Latest news with #EyeToTheTelescope
Daily Mail
29-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
KT Tunstall, 49, reveals how she went 97 per cent deaf in one ear after just ONE wild night - yet claims losing her hearing 'wasn't the worst part'
KT Tunstall has explained how she went 97 per cent deaf in one ear after losing her hearing overnight. The singer, 49, traced the condition back to a long flight to get to a Spice Girls concert 15 years ago which left her ears 'ringing' and unable to detect quieter sounds. She told OK! magazine how she went deaf 'overnight' in 2018 after suffering from sensorineural hearing loss (SSHL). KT explained: 'It was a huge shock. I'm 97 per cent deaf in that ear now and can't use a hearing aid because it's gone too far.... 'I'm not blaming the Spice Girls, but I think it overloaded my nervous system. I woke up with ringing in my ear, like I'd gone underwater. I couldn't hear the car indicator or a shower in another room.' This was not the biggest worry for the Scottish musician, however, as she developed another health problem from the sudden loss of hearing. 'But the worst part wasn't the deafness, it was the vertigo,' she added. 'I lost my balance completely, for two or three months. That was really disabling. Thankfully it passed, and I can still write, record, perform - just in mono. 'I started seeing it as a message from the universe telling me to slow down, look after myself. I still tour, but I'm more careful.' As she prepares to turn 50 later this year, and celebrate the 20th anniversary of her breakthrough album Eye To The Telescope, KT admitted she feels like it is the end of an era but that she is proud of her age and how she remains a force in the music industry. It comes after the noughties icon looked worlds away from her heyday as she appeared on The One Show in March. She left fans gobsmacked as she graced TV screens with an undercut hairdo and a swipe of pink lipstick to match her jumper and nails. Some fans wrote on Instagram: 'What? Thought she was still like 25'; 'That whole album was amazing and she's looking very cool.' KT appeared on the show to celebrate her single Suddenly I See turning 20. Speaking of the single, she said: 'I have people coming up to me going "I've listened to you my whole life". 'I'm like "what?" It was amazing because the song ended up much better known than me. I remember going to a party and someone went "oh, what do you do?" 'I said it was the song at the beginning of Devil Wears Prada and she went "oh my God, you're on the party playlist". I was so lucky to have a song that connected with people like that.' In January, KT revealed she is considering adoption having been adopted as a baby herself. She said the thought of taking on parental responsibility for a child 'does cross my mind'. KT, who does not have any children and lives with partner Chris Light in the USA, was put up for adoption when she was just days old and then taken in by Scottish couple David and Rosemarie Tunstall. Speaking to Saga magazine, she said: 'I was adopted along with my older brother, but my mum and dad did have a son after being told they couldn't have children. 'Mum always joked, "Everyone else got what they got, but you got chosen", though the truth is you're always going to have a bit of an abandonment issue. 'It didn't hit me until late in life. I found my biological mother at the age of 23 and it was really enriching to my life - but tough. 'I had never been able to find my biological father so I went on ITV show Long Lost Family and they did, but he'd passed away. 'When the programme got in touch with my two sisters, they had no idea they had a sibling, so they broke it to them gently, saying, "We think you've got a sister you didn't know you had - and she's famous". 'And the younger one said, "It's KT Tunstall!" She got my album, which they had in the house, and held it up against the picture of our dad and just went, "They look exactly the same".' The Black Horse and the Cherry Tree hitmaker continued: 'Adoption does cross my mind. 'It's an amazing thing to do if you are a secure enough adult to provide an amazing life for a kid. 'I'm turning 50 soon. Ask me then.'
