ITV Heather Small: "Heather Small has been responsible for some of the iconic tunes of the last decade. But with her single, Proud, she captured the essence of the London Olympic bid. We chatted to her about the release of the single."
What inspired you to re-release Proud?
Well, when we won the Olympic bid, the retailers called the record label to say that they thought we should release the single. I wasn’t too sure about it, but I was told that you shouldn’t argue with the retailers so I went along with it.
So how did you get involved with the Olympic bid?
The Olympic team called my manager and asked if I wanted to get involved. They told me that the song captured the spirit of the Olympic, which was really flattering. And I thought if this helps with the bid, then why not? Then I saw the video and the visuals. Because the song is five years old, I didn’t really know what to expect, but with the video it just looked fresh.
Would you like to perform Proud at the opening ceremony?
If I was asked, then I’d love to do it. I remember when I was standing at Trafalgar Square waiting for the decision. It was a really great day and the atmosphere was fantastic.
But when I was standing there, I tried to be very British about the whole thing. I thought that if we got it, we got it, if we didn’t, we didn’t. We’re so used to losing in this country that I wasn’t sure we’d win. Then the guy said ‘London’ and the Square went mad.
What was it like being there?
It was fantastic. It was something that I’ll treasure for the rest of my life.
More (ITN Interview) - Heather Small - More 100 greats - Heather Small Pride of Manchester- Proud - Lyrics
