So many aspects of music continue to confuse me especially regarding the music industry, none more so than how a musician who could be trying for many years to make it can all of a sudden be trust into the mainstream limelight off the back of one song – or seemingly off the back of one song. An example of this came in early 2018 when I first heard the song Belter my English singer songwriter Gerry Cinnamon, a year after it had first been released.

There was something about the song that intrigued me. The vocals in the song made no attempt to disguise the accent of the singer and instead sang in a way that would relate and connect with many listeners as it seemed unpolished and raw compared to most of the other music at the radio at the moment. It meant that the track stood out when you heard it, and this along with the catchy and singalong nature of the song meant that it started to gain strong traction among music fans.

Gerry Crosbie’s (Cinnamon) first real venture in the music came when, as he was performing a solo gig in 2007, he met a young producer called Chris Marshall. After a period of collaboration, they formed the group The Cinnamons, along with the other members of the band Lori Duncan, Dave Bass, and Gav Hunter. The band would go on to release a 5 track EP in 2010, and Crosbie would subsequently adopt the stage name Gerry Cinnamon.

From 2014 things would start to build for the Scottish singer/songwriter as he started to build a reputation through social media and word of mouth. The hype would even lead to Cinnamon being invited to perform at a rally event ahead of the Scottish Independence Referendum. His song, Hope Over Fear, which he performed at the rally and would later release as a single would become associated with the Referendum but Cinnamon was careful to state that he did not wish to become a figure head for the yes vote.

Summer 2015 onwards would see the artist perform slots at numerous music festivals, including managing to fulfil a life dream of performing at the T in the Park festival.

September 2017 would see the release of his debut album Erratic Cinematic. The album would perform very well and spend time at the top of the album charts upon it’s release.

One of the things that is most admirable and interesting about the career of Gerry Cinnamon is the somewhat unorthodox nature of it all. The Glasgow native has done various interviews bemoaning how the music industry has gone and how there seems to be a lot of acts who are making it due to financial backing rather than actual hard graft. Cinnamon has gotten to where he is simply by working hard and building a following through the old fashioned way, by performing excellent live shows and letting people spread the word themselves. The way it should be.

MK