Two Homeless Years in London, Then Glitter and Gold

Barns Courtney was a teenager when his rock band, Dive Bella Dive, was signed to Island Records straight from school. Their album was shelved and in early 2013 the label dropped them. The National reports that he had no backup plan and no qualifications, and he lost his home. In his words, suddenly he found himself out on the street.

He says he was homeless for two years in London. He went from one friend's sofa to another, and for a time he lived in his girlfriend's car. He worked part-time in a computer store and sold cigarettes on the side to get by.

He also kept writing. The experience gave him an album's worth of songs about the struggle to succeed, among them Glitter and Gold. Carl Barât of The Libertines spotted him playing live, and he was invited to support his old friend Ed Sheeran on tour.

By November 2015 Glitter and Gold had become a hit on UK radio, and his song Fire appeared in the trailer and the closing credits of the Bradley Cooper film Burnt. He was also due to open the closing night of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, warming up the crowd for Blur.

The article presents his path as a quick turn from the end of a record deal to a place on large stages within about two years, with the songs he wrote while he had nowhere to live becoming the music that brought him an audience.