BRADFORD singer-songwriter Asher Knight has released a new single inspired by his feelings of anxiety and worthlessness.

The song, ‘Alone’, reflects his deep feelings of loneliness when he felt low and “not worthy of love.”

“A couple of years ago I felt very alone,” he explains. “It was a really difficult time, I felt that I was not loved and cared about. It was a feeling that no-one could possibly love me and I did not know what to do.

“I found it really hard to accept that I was loved. Love is a complex emotion and it is not something we all feel worthy of. I felt imperfect and not good enough and felt I could not be loved.”

He believes that growing up in a world of social media can contribute to such feelings. “We are constantly bombarded with images of people living what appear to be perfect, lives with perfect lifestyles, or people who seem kinder and more generous than you,” he said.

Asher, 23, who grew up in Wrose and now lives in London, has reflected on these feelings during the lockdowns. “Living by myself, I thought about it and realised that just being me was good enough and that who you are is important.”

He added: “The great thing about writing songs is that you can reflect on past emotions - what you felt like then and what you feel like now. I want to remind people that they are loved and worth something.”

‘Alone’, which has an accompanying video, includes the lyrics ‘It can be harder to love, when you don’t feel enough. Just stay with me, I don’t want to be alone.’

Asher, who has toured with pop acts including Boyzone, Steps and Will Young, lived in Bradford until he was almost 13 before moving to the south of England. He suffered from low self-esteem after being bullied at school.

He feels “so much happier now.” “It is not about how many singles I can sell or how many Instagram followers I have. It is about you as a person.

“You can achieve so much and get really good exam results and do well in your career but of you cannot accept who you are a person and be happy with yourself it means nothing at all.”

Asher wrote ‘Alone’ with friends Dan Ferrari-Lane and Greg West. We have worked on things together over the years but this is the first song we have written together.” He has also been working on an EP.

He misses his family in Bradford and cannot wait to come back to the city .”I speak to my parents and grandad, who lives with them, on facetime and Zoom. I saw the snow recently and in London we had barely any. I miss the open countryside.”

Once life return to normal he is keen to resume talks he gives to schools. “Being able to go and talk to children in schools and being able to talk to them about bullying and mental health is better than being able to perform at the O2 or Manchester Arena. It can change someone’s life and help remind them that they are not alone.”

Lockdown has seen him exercising at home, taking short courses, reading and volunteering at his local church.

“I have helped with stewarding, making sure people go in one by one and keep socially distanced, and then clean the church afterwards. It has been really enjoyable, feeling more involved with the local community.”

*asherknight.com @asherknightuk