Claudia Byatt
Music

Michael Bublé reveals disheartening name change request

Canadian icon Michael Bublé has shared that his birth name was unappealing, according to industry bosses.

The Sway singer, 47, told 9Honey Celebrity that music executives once tried to convince him to change his surname when he was launching his career.

"They wanted to change it years ago, the record company… and my dad got really hurt by it," Bublé shared.

"So I was really glad we didn't change it, I figured if I was good enough that maybe people would just learn it, but they massacre it everywhere.”

However, Bublé, who is of both Canadian and Italian descent, seemingly doesn’t mind some of the nicknames he’s earned over the years.

From Australia alone, the superstar has gained the nicknames “Mickey Boobs” and “The Boob”. In Spain, he’s sometimes referred to as Miguel Burbujas which literally translates to "Michael Bubbles”.

The star went on to say that thanks to his many visits Down Under, he has learnt the self-deprecating sense of humour Aussies have mastered.

"I think you [Australians] are secure enough in yourself that you don't mind taking the piss. I love that you're sweet but I also love that you're tough, not to be messed with," Bublé said of his Aussie fans.

"I just love it here. It's cold where I'm from… so to come here like this, people told me, 'You need to dress warm'. But it is so beautiful.”

Bublé is keeping currently touring Australia as well as helping kick off the launch of PepsiCo’s latest Aussie product, the line of sparkling water aptly named Bubly

The 47-year-old has been in the music industry for over two decades but still marvels at how lucky he feels when he gets on stage.

"I love what I do, I love who I do it for… it never gets old," Bublé confessed.

"Every single time I'm backstage and I hear that crowd bubbling and there's thousands of people out there who have taken their valuable time and spent their hard-earned money… I remind myself how lucky I am.”

Bublé noted he is hyper-vigilant about not taking it all for granted, saying it takes work to “be in the moment”.

"Like anybody else, I'll get in a fight with my wife or I'll get worried about what's happening with the kids, it's easy to have a bad day or be grumpy," he said.

"It's easy to not be in the moment so I have to remind myself every single night before I go out there of how lucky I am.”

Bublé also recalled his earliest memories of touring Australia.

He revealed he was booked in for a gig at a small club in Sydney with “about 60 people”.

"It was this little basement club in Sydney and I felt like it was huge," Bublé recalled.

Although show business comes with a demanding schedule, he manages to keep a positive spirit.

"I'm worth 300, 400 million dollars. I'm very wealthy and I'm very sexy," he teased.

"I used to have nothing and I was so happy, but I love what I do and I'm so settled. I've got strong faith, beautiful kids and an incredible wife who's so much better than me. And that's my real life, everything else is just a bonus."

Image credit: Getty

Tags:
Michael Bublé, Interview, Canadian singer, Aussie fans