The English singer, 22, tells PEOPLE it’s “so surreal” to share the stage with such big names as she reveals what she’s learned from each star
Griff may be a bit of a newcomer to the music scene, but he has the power of a seriously talented star in his corner.
Over the past two years, the English singer-songwriter (real name Sarah Faith Griffiths) has traveled the world accompanying stars such as Dua Lipa, Ed Sheeran and Coldplay on their stadium and arena tours, and she tells PEOPLE she’s learned something different from every megastar.
Griffiths, 22, admits she was “very, very privileged to be on tour” with some of the “biggest” names in music at the moment.
“It’s so surreal to be like, I’ve been on all these tours and I’ve been supported by all these crazy superstars,” the singer says. “Being surrounded by him is quite inspiring – just seeing where this job can take you, in so many different ways.”
She spent several months in the spring of 2022 opening up to Lipa (28) on her Nostalgia for the future tour across Europe, and says one of her main takeaways was the “Dance the Night” singer’s work ethic.
“You look at Dua and she’s so fucking hardworking and kind, and it’s so inspiring to see a pop show at its highest level.”
Sheeran, 32, who she opened for in September and October last year on his + – = ÷ x (Mathematics) tour, says that his innovative presence on stage is what kept her going.
“You look at Ed and only he is on his loop. It’s also pop, but in its own way.”
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However, perhaps the most significant help she received during her world tour came from Coldplay frontman Chris Martin. Griffiths has spent the last few months as the opening act for the band Music of the spheres world tour, and says Martin, 46, has been a source of particularly useful insight and support.
“Chris Martin has been really, really generous with his time and investment in my music,” she says.
“On tour, he said, ‘Oh, let’s listen to some of your songs.’ And I didn’t think we’d ever actually get there, but we did.”
The pair “ended up listening to maybe 30 unreleased songs,” and the Grammy-winning songwriter took out “pen and paper” as he dug deep into Griffiths’ sound.
“He wrote me lots of encouraging things,” she says, adding, “He was very kind.”
Griff on stage with Chris Martin during Coldplay’s ‘Music of the Spheres’ world tour.
Griff/ Instagram
Griff talks about writing Vertigo Vol. 1 and a special shout out to her ‘fairy godmother’ Taylor Swift (exclusive)
Being the opening act was a mixed bag for the “Walk” singer, who says it was “fun, because if you mess up, there’s no pressure,” but still a little “weird.”
“My method is just — throw out all the slow songs and make sure people have a good time. My only job really is just to warm up the crowd, and if I’m lucky, maybe they’ll like what I’m doing.”
She continues, “You’re just trying to get people moving and put a smile on their faces. It’s kind of my only job.”
The challenge she faced was deciphering whether she had even expanded her fan base because of the string of shows, as she says there was no “tangible way of knowing how successful” the opening spot was.
Just weeks after wrapping up Coldplay’s tour, Griffiths dropped her first single of 2023, “Vertigo,” and within days she’d secured support from another megastar: Taylor Swift.
Swift, 33, shared the song on her Instagram Story, writing, “Damn Griff, I love this one.” To say it was a moment for Griffiths is an understatement.
“Her coming out the other week and releasing ‘Vertigo’ is the craziest thing because it’s like – she never releases and she really doesn’t have to. So it’s really nice of her to be so generous in promoting it.”
She says the singer is “like this fairy godmother” in her life who “pops up and makes things amazing for me and then I just live in it for the next period.”
She adds: “It’s still the craziest thing ever, because I’m such a Swiftie.”
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Griff releases ‘Vertigo Vol. 1’ featuring two new songs, “19th Hour” and “Into the Walls.”
Warner Records
She was released on Friday Vertigo Vol. 1project featuring her Swift-approved hit “Vertigo,” along with two new tracks: “19th Hour” and “Into the Walls.”
“All these songs are me just trying to keep up with my emotions and figure out what I’m thinking,” she says. “I feel like I wrote them all from a place of feeling a little upside down and a little lost, which I think is a natural feeling when you’re a young woman entering adulthood.”
The sense of vertigo in particular – she got her inspiration from the vast spiral staircase in Imogen Heap’s cottage, where she spent time during “severe writer’s block” – resonated with Griffiths as she says: “Often when you’re heartbroken, it feels like you’re emotionally dizzy .”
“I got to this house and it just had a huge spiral staircase in the middle, and I was just talking to my friend about how it makes you dizzy when you look at it or you’re on it. And I think it’s funny sometimes how inspiration comes – in the most ordinary things you talk about.”
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Source: HIS Education