Nashville: Dumas creates pop, country, Christian sounds and sings across USA 2

This week Alice’s Table picks up the story of Gibraltarian singer songwriter and producer Simon Dumas and his life in Nashville - the home of country music. I recently caught up with him on one of his many home visits when he shared the breakup with the band King Calaway and how he has replaced the pieces of his life as a full-time working musician, and singer songwriter. Frequently he plays with a variety of bands as a freelance musician and is part of the strong Christian Catholic music scene allowing him to perform across the USA. Last year he joined Matt Maher and Sarah Kroger on a 12-date tour of America’s Cathedrals. Simon has found a new community of song closely linked to his own Christian faith which is of great importance to him.

Simon Dumas – who (as many of us know) started out with his brothers in the band This Side Up, following his studies he moved to Nashville to join the newly formed country band King Calaway.

When they called it a day six years later as we learnt last week he stayed in Nashville and continues to build on his own solo career concentrating more and more on writing songs. Making his name in Catholic sacred music, he is an active participant in Catholic worship events.

Having learnt his first chords from his dad, he then began playing at home with his brothers Guy and Philip.

At 14 they first introduced themselves in the Gibraltar music scene performing for the first time at a Christmas concert in Bayside – Simon, the brothers, Ricky Codali and Jeremy Perez. They soon became part of the music scene finding local success and approval as This Side Up.

Simon then joined the Santos Production Choir. Taking up his studies at the Royal Northern College of Music – This Side Up performed at the O2 Academy in Manchester. When the band they opened for had to withdraw, they took the top spot and went on to perform in Glasgow, Leeds, London and Birmingham. The band released two EPs – Seven Seas and The Universe. Then came the ‘Home to Home Tour’ finishing in Gibraltar in 2016 in Boyd’s – I was there and I remember it being electrifying and you knew this young man was going places. Re-branded as Frontiers – the band released the EP Harbour Lights.

A year later in 2018 he met the musical director for One Direction who would set him up for the London audition which would eventually take him to Nashville where he joined King Calaway.

Last September Simon was responsible for the theme song of the Netball World Youth Cup 2025 held locally – he wrote and released the catchy ‘Mighty as a Rock’ featuring the Gibraltar Youth Choir.

As a solo performer last year too, he released: ‘Bonfire’, ‘Pictures’, ‘Pretending I’m A Cowboy’, and at Christmas introduced us to ‘The Innkeeper’ looking at the nativity story from the perspective of Bethlehem’s innkeeper. His first three singles— were co-written and produced by Matt Maher and Mitch Parks. Matt Maher - a nine-time-Grammy nominated singer songwriter - has also recorded three of Simon’s songs: Praise the Giver, Joyful Noise, and It’s Going to be Alright – all targeted at Christian audiences.

Working with prominent American Catholic artists like Matt and Sarah Simon is now recognised as an upcoming voice in the contemporary Catholic worship music scene releasing popular original worship music and hymn covers – some very closely linked to Gibraltar.

Simon has a new EP just released titled - Cantaré Para Ti / I Will Sing for You – which has seen the first songs feature on all the main music streaming platforms. The latest release is ‘Pescador de Hombres’. He has also re-recorded the ‘Ave Maria’ and ‘Nada Te Turbe’. ‘Siento’ - the first single release was described as a bilingual Spanish/English single, co-created with Sarah Kroger, blending traditional Spanish hymns with modern English worship.

Simon explains that for a long time this song felt as if it only existed as a memory: “I would think back to my youth prayer meeting days and the whole congregation singing it despite there never being an ‘official’ version anywhere. I am so grateful that Sarah agreed to lend her voice and help craft English lyrics to help the song connect with others.”

The final EP track listing is: Siento (ft Sarah Kroger), Pescador De Hombres, Ave Maria, Be Still and Todo Se Pasa/All Things Pass. And track 5 is one many will recognise. Todo Se Pasa/All Things Pass is a new rendition of Nada te Turbe.

