Geo Gabriel's journey hasn't been an easy one. Wrought with hard work, soul, and a surprisingly long list of celebrity names, the British born singer has become something of a musical curiosity. 

His experience and voice have consistently won him opportunities in the industry and his soulful vocals have made him highly sought after by some of the biggest names in pop music including Madonna, Leona Lewis, Beverley Knight, Lionel Richie, Sam, Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds, The Game, Will Young, Take That, 30 Seconds To Mars, Placebo, Primal Scream, Bloc Party, Damon Albarn, and Susan Boyle.

Geo Gabriel's new single 'Destiny' is out on December 15th and with such an impressive C.V. for an up and coming artist, we had no choice but to find out the full story:

Hi Geo, first off - thanks for doing this. So I was reading up on your background and it seems you ditched a degree in pharmacology to pursue a career in music. What happened to trigger that decision? What changed?

My destiny. I came to the realisation of who I really am. In terms of career choice, I realised that I was living for my mother, not myself. I don't blame her for this. I can look back and see that she wanted the best for me, but it's not who I am. I belong in the land of music.

Firstly, I was aiming for medicine because my mother wanted me to become a medical doctor but while studying my A-levels, I watched a program on doctors that put me off, it showed how overworked and majorly underpaid lots of them are, so I told my mother. She wasn't pleased, but I told her I will aim for pharmacy. I didn't make the grades to get into the school of pharmacy so I settled for pharmacology. At the same time, I was exploring singing, but it eventually started to take over and my mother's biggest fear started becoming real... I was losing interest in my degree.

During my first year at university, I joined a group called The Melaphonics. Members of the group and even other people could see I was wasting my time doing anything else apart from music. My cousin would see my some mornings on my way to class and he would ask me where I’m going when I'd tell him, he would shout out, "dude you’re wasting your time, you can’t mix chemicals on stage!". The top student in my biochemistry class spoke to me, he asked me why I was on the course, he said I looked like the odd one out from everyone else. I wasn't geeky, and I should be in entertainment. I guess he was right!

Do you ever consider going back to academia?

Not in the foreseeable future. I'm focusing on my music career. Music requires a lot of energy, therefore, I'm giving it my all. I believe Tupac once said, "music is an insatiable girlfriend". I don't have the time to give to academia. I've done some really productive stuff and I know I've got what it takes to go all the way. This is my plan and I will see it to the very end.

Over the years you've worked with some pretty big names - could you tell us a little about that? Which artists and wh

Yeah, I've worked with artists like Jay-Z on the BBC Live Lounge around V-Festival 2017. That was fun. He was very cool and seemed very level-headed.

I worked with Ed Sheeran on his track "Shape of You" from his current album, "÷" (divide). That was a quick session, and it's nice to know I'm on a song that's a number one hit.

I have also worked with Madonna on her track, "Nothing Fails" (American Life). Madonna was very professional and knew exactly what she wanted from the singers and how she wanted her music to sound. As far as the music went, she was very hands on!

Lionel Ritchie was great fun to work with on his song, "All Night Long". This was at the Prince's Trust Celebration. He interacted with us and we had a blast on stage. I watched from the side stage during the early part of his set that night. He was so professional!

Damon Albarn (Blur)'s Heavy Seas Tour in 2014 was fun. The live show was awesome, the music was eclectic and on point—I admire his work ethic.

Roger Waters (Pink Floyd) - Cà Ira (premiere in Poznań Poland) this was the first play of this calibre I've work in. It was an outdoor play, there was a cast of 200 people—acrobats, singers, fire eaters, horses, an 80-piece orchestra, and more.

Do you have any stories about any of the above musicians? (Nothing incriminating, obviously)...

I don’t have any stories as such but I can say it was truly great working with them all because I’ve been fortunate to learn either from their work ethic or level of professionalism. I will say during the BBC Live Lounge session with Jay-Z, we—the band and singers were on before he arrived on set. I knew he was around. When he walked on set, the whole place went quiet.

Your new single, 'Destiny' is out on December 15th. What's it about? What was the creative process like?

"Destiny" is about my life as an artist, what it's like being in my shoes, life on the road, making music and performing it on different stages in different cities, plane hopping, and more. The creative process was a joy! Production-wise, I drew inspiration from one of my favourite producers, Quincy Jones. I listened to the favourite album of my childhood produced by Quincy Jones—Michael Jackson's Off The Wall. The songwriting of “Destiny” was inspired by a mixture of Michael Jackson, Nat King Cole, and jazz pianist Bill Evans.

You've been an independent artist for a long time - what sort of obstacles does this throw up?

Some of the obstacles I have faced were lack of money. This makes it harder to finance your own projects. Paying for studio time at times was difficult to do so, and so I was left with uncompleted songs and unfinished projects.

Not having a machine behind you to handle the financial load, and also not being connected to the right people (good management etc) who can get your work into the right places definitely did pose problems for me.

What advice would you give to all the independent artists out there - anything you wish you'd have known at the beginning of your career?

My advice to independent artists out there is to make sure you have a strategy to build your career. Always network, build your fan base and engage with them. Learn about the music business—never ignore it, you will save yourself from getting burnt. Make sure every contract is thoroughly looked into by a lawyer before signing. And finally, stay away from cowboys and sharks in the business.

You'll be performing on Dec 15th at The Joint in King's Cross - what can the fans expect?

It will be a nice intimate gig we’re holding to an audience of just 50–60 people at The Joint in King’s Cross. Expect an electric night of great live music, original songs, good high energy from me and my band!

Oh yeah, and the first 25 people get free cupcakes and prosecco!

Finally, what are you listening to right now?

Vina Love – Air
Foreign Exchange – Hide&Seek
Doobie Powell – The Future
Prince – Wonderful Ass
Prince – Computer Blue
Sheila E – Love Bizzare
Redman – Won’t Be Fiendin (The Dez Remix)
Redman – All I Do
Redman – Pick It Up
Rick James – Ghetto Life
Pharoah Monch – The Hitman