“Am I sexy baby? Do I drive you crazy?” purrs Love Spells as he spins and dips across the All Points East stage, kicking a tambourine with the heel of his cowboy boot as he goes. Among Tyler, The Creator’s day one curation of this influential London festival, the singer’s performance is making a strong case for swoon-some alt-pop delivered with a health dose of old-fashioned showmanship. Slowly, the jacket, shirt and T-shirt comes off. His skin glistens. His air guitar wails. His velvety falsetto soars. And mostly, he dances like his life depends on it.

“I think dancing is the reason I’m alive. It’s the reason I’ve been put on this earth,” Love Spells tells me backstage. “Anytime I go out, it's just to dance. It's only to dance. If not, I'm not going anywhere.” And it shows. Watching him move you can believe that his axis would truly break if he stops. It’s the same in his music videos, like ‘Keep it to Yourself’, where he precedes a kiss-and-make-up scene by grooving up his girl’s driveway with more game than Prince.

Born Sir Taegen C'aion Harris in Houston, a youth spent escaping depression through fantasy novels and poetry led to the dancefloor and then to a passion for 80s new wave. Becoming Love Spells in 2021, viral hits such as ‘Lovers Only’ attracted attention from Erykah Badu, Justin Bieber and Lorde, as well as a move to LA and collaborations with Kevin Abstract, Dominic Fike and Deb Never. His 2025 EP ‘The Love I Showed You Was Yours To Keep’ fully introduced his delicate vocals and wistful tales of loving and longing. And this summer, the debut LP ‘Love Is The Law’ is manifesting the artist’s truest expression of sonic therapy, allowing both he and his fans a space to feel all the feels and come out the other side with a spring in their step.

At All Points East, where he shares the line-up with Mariah The Scientist, Rex Orange County, AG Club, and of course Tyler – who pulls up to the headline slot on a fictional ‘Victoria Park’ tube train and proceeds to kill the crowd with his non-stop charisma – Love Spells holds more than his own. It’s his first trip to London and already the audience has fallen for his confident mix of softness and swagger. Here, NATAAL has a heart-to-heart with the 21-year-old boy wonder…

NATAAL: Hello! How is London treating you?

LOVE SPELLS: It’s been amazing. The crowd is awesome over here. Like, they care so much. It's crazy. Everyone’s always told me that I’d love it here and I do. Some of my favourite experiences have now been in London.

N: I hear your fans have been bringing signs to your shows. What do they say?

LS: Oh just ‘Love Is The Law’ and some adorable drawings.

N: Not ‘Will you marry me?’ or their phone numbers?

LS: No, no, they tell me that later.

N: Describe your energy on stage.

LS: I always say that I have more excuse than anyone to be insane. So, you know, why not be insane? I try and be as crazy and expressive as possible and then the crowd feels more comfortable to be crazy too.

N: You have a long Europe and the US tour ahead of you. What are your pre-show rituals?

LS: I don't have any. Maybe I just hit a power pose and then go on. My vocal coach has been stressing me to do my warm-ups but I’m honest. I don’t do those.

N: How did you develop your lush vocal delivery? In an interview you said you wanted to sound like a woman singing a lullaby, which is spot on.

LS: It wasn’t developed per se, even though it’s nothing like my talking voice. I was just lucky that I wanted to be able to do it and it just so happens I can do it. I feel like it was meant to be. I’m being real and continuing to dig deeper into it.

N: And what’s the story behind your stage name?

LS: Love Spells felt true. I’m always being in love with something and always holding on to some sort of romance in my life. You know, I’m under a spell, in that way. So, it felt right – and it was too good of a name to pass up.

N: Let’s talk about dancing. You’re giving David Bowie meets Mick Jagger. You’re giving Footloose meets Flashdance.

LS: I've always loved it. I've never had training but I’ll go to dance studios just to play music and dance for hours. That's my entire life. I don't think I'll ever change.

N: Who's your favourite dancer?

LS: I’m going to be generic and say Bob Fosse and I have to say Michael Jackson. But my all-time dancer on screen is Patrick Swayze. I’m a huge Dirty Dancing fan.

N: The tight pants.

LS: He looks great in every pair of pants he has on. I'm like, what type of pants are those? What brand is it? I need those pants. And people don't know, his mom had a dance studio in Houston, where he grew up and was learning to dance.

N: Just like you. Where else do people go to dance in Houston?

LS: If you like New Wave, go to Numbers nightclub. It's a legendary spot. Go on a Friday night and you’ll be taken care of.

N: And now you’re in Los Angeles.

LS: Yeah. I moved around a lot when I was growing up. I’ve always been nomadic. And when I had nowhere else to go, I went to LA and it worked out pretty well. But I’ll go back to Texas. I just love home too much. It’s part of my soul.

N: You’ve released your full-length debut album at the age of 21. That’s impressive. What does the record say about you?

LS: I had been in LA a year and was really missing Texas. Missing Numbers, missing all my friends and family. That's why there's a little bit of country to the album - pedal steel guitars and all that. It's to remind me and comfort me.

But I also wanted the record to be less personal. In a way, I wanted to be more worldly with things. Because I’m such a young dude so I don’t think my life matters right now. I’d rather give people a good message than talk about myself. So that's what I did.

N: But we do hear your very real emotions. How many heartbreaks have you put into this album?

LS: Just one. That's the right number, I think.

N: Does that person know they have made it into your album?

LS: I remember they asked me, and I told them no. I lied. Because I'm not going to be like, yes, I wrote that about you. But they know it’s otherwise.

N: Where will the rest of the year take you?

LS: After the tour, I'm going to hibernate and figure out what I want to say next for my next album. I don't want to drop any singles. I think this album was enough for people to hold on to. So, they can wait now until I have something better to say to them.