Simon confides that his faith has been and continues to be vital in his life. At 15 he went on his first retreat and found a community he wanted to be a part of. Today he remains grounded in his faith.

“It is a big part of who I am – the fact that I now get to live in Nashville and get to write songs with the Christian musicians I grew up listening to at the retreats is like a dream come true. For me I get to sing songs that I absolutely love in some beautiful spaces. The fact this is all for a shared goal that is bigger than all of us feels right.”

This latest EP, he acknowledges, comes out of his connection with the prayerful song ‘Ave Maria’. It showcases him as a solo performer, highlights the importance of his bilingualism and is about giving back to the faith community that raised him locally, as well as introducing these songs to new audiences in a Christian worship space. Simon talks of the amazing experience of touring and performing in 12 Cathedrals across the USA last December including New York and Boston – where he performed as a solo artist in the line-up and with Matt and Sarah. His song ‘The Innkeeper’ was well received “a beautiful moment” and another reason why he has recorded this latest EP of older hymns to which he adds his own modern spin. A pop leaning sound like contemporary pop. He again confides how this whole experience changed his perspective on what is important and what is the meaning of success.

“With King Calaway it often felt like we were chasing success. I found I lost some of the real meaning behind the music on occasions. Now it is starting to be less about that and more about how the songs can serve people and help them find inner peace.”

This journey, he says, first began with the video and his recording of the ‘Ave Maria’ by the late William Gomez in 2018. A song so often heard locally and also performed on a global stage.

“The response I still get from that video from people around the world is incredible – they send me emails or comment on YouTube when they watch the video, and comment on how much it has touched them. What it has meant to them. My version of the ‘Ave Maria’ has been played at funerals, weddings, baptisms, and special family events.

“All those messages mean so much to me that I cannot even put it into words. It is funny because I never met the late William Gomez and sometimes I feel like I know him as a best friend because together we are spreading his song, a song which for me encapsulates my connection to Gibraltar. It means the world to me that it is written by a Gibraltarian, and the fact that it was not written by me and I get to tell everyone about it when I perform it live and say ‘what an amazing song it is’. A song I will never tire of singing.”

Simon sees himself performing always “but perhaps not gunning for the limelight” admitting he is not as concerned about his name as he is about his songs being out there. Nashville, he offers, has given him the freedom to know that one does not have to be the next top artist and can have a respectable career in music.

Gibraltar, he knows, will always come into the picture “this is home” and he tries to return often. It is a big part of his musical DNA – the reason why he easily stepped into ‘Mighty as a Rock’ connecting with that teenager growing up locally and creating the kind of song which makes a summer sound.

“I created with a solid beat, with acoustic guitars – and all that speaks to me about life in the Mediterranean. It was such an honour to write and sing the ‘netball’ song with such uplifting lyrics. All that plays into my music – a lot of people I write songs with tell me I have that British musical influence in me which just comes out naturally – like when British anthemic pop rock meets country.”

Ultimately, he agrees, that as an artist it is essential to leave the comfort of the Rock and spread your wings and test yourself “and in my case my music” in the outside world. He believes it can only be a good thing that so many young Gibraltarians now have this opportunity and are stepping out of the comfort zone of “our home and working beyond our borders”. It gives them credit for having the courage to push themselves in the world outside. As he now moves into the production side of the music industry, he encourages other songwriters (his advice) to write a song without AI. He warns that ultimately it is a machine.

As songwriters he believes it is vital they go through the uncomfortable situation of struggling with a song whilst trying to write that second verse – “take a week to come back to the chorus and push yourselves,” he emphasises.

“Collaborations with other songwriters is the way we bounce ideas off each other – and the only way to create a heartfelt meaningful song.”

Check out: www.simondumasmusic.com

You can follow him on Instagram @simondumas_ with updates on music and latest releases on his Facebook pages.