Perth Now
28-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Perth Now
KT Tunstall lost her hearing 'overnight'
KT Tunstall is "97% deaf" in one ear. The 'Suddenly I See' hitmaker suffered a "huge shock" when she abruptly lost her hearing overnight, which she believes was due to having "overloaded [her] nervous system" by going to see the Spice girls perform shortly after a gruelling long-haul flight. She told Britain's OK! magazine: "About 15 years ago, I took a long-haul flight and went straight to a Spice Girls concert. I'm not blaming the Spice Girls, but I think it overloaded my nervous system. " I woke up with ringing in my ear, like I'd gone underwater. I couldn't hear the car indicator or a shower in another room. "Then in 2018, I went deaf in my left ear overnight. It's called sudden sensorineural hearing loss (SSHL). "They don't know why it happens. It was a huge shock. I'm 97% deaf in that ear now and can't use a hearing aid because it's too far gone." But it wasn't just losing her hearing that KT found tough as it also caused "really disabling" issues with her balance, so she has taken the time to "slow down" and be "more careful" with her health. She added: "But the worst part wasn't the deafness, it was the vertigo. I lost my balance completely, for two or three months. That was really disabling. Thankfully it passed, and I can still write, record, perform – just in mono. I started seeing it as a message from the universe telling me to slow down, look after myself. I still tour, but I'm more careful now." KT - who has written the songs for the new stage musical adaptation of 'Clueless' - turns 50 this year but she is "loud and proud" of her age because she wants to set a good example to other women. She said: "I'm turning 50 this year, and it's the 20th anniversary of 'Eye To The Telescope' . It feels like the end of a chapter and the start of a new one. "I'm loud and proud about my age. There aren't loads of women in their fifties in UK music, which is why I print 'KT Tunstall 1975' on my merch. "I want younger women to know how old I am and feel empowered. I feel like I'm shutting the door on the first half of my career. Now, I've got this new avenue in musical theatre."
Daily Mirror
27-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
KT Tunstall's romcom love story with partner and unlikely first encounter
Singer-songwriter KT Tunstall is loved up again after her 2015 divorce and has revealed the unusual way - with the help of both of their pooches - she met her current partner, Chris Brit Award -winning singer KT Tunstall, who celebrates her milestone 50th birthday in June - twenty years on from her breakout debut album Eye To The Telescope , the Brit Award-winning singer-songwriter, has opened up exclusively to OK! about writing the music for Clueless the Musical (and her love of the iconic movie), as well as how she met her current partner - and as she admits, it was like something out of a cutesy rom-com. The Scottish Suddenly I Se e singer, who lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico, tells us she met her partner, Chris totally unexpectedly during lockdown - and it was their respective pooches that brought them together, "We both adopted dogs and met at the dog park. It was like something out of a John Hughes 80s movie. A love story!" The music star, who was previously married to Luke Bullen, the drummer in her band from 2008 before their divorce in 2013, adds with a smile: "My rescue dog is called Mini, and his is Nova. Mini's a miniature pinscher and has PTSD, she doesn't play with other dogs. But that day, she started playing with Nova. I looked up, and there's this 6ft 3in jiu-jitsu instructor and I thought, 'Oh, hello!' KT previously admitted that she has dated both sexes in the past, and was not 'lockdown' straight, She said in 2016 that kissing girls was 'a really important part of my formative years", adding that there is 'less angst' in the new generation of young people around sexuality. 'It feels like there are less and less shackles on young people to adhere to old norms and that inspires me just to be brave in everyday life and to honor how confident and self-assured they are becoming at a much younger age than I did.' Elsewhere, KT - who has also battled serious health issues with her hearing - opens up in the interview about how, despite her confident stage persona, she is actually quite the introvert at heart. 'Yes. I'm a bit of an introvert, a lot of artists are. When I first got big, I ended up pulling the 'performer' lever, even in social situations. I'd have drinks after the show and was a bit of a party animal but I was actually pretty anxious. I had a lot of fun, but it was an unsustainable way to live. In my forties, I realised I was burning out." Revealing her most bizarre celebrity encounter over the years - at the Q Awards, where she bagged an award, she admits, "I went to the toilet and Björk was there, washing her hands. I introduced myself and said, 'I just won Best Song,' she said, 'I know… Who are you?' and I was like, ' Björk, that's too much of an existential question, I can't answer that after a gin!'
