig.

The gig itself was in the loft area, it was so laid back that at the beginning we were actually sat on beanbags on the floor! As we waited for the first support act, David filmed everyone for his vlog and we got chatting to some of the other fans which was nice, Finally it was time for the first act, a young girl called Brooklyn Rose. She sang a series of covers as well as her own song Mr Smith which was quite catchy.

some of the Birmingham crowd with the artists

Next it was time for David. His set was absolutely incredible and he was just as good as the first time that I'd seen him. He sang a mixture of covers (Ghost by Ella Henderson and Jessie J's Flashlight) as well as his original songs from his first EP and his upcoming self-titled EP 'David Mark Bulley'. One of my favourite songs was a new one called Kaleidoscope. David recently posted an acoustic video of it on Youtube - check it out here:

World Full of Crazy was another of my favourites from the upcoming EP. What I like most about his music is that he writes it himself so the messages within them come from the heart. He spreads positivity and encourages you to believe that you can do anything. He's gone through difficult times in his life but has used those experiences to influence his music and his fans and is a stronger person for it - it makes me really proud to be a fan of someone so special.

Unfortunately we had to leave the gig early before seeing David Coslett as we had to catch the last train back to London. We managed to get a quick picture with David Bulley before we left and promised that we'd stick around longer in London haha.

reppin' my Lions tee

Despite not getting back to London until gone 1am, on Sunday morning we got up early in order to try and see Aston Merrygold as he was filming for Sunday Brunch. I've been a fan of JLS from the minute they stepped onto our screens on X Factor and I've dedicated a lot of my time since then travelling across the country to see them perform and to meet them. Obviously I was heartbroken when they split and it's been a long time coming waiting for Aston to release his solo music but he's finally back with a bang with his debut single Get Stupid.

The last time I met Aston was back in September 2012 so I jumped at the chance of possibly being reunited with him again after so long. After spending a few hours hanging around, witnessing birds of prey being attacked by pieces of the SB set outside and a wild goose chase around the shopping centre, we finally got to see him. It was so organised and his team made sure that everyone got time with him. He was just as down to earth as usual, I'd definitely forgotten just how small he is!!! We had a hug and took some selfies (he's a fab selfie taker cos he took loads haha), it was so nice to see him again after so long and that he was as humble as ever. I really hope Get Stupid does well in the charts, he deserves it so much! You can preorder Get Stupid here.

getting stupid with Aston

In the evening it was time to go and see David Bulley again as well as David Coslett for the last night of the Breakthrough Tour. The gig was at a venue called Surya which is nice and intimate. We also got to meet Julia for the first time at the gig, a friend we've made on Twitter through another singer called James Poole (it forever amazes me how artists can bring people together!). We spent our time chatting whilst waiting for the first act which was a singer called Taylor Ames. He sang several of his original songs which were very good.

with Julia

The crowd had filled up quite nicely by the time David Bulley came on and it was a complete contrast in atmosphere in comparison to Birmingham. The crowd were so lively, partly down to the fact that there were friends and family in the audience. David delivered another incredible performance - he has such a stunning voice and his songs are so catchy that I keep singing them all the time. He received a rapturous applause, which he, Rob and Jack fully deserved.

Next it was time for David Coslett. I've never seen him perform live before but I have known of him for some time. He was absolutely brilliant, such a good voice! He sang songs from his EP's as well as some covers that went down really well with the crowd. It was amazing to hear everyone sing along to John Legend's 'All Of Me', however it was his cover of Colbie Caillat's Try that I really fell in love with. His set in general was just fantastic and he also received a great crowd reaction. You can buy his 'Breakthrough' EP here.

After the performances, we got to meet everyone upstairs. It was lovely to meet David Coslett properly and to tell him how great he was! We also got to spend a lot of time with David Bulley and to wish him luck on his trip to Poland. He signed a set list for me and we also had pictures with Rob and Jack. I felt so proud of the two David's - they're both incredibly talented and are some of the best unsigned artists I've come across. I really hope that one day someone takes a chance on them and signs them. Without being biased, I feel that David Bulley in particular is a hidden gem within the music industry and has a brilliant attitude towards life.

David Coslett

Rob and Jack

David Bulley

It was so nice to spend the weekend with people who truly appreciate their fans. The two David's had all the time in the world for their fans and spent ages chatting away and taking pictures. As unsigned artists this is obviously a key factor for success, however they were genuinely happy to see their supporters and didn't make it seem like a chore, unlike some people I've met in the past. In terms of signed artists, Aston is one of the most genuine and unpretentious people I've ever met. He is ridiculously down to earth and it's one of the reasons why he deserves to go far on his own as he has never changed since day 1. Artists, both signed and unsigned, could learn a lot from these guys!