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Kaiser Chiefs frontman Ricky Wilson has opened up about the conflict he experienced whilst appearing on the latest series of The Voice, admitting that he's 'sent home better singers' than himself.
Last year, it was announced that Wilson would be appearing on the BBC singining competition as a judge alongside Sir Tom Jones, Will.i.am and fellow new judge Kylie Minogue. Many have questioned his credentials as an authority on singing, due to his Northern rock style and tendency to shout "ooohhhh" a lot.
Now, in a new interview with The Guardian, Wilson admits that he's been "sending people home; people who can sing much better than I can."
He continued: "The kids on it are pretty savvy. They're not going: 'Oh my God, I got sent home.' They're using it because it gets them on TV. And actually, my own negative responses from trying to make it in the music industry were a bit more crushing than theirs, simply because they were so non-eventful. Our (Kaiser Chiefs) failures would involve some guy coming up to Leeds to listen to our material, we'd get fucked in a pub together, he'd stay at the Malmaison and then he'd go home and never call us. At least getting on TV means more people might come to your gig."
Watch the video for 'Oh My God' by Kaiser Chiefs below
As well as admitting that he broke the ice with fellow judge Tom Jones by sketching him 'a picture of a cock and balls', Wilson dismissed speculation that he was attempting to launch a TV career, adding: "This isn't bullshit, but everything is about the band. It's the most important thing in my life."
When quizzed about the credibility of singing contest TV shows, Wilson responded: "At the time, I was a bit snobby about those kind of shows. But fact is, Saturday night, I'm not out in some bar in Hoxton. I'm watching the X Factor. I don't think I'd be a very good songwriter if I couldn't enjoy things that 99% of the UK enjoys."
Kaiser Chiefs will release new album Education, Education & War on 31 March, 2014.
But before that, the band will play a couple of intimate UK shows:
February 11 2014 - Manchester Gorilla
February 13 2014 - London Scala
Tickets are on sale now. For more information visit Gigwise gig tickets.
Below: Photos of Kaiser Chiefs live at London's Apollo
