Nick Edwards was born in Luton, Bedfordshire, one of three boys. Inspired by his father’s love for Formula One racing, Nick was named ‘Niki’, taken after the Austrian Formula One driver Niki Lauder.
Unfortunately, Nick’s Mum and Father split when he was six, marking the beginning of a challenging upbringing for him and his brothers.
Nick sang in the local choir from the age of six up to sixteen years and became a keen lover of church music. During much of his childhood it was apparent that he had a talent for expression through music and performing, and at the age of 12, he joined a local amateur dramatic group. Nick performed regularly on the amateur theatre circuit with one of his performances coming at the London Palladium long before he played there a second time during the auditions of Britain’s Got Talent!
Nick considers his musical influences as broad, ranging from legendary names such as Johnny Cash, Sam Cooke, and Ray Charles to more modern acts such as John Legend. He takes a heavy influence from Motown and soul music, which his mum would play regularly, and he has his father to thank for his love of Frank Sinatra and theatre shows, which he would play at home on a Sunday afternoon.
Growing up in the early 2000’s, and at the age of 16, Nick bought his first guitar and began writing songs. Although he could sing, he was a self-taught guitar player, and later turned his hand to piano, bass, drums, harmonica, and various other instruments. Up to the age of 23, Nick played nationally around the UK, supporting such acts such as Frank Turner, and even played shows at the iconic Cavern Club in Liverpool and across the pond in Jersey.
It wasn’t until his mid 20’s that he found his love and passion for Country music, and particularly the stories behind the songs. It would quickly have a profound impact on Nick and his songwriting, which he often refers to as very much from the American songbook with a big influence on American culture.
During most of his childhood and earlier teenage years, Nick’s home life was far from perfect. Nick’s step mum and father were both heavy drinkers, and this fuelled many toxic situations for Nick and his brothers when growing up. Seeking a better, more stable life, Nick decided to leave the family home the day he collected his GCSE results at the age of 16 and, through a friend, went to live with a family in Harpenden, Hertfordshire. Although Nick would occasionally go back to the family home from time to time, it was often over clouded by challenging situations and eventually led to Nick losing any tangible relationship with his father, who later died from a heart attack in the winter of 2020, which was only two months before his surprise audition on Britain’s Got Talent.
Whilst having only minor success as a solo act, at the age of 25, Nick decided to pursue a more ‘straight’ career in the property sector, which is where he eventually met his wife, Catherine before going on to have four children. The proceeding years were spent making a family home and continuing to pursue his career in London, where Nick climbed the professional ladder. Although he did occasionally play at home during this time, he would openly admit that the family had taken over and his priorities changed.
Whilst music took a back seat, this didn’t stop Nick from pursuing other passions, leading Nick to boxing, where he spent some years as a Boxing Official. Nick covered many professional events, including Anthony Joshua Vs Wladimir Klitschko at Wembley Stadium in 2017!
Nick was dubbed the first ever surprise act in the show’s history when he appeared on ITV’s Britain’s Got Talent in 2022. His audition was pre-planned between his wife, Catherine, and the show’s production team and sparked a global reaction. His performance of the song ‘Daddy’s Little Girl’ has been viewed well over 300 million times and trended worldwide on YouTube (Top Ten) within 48 hours of being aired.
Nick’s story was covered nationally in the UK with appearances on shows such as ITV’s Lorraine and This Morning, but also internationally as far as Japan.
“It really hit me emotionally, more than anything else. There is not a dry eye in the house” – David Walliams
“You have such a lovely voice” – Alesha Dixon
“I love your story and I just loved how stripped back and honest it was” – Amanda Holden
Following the show Nick travelled to Nashville to record his debut single Daddy’s Little Girl which he released in September 2022.
Since Nick’s involvement in Britain’s Got Talent, he is now more determined than ever to give his music career and songwriting another chance, beginning with the 2023 release of his EP, ‘1960’ – a collection of 5 tracks inspired by the icons of that decade.
Into You is the first single to be taken from Nick Edwards the EP. The song portrays the story of ‘old hometown love’ that never came to fruition before the couple became estranged. It is a love story to the other, a show of emotions that were never able to be told in person but from afar. The chorus recites “We go together like the soles on our shoes, like country and blues, like burns on the oven to, through years of a mothers love.” It is essentially a country song with a folk, modern twist.
This year Nick is scheduled to travel to Nashville to begin filming an independent documentary titled ‘Road to the Opry’. Nick plans to take to the road in search of the Opry with a young filmmaker to understand what the Opry stands for, its history, how important it is in American music culture, and what it feels like to step out on the iconic Opry stage, in perfect timing for its 100th anniversary in November 2025.
