Sam Clark takes on a new role

Sam’s come a long way since scoring the part of Ringo on Neighbours. He spills to TV Hits about all the juicy details of his latest album. Interview: Liz Tse

TVH: Tell us about your new single, “Broken”.
Sam: It’s a pop/rock ballad about relationships and breaking up and the aftermath.

What’s the vibe of your album like?
Its got some upbeat stuff and some more chilled out stuff as well.

Are you worried about being stereotyped as another singer-turned-actor from Neighbours?
Even though I was always into music, I was nervous because when I started, people would ask me, “are you worried about that?”, but since we got the album recorded, I don’t really have any fear of that at all. The music will speak for itself when people come and see us perform live.

If you weren’t a singer/actor, what do you think you’d be doing?
Wow! (laughs) Who knows? I wouldn’t mind studying philosophy because it relates to the creativity behind music and acting and looking at things from different perspectives.

As Neighbours already airs in the UK, do you have any plans like Delta and Kylie to crack the British market?
Yeah, absolutely I’d love to! I’ve never been over to the UK so I think it’d be a really cool experience. We seem to have quite a bit of support online from the UK. People ask me when I’m coming over and when the single can be bought so I’d love to head over to the UK.

Who are your musical influences?
It’s a never-ending list. I grew up with a lot of folk based music like Van Morrison and Billie Holiday. I only really started getting into guitar and singing when I was 15 so I was listening to The Red Hot Chili Peppers and then got into Jack Johnson and Ben Harper ‘cause I was playing acoustic guitar. I’ve listened to all sorts of music from hip-hop to heavy metal and everything in between (laughs) so I think I take my influences from all areas of music.

Is there anyone you’d love to work with musically or acting wise?
I don’t know if there’s one person in particular. I want to work as many people as I can in my time to gain as many different points of view on music and acting – anyone who’s positive and hardworking!

With the launch of your singing career, do you have any plans to leaving Neighbours?
I’m taking some time off (from Neighbours) and in the process of re-signing after a three-month break so I’ll have a nice bit of time to focus on my music.

For more on Sam, check out his MySpace page: http://www.myspace.com/samjclarkmusic

Watch the clip for Sam's single 'Broken'!