I came across Carl White online purely by chance during the Lockdown and I really enjoyed his lively singing. So, I investigated a bit more and it turns out he is based in Lanzarote! Great! I got in touch with him to find out more…
Hi there, I take it that Carl White is your artistic name.
Yes, my real name is Karl-Heinz Heinl, so as you can see it’s very German. My stage name was born when we recorded my CD still back in Germany, as we needed a name on the CD
No need to ask you where you are from originally then… How long have you lived in Lanzarote?
I live in the island for 17 years now.
And what brought you here in the first place, if you don’t mind me asking?
We came here on a holiday with my partner Sandra 19 years ago. In our hotel we met a musician, Trevor Stewart, who performed a Neil Diamond Tribute Show. The short version is we became friends and we stayed in touch. One year later I came back for another holiday to check the island for work and a place to live…
…and the rest is history as they say, right?
Right!
What is your favourite place in Lanzarote?
As I am a motorbike rider, as well, I can say that the whole island is my favourite place. I love to cruise from the north to the south and the west to the east. So many hot spots here I could write a book.
And in relation to music, what do you sing?
I sing a little bit of everything from Soul and Motown to Pop, Rock, Reggae and Country. Mainly from the late 60s to the 80s but my repertoire is growing a lot thanks to the Pandemic.
Some good had to come out of it… Who would your idol musically?
Some of my all-time favourite singers are Lionel Richie, Elton John, Barry White, Bob Marley, The Eagles, Little River Band to name but a few. Besides them, there is also a lot of inspiration from all over the world, too!
How would you describe your gigs and your music for someone who’s never heard you before?
What you can expect if you come and listen to me is a mix from the 60s to the 80s which means from number one hit Ballads to the greatest Rock and Pop songs, from Soul to Reggae, something for everyone. So I would say let’s have a party together and find out what are your favourites!
Tell us, when and where did you have regular gigs in Lanzarote?
At the beginning (17 years ago) I did a lot of Hotel gigs around the whole Island. For the last 10 years I was booked in Costa Teguise for the whole week, so it became my home. You could find me a couple of nights in the Shamrock, a couple nights in the Irish Baileys and the last two years as well in the newest place The Four Seasons.
Right, and are you doing online gigs at the moment?
Yes, I do live gigs on Facebook just to stay in touch with all my friends everywhere.
Do you have any special projects coming up?
As we have plenty of time at the moment I’m working on a lot of new Songs and styles to be fit when it comes back to regular gigs.
Great! How can our readers keep up to date with your news?
You can find me on Facebook as Carl White and if you would like to know where you can hear or see me, just add me as friend and follow me.
Sure, will do. I, for one, can’t wait until we can come and hear you play live! Thank you so much for your time, Carl.
Do you enjoy our musician interviews? Never miss one by subscribing to our weekly newsletter.