Paul Thin: “The anxiety I talk about in ‘Alondra’ is something I went through and was able to put aside”

Pablo Delgado (21 years old), or as everyone knows him, Paul Thinthe journey began Operation Triumph 2023 like a whisper of talent and serenity. His voice It was a crystal clear stream that resonated with an audience that fell in love with it already in the ‘Gala 0’ with his interpretation of Way Down We Goof Caleb.

The Granadan has been one of the artists who grew the most during the edition. That’s what the public called him: an artist. One who is leaving a mark on each of his listeners. The truth is that Only Naiara was able to beat Paul in the OT finalComing in second place (as Aitana did in OT 2017), Universal has bet very strongly with this new release.

Paul Thin released two years ago The waitress, and ten months ago, Lolawhich has reached more than 3.5 million plays on Spotify. His first single after OT was Dondereaching over 2.4 million views (and counting).

Lark, your new big betit’s about the last night of partying before starting to treat anxiety. “That night at four in the morning when You think that alcohol is going to save you from something, but in reality you fallonce again, in that pit of anxiety from which alcohol will not save you,” he describes.

Expectations and The desire of the public is so high what Lark was trending on Twitter since he released the ‘pre-save’. The truth is that this abysmal support has not only arisen from his songs, but also from how they describe him as a person: Always with a smile, kind and friendly, a natural and honest boy, both with himself and with others.

– The OT tour is over. Are you sad that it’s over or were you looking forward to it ending so you could put all your focus on your new projects?

Both. I think there is room for both to feel that melancholy and that sadness of ‘it’s over’, because it is something that you experience once and it doesn’t come back. But, on the other hand, there was that desire to start working and focus solely on my own thing, so it has been a bit of that ‘fifty fifty’ thing.

– How has it been during the tour?

In the end, we arrive in the morning, go straight to the sound check and everything is very fast. But then, for example, after the show we would hang out in the hotel garden to hang out. I think that, in the end, what the tour has had is being able to see each other in those moments, being together on the bus. Although I might be sleeping, but in the challenge I’m awake and I’m with X. It’s very much like a school trip, even if we have things to do we’re always there. It’s true that, as I say, we’re 16 people, each one with his father and mother and in the end that’s what it is.

– Now everyone goes their own way, but will there always be time for your companions?

Yes, in the end, there will be people with whom it will be more difficult to see each other, due to schedules or whatever, but it is something that we have all told ourselves, that we are there for each other, for whatever they need. We are a family. A dysfunctional family, but we are a family.

– Are there nerves before releasing a single?

There are always nerves. I’m calm because what I really wanted was for it to come out already, after working on the song for so long. But I’m a little bit in the tummy if it gives that… It’s quite balanced, but good.

– What message do you want to convey with Alondra? What are we going to find?

What I want is for people to simply experience the different emotions that the song has, to see the work behind it and to enjoy it as they want, whether with headphones, dancing to it… However they want. In the end, the song stops being just mine and becomes theirs too. So… Let them live it!

– It feels like the lyrics, the message, are a bit dark, but they end up being enlightening.

Alondra’s message is dark. It’s a song that focuses on anxiety and not knowing if you’re capable of getting out of a hole. I’m not sure if the light can be found in Alondra. It’s true that musically it might ask for it, but lyrically it’s a bit of a pessimistic song. Or more than pessimistic, I think it’s a bit fatalistic.

– What is the meaning of Alondra?

It’s a song about that last night of partying before you start treating yourself for anxiety, before you start taking antidepressants. It’s that moment of going out partying at four in the morning when you’re thinking that alcohol is going to save you from something, but in reality it’s just falling once again into that pit of anxiety that alcohol is not going to save you from, even if you’re partying.

– So what do you mean when you say in the chorus “I’m looking for Alondra”?

I like to leave it up to people to come up with their own theories, so I won’t tell you exactly what “I’m looking for Alondra” symbolizes.

– You talk about anxiety. Your life has changed since the contest. So many people and so much work. How do you deal with it?

I think I’m doing pretty well. In the end I’m concentrating on my own thing: on my work, on doing things the way they should be done. It’s also true that the anxiety I talk about in Alondra is something I’ve already gone through at one time and that I’ve now used as inspiration to write the song. Something I experienced, but that luckily and with the corresponding treatment I was able to reduce quite a bit. In the end it’s something that, in some way, I’ve been able to put aside from my life and it’s just a bit of an anecdote. It’s true that I have those moments that sometimes appear a little, but I also think that’s normal in the situation I’m in. But I’m doing very well, honestly.

– Can we say that after Alondra, we are truly in the “Paul Thin era”?

I think it’s already starting. There are still things to see. There is still a lot to understand about the concept of me musically and what is to come. It is a beginning, a first step towards this first era of the whole project. Because in the end, I think that everything that has come so far has been a prologue. And this was more than the starting point of what is to come from now on.

