Prowling around the celebrity-stuffed tables at this year’s Brit Awards ceremony, comedian and host Jack Whitehall singled out stars such as Nick Grimshaw (“a competition winner”), some “McFlies buzzing around” and “hangers on – look, someone’s brought their drug dealer!” The camera zoomed in on Sam Ryder mid-pint, dressed in double denim, laughing his head off.
“It was quite cool, good for my brand,” Ryder (who would probably describe “positive energy” as his drug of choice) jokes a few weeks after the ceremony. The Essex singer isn’t exactly known for his hard-living lifestyle; the night before we speak, he shared a video of himself wearing a lavender facemask while preparing a bubble bath lined with painkillers, throat sweets and a series of Battlestar Galactica. Now he’s nursing a mug of ginger tea with honey, a final attempt to ward off the sore throat that has decided to manifest moments before he plays an intimate showcase of new music. Rock and roll, baby.
