Barry Manilow has admitted that despite decades of success, he has never truly seen himself as a traditional performer.
The 82 year old music icon built one of the most recognizable catalogs in pop music with classics including Could It Be Magic, Weekend in New England, Can't Smile Without You, and Copacabana (At the Copa). Even so, Manilow says his heart has always belonged more to musicianship than fame.
In an interview with the Guardian newspaper, he explained: "My first love is not being a performer or even a singer.
"I don’t consider myself a singer; I consider myself a musician. And you know, if this wonderful part of my career hadn’t exploded the way it did, I would be playing piano in some Paris bar and I would be a happy guy, really."
Although his career has stretched across more than six decades, Manilow revealed that life in the spotlight has never come naturally to him.
He shared: "I don’t think I’ve ever really gotten used to it … It’s just not who I am. I’ve figured out how to do it. And the way to do is to be honest with these audiences. Because I don’t know how to not be honest on that stage."
Despite becoming one of the most commercially successful artists of his generation, Manilow faced years of harsh criticism from reviewers and parts of the music industry.
Looking back on that period, he said: "It was as if I’d hurt somebody in their family.
"It lasted for so long – from putting me down for the songs, and then putting me down for what I looked like. If you wanted to get a big laugh, you would mention my name. It was 15 years of relentless, horrible reviews."
The hitmaker, who has earned 13 platinum and six multi platinum albums throughout his career, admitted that the negativity deeply affected him at the time. Still, he eventually learned how to manage the emotional pressure that came with fame.
When asked how the criticism impacted him personally, Manilow responded: "I would stupidly read some of this stuff and I would go into my self-pity, and I’d pull the covers over my head. And then I would get dressed and go to the sound check, and that was that. Because I didn’t agree with them."
