Alfie Templeman

British singer Alfie Templeman brings a youthful sincerity and songwriting ability beyond his years to his funky, dance-oriented pop. After debuting in his mid-teens, he issued a series of increasingly successful EPs leading up to the 2022 release of his first full-length, Mellow Moon. It topped the U.K. Independent Albums chart and paved the way for 2024's Radiosoul, which featured a collaboration with guitarist Nile Rodgers. Born in 2003 to a musical family in Bedfordshire -- his father was an avid collector of guitars and his older sister played piano -- it wasn't long before Templeman began playing himself. He started with drum lessons at age seven but gravitated toward guitar, teaching himself how to use recording software by the time he was 13. Initially, he recorded only instrumentals, but his mother persuaded him to take singing lessons, opening him up to writing full compositions. In 2018, he had already put together his debut EP, Like an Animal, which saw release on Chess Club; Templeman was 15 at the time. Two more EPs appeared in 2019, with Sunday Morning Cereal arriving in June and Don't Go Wasting Time in November. In July 2020, Templeman issued a fourth EP, Happiness in Liquid Form, which featured songs co-written with former Kaiser Chiefs drummer Nick Hodgson and Justin Young of the Vaccines. After the release of numerous EPs, Templeman's next project, 2021's Forever Isn't Long Enough, was wider in scope. Sitting somewhere between an album and an EP in length, it was nevertheless retroactively referred to as an EP when his debut album "proper" came out the next year. Released in May 2022, Mellow Moon saw Templeman blending R&B, pop, folk, and rock on a succession of funky, melodic, danceable tunes while frankly detailing his struggles with mental health, describing the album as a "safe space to get away from anxieties." It topped the U.K. Independent Albums chart while reaching 31 on the pop chart. Shifting away from EPs, Templeman began work on his sophomore full-length album. Heralded by the funk-infused single "Eyes Wide Shut," Radiosoul arrived in June 2024 and found the singer working with a small cadre of producers, including Will Bloomfield, Josh Scarbrow, and Karma Kid, among others. Also featured was legendary Chic guitarist Nile Rodgers, who co-produced and performed on the single "Just a Dance." ~ Liam Martin