Conor Maynard on finding fame, Ne-Yo and 'Mayniacs' Conor Maynard, 20, rose to fame by recording covers of his favourite songs and posting them on YouTube. They eventually attracted tens of millions of hits and in 2010, when he was 17, he signed to Parlophone (EMI). His debut album, Contrast, went straight to number one in July and he sold more than 600,000 singles last year. His fourth single, Animal, featuring Wiley, is out on January 21. He grew up in Brighton, and now lives in London (conor-maynard.com). Starting out When I was young my mum noticed I loved performing - I used to burst into song in the middle of the doctor's waiting-room - and she enrolled me in a drama school on Saturdays. When I was 15, I was singing in the playground at school one day and this girl overheard me. She told me I was really good so I started singing at home, recording myself using two SingStar microphones from PlayStation 2 taped to my bed, and then sending the songs to her. She sent them on to her friends, and I uploaded them to Facebook so that all my friends could listen to them. A year later, in December 2008, I put my first song up on YouTube. Keyboard I had piano lessons when I was younger, but I quit because I didn't want to sit and learn the scales. I just went on the internet and used tutorials to teach myself how to play songs on my keyboard [pictured below]. I can't read music, but I'm glad I know how to play because it means I can have more input in my songs. Photo: Neal Kirke Ne-Yo I did a cover of Ne-Yo's Beautiful and that got a million views on YouTube. I was 17 at this point and I was contacted by someone who said he was Ne-Yo's manager. I asked for proof that it was really him and I ended up on Skype at 1.30am talking to Ne-Yo. He said he wanted to meet me. I got off the computer but couldn't tell anyone because they were all asleep. Signing I met Ne-Yo in London. I sang for him and he said, "I want to sign you." It was amazing - it meant my name was buzzing around the industry and I got to meet lots of different labels. I didn't want to move to America and leave my family so I signed with EMI - I had to have my dad's signature underneath mine because I was only 17. Awards Last year I won MTV's Brand New award - that's what transformed me from someone who could walk around like a normal person to the craziness that I experience now. I was given these trainers [pictured below] as a present for winning - I've never worn them because I want to keep them pristine. Sudden fame After that award I started getting stopped in the street. Now it's at the stage where I've had to move out of my old flat because my fans knew where I lived and were waiting for me... then my phone number got out and I woke up and I had hundreds of missed calls overnight. First video My first YouTube songs were getting, like, 300 views - not loads. Then this guy called Anth Melo, a complete stranger, contacted me from America and said he was a rapper and that he wanted us to work together - I suggested we do OMG by Usher. We did our parts separately and put it together by sending each other the files online. Then he suggested we record a video of ourselves singing it. I used my mum's camcorder [pictured below] and we put it up, and a few weeks later it had 70,000 views. I thought, we've made it. Meals I'm not a great cook - I'm not at home enough - but I do love Nando's. Luckily they're in every town I go to. Games When I was younger, playing video games was my life; when I moved away from Brighton I promised I'd leave my younger brother my Xbox, so now in my flat I just have a PS3 [pictured below]. I love games - I will get them the day they come out. I'm a real geek. Rituals I don't like to see the crowd before I go onstage. I do warm-ups: I steam my vocal cords - I've got this weird thing that looks like a teapot that you put boiling water in and inhale the vapour. Right before the gig I pace up and down to get myself hyped up. Nights out I'm really enjoying partying at the moment. I'd spoken to Tom Daley on Twitter before, but I met him in a club recently and we were hanging out with Liam from One Direction. When a fan spotted us, her head almost exploded, she was so excited. I love all the attention because it means my music is getting out there - that's all I've ever wanted.