Daily Mirror
26-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
KT Tunstall's ‘overwhelming' health battle amid 'burn out' from fame
As she approaches her 50th birthday, KT Tunstall opens up about the debilitating illness that threatened her career, fame burnout and finding unexpected love in the dog park... KT Tunstall is going full steam ahead in her milestone 50th birthday year. Two decades on from her breakout debut album Eye To The Telescope, the Brit Award-winning singer-songwriter is embracing a whole new chapter. Having written the songs for the new stage musical adaptation of Clueles s, KT, who will hit the big 5-0 in June, has swapped pop tours for playbills, all while having found love and battling a debilitating illness. In an exclusive chat with OK! , the Suddenly I See singer opens up with us about her hearing loss and finding unexpected love - in a dog park… READ MORE: Iconic noughties popstar unrecognisable 21 years after hit album Hi, KT! How has life been lately? I live in Santa Fe, New Mexico. I moved to America about 10 years ago. I lived in LA for a while – first in Venice Beach, then Topanga – basically doing all the classic musician holy grails of where to live. But I'm just not a big city person. I love a smaller place, so we found Santa Fe in the mountains and moved a few years ago. And we hear you've found love? Yes, my partner Chris and I met during lockdown. We both adopted dogs and met at the dog park. It was like something out of a John Hughes 80s movie. A love story! My rescue dog is called Mini, and his is Nova. Mini's a miniature pinscher and has PTSD, she doesn't play with other dogs. But that day, she started playing with Nova. I looked up, and there's this 6ft 3in jiu-jitsu instructor and I thought, 'Oh, hello!' It's been 20 years since your debut album, but you've said you weren't a natural pop star. How so? I was rubbish at being a pop star! I'm great at performing, touring, but the shiny, hobnobbing side of it? I'm c**p at that. You became famous almost overnight... Yes. I'm a bit of an introvert, a lot of artists are. When I first got big, I ended up pulling the 'performer' lever, even in social situations. I'd have drinks after the show and was a bit of a party animal but I was actually pretty anxious. I had a lot of fun, but it was an unsustainable way to live. In my forties, I realised I was burning out. What was your most surreal celebrity encounter from those early days? Definitely at the Q Awards. I turned up thinking I wasn't going to win, had a few too many drinks, and then I won. I met Chris Martin, Noel Gallagher, Nick Cave… I went to the toilet and Björk was there, washing her hands. I introduced myself and said, 'I just won Best Song,' she said, 'I know… Who are you?' and I was like, 'Björk, that's too much of an existential question, I can't answer that after a gin!' Health-wise, you're facing losing your hearing... About 15 years ago, I took a long-haul flight and went straight to a Spice Girls concert. I'm not blaming the Spice Girls, but I think it overloaded my nervous system. I woke up with ringing in my ear, like I'd gone underwater. I couldn't hear the car indicator or a shower in another room. Then in 2018, I went deaf in my left ear overnight. It's called sudden sensorineural hearing loss (SSHL). They don't know why it happens. It was a huge shock. I'm 97% deaf in that ear now and can't use a hearing aid because it's too far gone. But the worst part wasn't the deafness, it was the vertigo. I lost my balance completely, for two or three months. That was really disabling. Thankfully it passed, and I can still write, record, perform – just in mono. I started seeing it as a message from the universe telling me to slow down, look after myself. I still tour, but I'm more careful now. How has it shaped your attitude today? I'm turning 50 this year, and it's the 20th anniversary o f Eye To The Telescope. It feels like the end of a chapter and the start of a new one. I'm loud and proud about my age. There aren't loads of women in their fifties in UK music, which is why I print 'KT Tunstall 1975' on my merch. I want younger women to know how old I am and feel empowered. I feel like I'm shutting the door on the first half of my career. Now, I've got this new avenue in musical theatre. Did writing the songs for th e musical Clueless take yo u back to your teens? Totally. Clueless is a classic. I didn't grow up in a house of music. Mum and I didn't listen to records but the first artist who made me want to do what she did was Kim Wilde. I was obsessed with Kids In America , and that's on the Clueless soundtrack. So it became this crossover of wanting to be a rocker and loving this cult film. What were you like as a youngster? A complete tomboy. For my 11th birthday, I had a Grease party. All my friends came as Pink Ladies, and I went as Danny Zuko. What's next in this new chapter? Part of the joy is not knowing. I love working in a team after 20 years as a solo artist – it's such a relief not to be in charge of everything. We're re-releasing Eye To The Telescope in September with unreleased tracks I wrote at the time. It's like a time capsule. I also want to get into pottery – you may see some KT mugs one day!
