Calvin Harris explains the lyrics behind 'My Way' amid Taylor Swift speculation

Their turbulent ending is not the story behind this track, according to the Scottish DJ

Heather Saul
Saturday 17 September 2016 13:57 BST
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(Getty Images)

For those growing tired of one of the more acrimonious splits in recent months, which is steadily coming to look like the overwhelming majority, this may be welcome news.

After speculation his new song ‘My Way’ could be (yet another) dig at ex-girlfriend of 15 months, Taylor Swift, Calvin Harris told Elvis Duran and the Z100 Morning Show she was not the inspiration behind lyrics such as “I made my move and it was all about you/Now I feel so far removed.”

Instead, he said the song touted by many as a "diss track" was one he began writing several years ago when he was plotting his escape from a minimum wage job and entrance into the lucrative but notoriously difficult to crack music industry.

Harris' story is more galvanising than most: he swapped a job at the bread counter of Safeway in the Scottish town of Dumfries (population: 50,000) to become the highest earning DJ in the world at the age of 32.

“I thought of the concept years ago, when I left Safeway," he explained. "I was trying to move to London and I was working in the store in Scotland, I was trying to go on and make music for a living, but I couldn’t because I didn’t have any money. I was like, damn this grocery store! If I could break out of this I could have enough time to work on music and get good.”

Harris described his struggle to reach London and get closer to a lucrative career in 2009 as his career was taking off.

“Luckily, my parents weren't charging me any rent, so I could use my wages to buy equipment. The Safeway job funded a trip to London when I was 20. Then I got a job in a fish factory - that paid for a mixing desk.”

He also revealed the reasoning behind his decision to pose for Armani underwear: “It’s just jokes, innit”, insisting he was not embarrassed when a picture of the advert was thrust in front of his face.

“The only reason I did that is because it was after a long run of very blessed success in music, and I was like ‘what else am I going to do?’ And then that offer came in and I was like, ‘well that’s ridiculous - there is no chance I would ever do that.’ And then I thought about it and was like ‘that’s exactly why I should do it."

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