Hello, Leon Jean-Marie. How might we describe you to our mum?

If your mum's like mine, you can say that this chap, Leon Jean-Marie, kind of looks like Bob Marley and has a nice voice. Ha ha! That's it. That's what I'd say to my mum.

Hopefully she already knows what you're like. Please tell us five fascinating facts about yourself but make one of them a lie.

Okay.
1. I own an AC Cobra. Which is a very old car, legendarily known for killing a lot of famous film stars. It's a little sports car basically.
2. I do rally driving as a hobby.
3. I have a real love for flying lessons.
4. I'm a really good chef. My speciality is salmon teriyaki.
5. I have a secret passion for fishing, which is really boring and dull in contrast to the other facts.

We don't know what to believe now! There's a theory that the best pop music happens when people try but fail to sound like someone else. So who have you failed to sound like?

Prince! I've grown up listening to him so much - even indirectly because my brother was a hardcore fan. So I had that, and Nirvana and things from my best friends. And it's all been, like, injected into my head. So if I sit down to make a song, and I have all that, then you could say I fail to make my records sound like Nirvana or Prince!

How do you feel when you listen back to your own album?

The journey was so long that it makes me feel... it's finally done. I'm proud of it but I'm the sort of person who, when I'm finished with one body of work I have to move on. It's been so close to me for two years that now I've got to move on. Maybe I think it would be a jinx if I were to be really happy with it and say that this is the best thing I've ever done. I might jinx it and people like yourselves might say that it's not that good!

As if we would. But this year has already been stuffed to the gills with new acts - what makes you think there's room for Leon Jean Marie?

Well - and this is what I've been told - I don't sound like anybody else. Even this first single, 'Bed Of Nails' - it's produced by Mark Ronson and he's taking over the world. The danger would be if I sounded like Amy Winehouse or Candie Payne, but the music and production just doesn't sound the same as them. It doesn't sound like anything else.

Thank you, Leon Jean-Marie.

‘Bed of Nails’ is released on March 31 (download) April 7 (physical)

And have a look at his MySpace page at myspace.com/leonjeanmarie