Leona Lewis: It hurt. I'm frightened. I don't know where the next attack will come from
2/07/2010 01:57:00 PM
kenmouse
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No one told her it would be like this: villa in LA, outselling Coldplay... and set upon in a London bookshop. With a security man suitably close by, Leona Lewis tells Live whether it's all been worth the bother
The room I’m sharing with Leona Lewis is a very private space. Or at least it would be, if not for the big, strong man in a pinstripe suit with an open-necked shirt who’s staring at me intently. He goes everywhere with her now. They’ve even had to increase the security at her home in Los Angeles, because of what was reported as a stalker.
‘There was a paparazzo who kept following me around,’ she says. ‘I didn’t want to change the house.’
Then came the ‘gun siege’ last month, when Leona was waiting in a parked car outside Starbucks on the way to LA airport. Men waving guns ran towards her as they fled from the police; her manager was knocked to the ground.
‘We were caught up in the tail end of a high-speed police chase. It was all so quick we didn’t really know what was happening. It was scary, but we were all fine – very shaken but so grateful we were OK.’
Most dramatically, a deranged ‘fan’ punched her in the face at a book signing in London in October.
‘For a while afterwards that had a big effect on me,’ she says. ‘It was very shocking. He attacked me out of the blue. He was very unwell. It was really random, something that was done by a very ill person. It wasn’t fun – I was extremely hurt and upset.
‘It could have been worse, though. I am still alive. It made me realise it’s important to always be vigilant and aware of your surroundings – but I don’t want to make myself too closed off.
'I’m a positive person, I don’t like to dwell on negatives and I love what I’m doing. I was sorry for those who I wasn’t able to meet at the signing because of what happened, and grateful for all the lovely messages of support I got.’
The attacker was later detained under the Mental Health Act. Leona’s witness statement read, ‘I feel completely devastated by this attack. Now I am very frightened about going out in public and I don’t know where the next attack will come from and if this will be more serious than what has just happened.’
Now, though, she says, ‘I just see it as a one-off thing, very isolated and something that I’m moving on from. I’ve still got the same people around me who I’ve always had looking out for me, but I think they’re much more vigilant now.
‘I put myself out there in front of people every single day of my life. I’m always in situations where there are a lot of people around me. I’m in the public eye, and with that comes a certain amount of risk, but if you think about it all too much then you’d never leave the house.’
In May she’ll kick off her world tour at The O2: ‘I’m not nervous yet, but I will be.’
I’m glad we’re beyond the well-coached platitudes with which she parried all my early questions. There’s only so many times you can hear answers like ‘It’s all about the music. I always give 100 per cent.’
Now I can ask what I really want to know. ‘Leona, who are you?’
It’s a fair question. Is she Leona Lewis the shy secretary from Hackney who won The X Factor in 2006? Or the glacial soul diva who’s become a huge star in America, and who seems to think smiles and sweet nothings will get us through our time together? She laughs, and offers her manic schedule as an excuse for – initially, at least – barely being in the room.
‘I just got in from Canada, I did a Radio 2 live show this morning, then I went to Somerset House for a photo shoot, then I came here for another one, then you, then two hours of Australian interviews. Then tomorrow, in the morning, I fly to Monaco. That night, I fly to Germany. So much travelling. I love it. To see things I never thought I would.’
Out of the car window?
‘Yeah. Exactly. As you’re going past.’
And as if she weren’t busy enough, she’s just taken part in the recording of a cover of REM’s Everybody Hurts alongside Cheryl Cole and Susan Boyle. The single will raise money for earthquake victims in Haiti.
‘I’m so proud to be involved. I found recording it quite upsetting, but I feel very hopeful about the good it will bring and hope that people get behind it and support it.’
She sits there on the sofa, one leg tucked up, in her tight pale jeans, black plastic leather-look jacket and a studded leather bracelet. Her thick, tumbling hair is tied up simply on one side. Those huge eyes are framed by Cleopatra make-up and massive lashes. She looks like what she has become so quickly – an immaculately groomed global superstar.
The room I’m sharing with Leona Lewis is a very private space. Or at least it would be, if not for the big, strong man in a pinstripe suit with an open-necked shirt who’s staring at me intently. He goes everywhere with her now. They’ve even had to increase the security at her home in Los Angeles, because of what was reported as a stalker.
‘There was a paparazzo who kept following me around,’ she says. ‘I didn’t want to change the house.’
Then came the ‘gun siege’ last month, when Leona was waiting in a parked car outside Starbucks on the way to LA airport. Men waving guns ran towards her as they fled from the police; her manager was knocked to the ground.
‘We were caught up in the tail end of a high-speed police chase. It was all so quick we didn’t really know what was happening. It was scary, but we were all fine – very shaken but so grateful we were OK.’
Most dramatically, a deranged ‘fan’ punched her in the face at a book signing in London in October.
‘For a while afterwards that had a big effect on me,’ she says. ‘It was very shocking. He attacked me out of the blue. He was very unwell. It was really random, something that was done by a very ill person. It wasn’t fun – I was extremely hurt and upset.
‘It could have been worse, though. I am still alive. It made me realise it’s important to always be vigilant and aware of your surroundings – but I don’t want to make myself too closed off.
'I’m a positive person, I don’t like to dwell on negatives and I love what I’m doing. I was sorry for those who I wasn’t able to meet at the signing because of what happened, and grateful for all the lovely messages of support I got.’
The attacker was later detained under the Mental Health Act. Leona’s witness statement read, ‘I feel completely devastated by this attack. Now I am very frightened about going out in public and I don’t know where the next attack will come from and if this will be more serious than what has just happened.’
Now, though, she says, ‘I just see it as a one-off thing, very isolated and something that I’m moving on from. I’ve still got the same people around me who I’ve always had looking out for me, but I think they’re much more vigilant now.
‘I put myself out there in front of people every single day of my life. I’m always in situations where there are a lot of people around me. I’m in the public eye, and with that comes a certain amount of risk, but if you think about it all too much then you’d never leave the house.’
In May she’ll kick off her world tour at The O2: ‘I’m not nervous yet, but I will be.’
I’m glad we’re beyond the well-coached platitudes with which she parried all my early questions. There’s only so many times you can hear answers like ‘It’s all about the music. I always give 100 per cent.’
Now I can ask what I really want to know. ‘Leona, who are you?’
It’s a fair question. Is she Leona Lewis the shy secretary from Hackney who won The X Factor in 2006? Or the glacial soul diva who’s become a huge star in America, and who seems to think smiles and sweet nothings will get us through our time together? She laughs, and offers her manic schedule as an excuse for – initially, at least – barely being in the room.
‘I just got in from Canada, I did a Radio 2 live show this morning, then I went to Somerset House for a photo shoot, then I came here for another one, then you, then two hours of Australian interviews. Then tomorrow, in the morning, I fly to Monaco. That night, I fly to Germany. So much travelling. I love it. To see things I never thought I would.’
Out of the car window?
‘Yeah. Exactly. As you’re going past.’
And as if she weren’t busy enough, she’s just taken part in the recording of a cover of REM’s Everybody Hurts alongside Cheryl Cole and Susan Boyle. The single will raise money for earthquake victims in Haiti.
‘I’m so proud to be involved. I found recording it quite upsetting, but I feel very hopeful about the good it will bring and hope that people get behind it and support it.’
She sits there on the sofa, one leg tucked up, in her tight pale jeans, black plastic leather-look jacket and a studded leather bracelet. Her thick, tumbling hair is tied up simply on one side. Those huge eyes are framed by Cleopatra make-up and massive lashes. She looks like what she has become so quickly – an immaculately groomed global superstar.
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