Billy Lockett: Northampton singer-songwriter achieves 'childhood dream'

A singer-songwriter who was supported by BBC Music Introducing says the success of his debut album has helped him realise his "childhood dream".

Billy Lockett's album Abington Grove was released digitally in February and reached 15 in the UK albums chart.

The 31-year-old from Northampton has recently had singles from the album, including Miss Missing You, played on BBC Radio 2.

Abington Grove was released on CD and vinyl on Friday.

"I feel like I've almost achieved everything I wanted to with this," said Lockett.

"I'm by no means the biggest artist around and I don't have any need to be I just wanted to make an album I loved and for it to have some form of success and it's exceeded all my expectations. Anything else now is a bonus."

Lockett's debut album is named after the street he grew up on, close to Northampton town centre.

Speaking to BBC Radio Northampton, a station which gave his music some of its first radio plays, he said: "It's been my childhood dream to get to this point.

"We released four singles and had nothing, then we released Miss Missing You and that went straight into the B List [BBC Local Radio's central playlist].

"Don't Be So Hard On Yourself has done even better and is on every station."

Lockett begins at 12-date UK tour on Wednesday and will play a gig at Spun Out record store in Northampton as part of Record Store Day on 22 April.

He said: "It's interesting how you get nothing, nothing, nothing for kind of 10 years and then finally it just flies.

"It's weird, it just feels so easy now."

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