– At the beginning of this new era, is there an obsession with numbers? Or concern about how things will go?

I think it’s more a concern that everything goes well, that things don’t go wrong. I don’t think it’s the same thing. I’m quite calm in the sense that if this doesn’t go as it should, I’ll fight for it to go well. At the work level, I’m not going to stop because this might not go as well as I expected at the beginning. It’s all about continuing to work, continuing to work and continuing to work. It’s something that doesn’t scare me, but it’s true that there might be more concern, not because I want this to be top 1, but because it goes well.

– The support you receive on social media is abysmal. How do you deal with it?

I’m a fairly lifelong user of social networks, I’ve always been a part of them. But at the same time I’m a person who hates them a bit, I don’t really like what they symbolize at many times and that’s why I know how to use them, but sometimes I wish I didn’t, I didn’t have to be on social networks. In the end, they’re a world that takes you away from reality. The street is not Twitter. Being something so anonymous, you lose a bit of the reality of everything that life is. The networks are there, I’ve gotten used to living with them at this level, in the end it’s not the same as before, which were interactions with two or three of my friends, to suddenly having that level of interaction. It’s learning to live with it and realizing that day to day life is not the same, the street is not the same as the ‘likes’ on Twitter.

– Did you expect this repercussion after leaving Operación Triunfo?

The way Alondra worked surprised the team and me in a good way. Now we have to see how all that hype translates into a complete song. In the end, one doesn’t know what one will find when one leaves the academy. One imagines, but one doesn’t expect. Rather than waiting, I could imagine and think about what could happen.

– Those who have been with you from the beginning have been your family, your beloved father and sister. What would you say to them?

You would thank them. They have always been there for me, they have believed in me. I have always had crazy goals, but they have believed in my madness and they have told me that I could count on their hands to grab me and hold me when I fall if necessary. That is what I am most grateful for about them.

– La Velada 4 was recently held. Are you open to singing at La Velada 5, if it happens?

It’s just another show. It’s an event that shouldn’t be hidden. As I say, it’s an event that I like to see. I’ve been seeing it for many years. I’ve paid my ticket to go there. If it happens, it will be something very nice. I don’t know if there will be a 5th Evening, nor do I know how everything will be prepared. In the end, the 4th was two days ago, so to speak.

– Registration for the Benidorm Fest has opened. Would you like to participate and make it to Eurovision?

I don’t know, honestly, I’ve always been a big Eurofan. I remember leaving one of my own celebrations early because it was Eurovision Day. I wouldn’t miss it for anything. It’s true that I think there are times for everything, but now is not the time. It is the time to be involved in other projects. I don’t rule it out in the future, but right now I think I’m going to be involved in other things. I could tell you… Who knows? But anyway, I hope to tell you that I don’t think it’s the time and if it comes, then it will come.

– What can we expect from Paul Thin after Alondra?

A lot of play. Experimenting with the music that I like, which in the end is pop and urban music, and a sound of my own. I think that music will be a bit more club-like, in some way, but that it will always have that more artisanal aspect, so to speak. That thought and way of creating will always be there.

– I always ask this last question. It is asked a lot, but rarely from the heart. How are you?

Well, I’m fine, really. A little stressed because we’re now working on the next singles, now with Alondra, the album, all that. But the truth is that I’m doing very well. I have that thing where I’ve had to think “Let’s see what I have to do today!”, but I’m fine. Thank you very much for this question.

Paul Thin takes the ‘HuffTest’: “Violeta and I have a special artistic synergy”

– Favorite artist

Rosalia.

– There is only one dish of food left in the world. Which one would you like it to be?

I’m a big pizza fan. The pizza is made very well.

– You like ice cream?

I’m not a big fan of ice cream. I really like cream sandwiches.

– Place to get lost

I like to walk around the areas where there are fields near the square, that little area that is kind of green.

– Which ex-teammate would you get lost with there?

Con Bea

– Team heat or team cold?

Cold. I’m much more into autumn or winter outfits.

– Do you still have time to play video games?

Yes, I spend my free time mostly on series, video games… I’m playing Resident Evil 2.

– And to see IlloJuan?

Yes Yes.

– A single from your colleagues that you really like.

I’m really liking what they’re putting out in this second wave. I really like it. Smelling your perfumeKiki’s EP is really cool. There are people who have already released songs. The EP in May is going to be really cool. I’m looking forward to it.

– A partner you would like to collaborate with.

A lot. In the end, I think it’s about seeing if it makes sense. I’m looking forward to getting into the studio with Ruslana. Maybe not for a collaboration, but to compose, we can do something cool. With Salma it could also be something interesting. With Violeta we have a special artistic synergy.

– Operation Triumph for Paul is…

Learning. OT is a dream since childhood. It has been maturity.