“I probably drink too much,” 29-year-old Mr Hudson admits with a sheepish laugh. “Most Englishmen do.” While G.O.O.D. Music’s newest signee tends to take a swig of the occasional libation, it’s music that is his most indulgent addiction.

Hailing from Birmingham, England, the U.K. pop sensation’s celebrity increased tenfold once Kanye West featured his poignant crooning (“Paranoid”) and skillful production (“Street Lights”) on the album 808s & Heartbreak. Though the Chi-Town MC has already informed critics that Mr Hudson may surpass his own superstardom, the singer doesn’t take the fickle fans for granted. “It’s not up to me or Kanye to decide if I’m bigger than him, it’s up to the people,” Hudson says. Judging by “Supernova,” the first single off his G.O.O.D. Music/Mercury Records album, Straight No Chaser, he’ll have no problem shooting to the top of the charts.

Even though Hudson doesn’t need help from West crafting contemporary pop gems, he does look to the fashion connoisseur for assistance in the style department. Earlier this year, while attending Paris Fashion Week, Hudson was a bit taken aback by the rapper’s dapper entourage. “I just turn up looking like a homeless guy [and] I didn’t realize the whole G.O.O.D. Music family would show up looking crisp,” he reveals. More focused on lyrical stylistics in the past, the singer-songwriter has now grown accustomed to donning tailored suits while touring the globe. “My wardrobe [was] basically hand-me-downs from my dad [and] things from the charity shop,” Mr Hudson says. “Now I wear stuff that fits.” Change has come.

Hudson’s sophomore album Straight No Chaser debuts the first week of October. Listen to his Kanye West-assisted single, “Supernova,” below.

–Georgette Cline

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