Singer-songwriter Amy Macdonald tells TIM HUGHES why fame and fortune will never change her

FOR all big artists, playing the summer festival season is a rite of passage and a chance to reach out to new fans.

But for Amy Macdonald it means so much more. Quite simply, without them, we might never have heard of her.

As a 12 year-old girl she was taken by her mum to Scotland’s T in the Park, where she fell under the spell of Travis. Back at home she borrowed her dad’s guitar and taught herself to play.

Now 25, she is among the country’s best-loved singer-songwriters, scoring number one hits across the world and selling millions of albums.

This weekend she joins a clutch of big names at Cornbury Festival. And despite the trappings of fame, she has not forgotten her own formative festival experience.

“It’s nice to get into the festival season,” she says. “They do mean a lot to me and it’s very different to doing normal gigs. You’re playing to people who have never heard you before so you have to put everything into it.

“It’s more of a challenge as you are trying to win people over – but I like that challenge.”

It was the success of her debut single This Is the Life and the three million-selling album of the same name that sealed Amy’s fate as an artist, topping the charts in six countries and hitting the top 10 in many more.

Her second album A Curious Thing, released three years ago, yielded a further five singles. Her third long-player Life in a Beautiful Light came out last summer.

Her reputation as a writer and performer has allowed her to work with many of her idols, including Kinks frontman Ray Davis, support Bryan Adams, and even win over U2, who let on they were huge fans.

“I have done so many amazing things,” she gasps. “I could never, for a second, have imagined any of this would happen.”

She is talking to me from her home on the edge of Glasgow, where she is relaxing after a busy spell on the road. “I’ve had a week off which is nice,” she says.

“I’ve been gallivanting all over the place, and it’s quite hard to keep up. I’ve been doing this since 2006 and it’s the only job I’ve had, so it seems normal – but it’s still nice to get a break.”

Despite her success, Amy has stayed close to her roots. “I haven’t seen any need to move,” says the lifelong Rangers fan. “It’s where I’m from, it’s where my friends are and is a great vibrant city with lots of energy. I started off doing open mic nights here and when I have time I hang out in the city. My friends love music as much as I do.

“I’ve had the same friends since I was at school. Nothing has changed. They have been part of what I do from the very beginning and I know they’ll always be there. I won’t change and nor will they – and I’m lucky with that. If you’ve got a level head you carry on as normal. No one gets above their station – but that is possibly part of being Scottish.”

That same egalitarian attitude exists in the band. “We are all equal,” she says. “I don’t expect people to treat me any differently to anyone else, and I do the same.”

That said, Amy is clearly the queen bee, fronting the band and writing all her own songs. “They all have a story behind them,” she says. “They are about people, places and situations and are inspired by things friends have told me and things I see around me.”

Her song What Happiness Means To Me was written about her former fiance the then Falkirk FC player Steve Lovell. Other songs deal with Z-list celebrities, Michael Jackson and even her late grandparents.

Her set at Cornbury this Sunday sees her joining the likes of Van Morrison, Seth Lakeman and Bellowhead. And she can’t wait to get there. “On stage I gave it everything,” she says. “The music is upbeat and positive and it’s easy to dance and clap along to.”

And she has never lost sight of that image of herself at her first festival, listening wide-eyed to Travis in a field in Kinross.

“I really appreciate everything that has happened,” she says. “I started out at the very bottom being inspired by a festival band, which is how it should be. I have played dingy pubs, festivals... everything, and appreciate it all.

“And if I can inspire some girl to pick up an instrument like I did, then that’s amazing. After all, that’s what it’s all about.”

Cornbury Festival starts tomorrow (Fri) and runs through to Sunday.

Go to cornburyfestival.com for tickets and further information.