Andy Fowler

Andrew Robert "Andy" Fowler (born 16 February 1994), professionally known as Fovvs (/fɔvvs/ faaw-vvs) is an English singer-songwriter and guitarist. He was formerly a member of the boy bands Monroe (2012-2013), Overload Generation (2014-2015), and RoadTrip (2015-2020). His song, "Jekyll and Hyde", was planned to be released as his debut solo single."Fovvs (@fovvs)". Twitch. 30 June 2021.
When he was six years old, he began learning to play the guitar, and took lessons until the age of fifteen. The first guitar he received was a Fender, which his mother bought for him. It was an acoustic guitar, followed by an electric guitar. He learned to play the piano in high school, studied the violin when he wanted to become a session musician, and picked up percussion after seeing artist acoustic live and in his school's orchestra. He also attempted the trombone but was unable to get air through the valves due to his asthma. He studied music as one of his GCSEs and would have gone to the Royal Northern College of Music, but decided to defer his enrolment."RoadTrip (@roadtrip)". TikTok. 27 February 2019.
== Early life ==
Fowler was born on 16 February 1994 in Stockport, Greater Manchester, to Lesley Fowler. This was during a time when the British government had initiated an urban regeneration project aimed at improving the country's most deprived areasCouch, Chris, Olivier Sykes and Wolfgang Börstinghaus (January 2011). "Thirty Years of Urban Regeneration in Britain, Germany and France: The Importance of Context and Path Dependency". ScienceDirect. and gang violence and gun crime were prevalent in neighbouring boroughs, colloquially referred to as 'Gunchester'.George, Thomas (21 May 2023). "'Finish Him': How Cheetham Hill, Doddington, Gooch and Salford Gangs Waged War in Greater Manchester's Pubs and Clubs". Manchester Evening News. His father left them when he was young, and Lesley raised him as a single mother. Stockport, an urban area and metropolitan borough, had reportedly seen high unemployment rates and low life expectancy in some of its parts.Carey, Declan (31 August 2024). "The Greater Manchester Postcode Where People Lose a Decade of Their Lives". Manchester Evening News. Although regarded as a comparatively safe place to other areas, during the early 2010s, Stockport saw the distribution of high-purity cocaine, with a drug-dealing ring selling their supply in pubs and clubs.Slater, Chris (15 January 2011). "Jailed: Drug Gang Who Flooded Stockport with High-Purity Cocaine". Manchester Evening News. Fovvs admitted that he saw his father only a few times in his life, but never reached out, having had an estranged relationship. Since his mother occasionally worked away on weekends, he would stay in the care of his grandparents. The rain reminded him of going back home.
In secondary school, some of the courses he took included physics, math, and music. He was a self-proclaimed "good student", refraining from causing trouble in classrooms and performing well academically. Despite this, he was sent to detention once for giving a Valentine to his biology teacher, on whom he had a crush on. He showed an interest in psychology and once said he wanted to become an astrophysicist when he was older. He participated in the school's concert band and worked in retail for about three months."Fovvs (@fovvs)". Twitch. 25 July 2021. Around the age of 17, Fovvs was diagnosed with depression and took counselling. He relapsed after six months but chose to overcome it on his own without medication, taking two and a half years to battle it."Fovvs (@fovvs)". Twitch. 1 November 2020.
== Artistry ==
=== Influences ===
He grew up listening to English singer-songwriters Charlie Simpson and Newton Faulkner, the British-American rock band Fleetwood Mac, and learned songs by fingerstyle guitarists Masaaki Kishibe and Andy McKee. Musicians who inspired him before entering the pop world included Faulkner, Max Milner, Andreas Moe, and JP Cooper, all of whom he referred to as "a guy and a guitar, who wrote their music"."RoadTrip Interview: Andy Fowler". YouTube. 25 April 2020. He has incorporated the percussive style of guitar playing into his performances and once said that Casey Abrams was someone he aspired to be like as a songwriter. He cited Brendon Urie from Panic! at the Disco as an influence both in terms of performance and vocals, remarking, "he's just so extrovert, and so… nonchalant with how insanely good his vocals are that I almost want that aura where I can just belt out some ridiculous falsetto". Other key influences included Freddie Mercury of Queen, known for his impressive vocal range and flamboyant stage presence and Jon Bellion, known for his numerous high-profile songwriting and production credits.
He listened to American rappers Future, Kendrick Lamar, and Eminem, which may have influenced his decision to embrace Auto-Tuned vocals, trap-influenced beats, and an animated flow.
=== Songwriting ===
Contrary to popular belief, most of his songs were conceptual rather than autobiographical. Fovvs' songwriting mainly featured high-concept storytelling and first-person narration. The subjects in his music included divorce, alcoholism, prostitution, bipolar disorder, and redemption. Some songwriting techniques he employed included wordplay, double entendres, and extended metaphors. He tended to leave his lyrics ambiguous and gender-neutral. He mentioned that he didn't like to swear in his songs.
In a January 2020 interview, he expressed slight discontent with the music business and the commercialisation that threatens artistic integrity:
I think ninety percent of the music industry, it's not about what the artist wants. I think it's more… their music is tailored to their audience, and their fans. And I think ninety percent of the industry, although they have a direct involvement with their music, they're not writing stuff that they'd necessarily listen to. They're writing stuff that they know their fans would like. So, would an artist be happy? Artists are very rarely happy, artists are the most feverish people on the planet. Even if you're a nice person, you still have perfectionist characteristics, and you still care about everything.
Several fans have made notable comparisons between Fovvs and the American rapper Lupe Fiasco. While Fiasco's music is central to conscious hip hop, providing social commentary on global issues, Fovvs' songs lean more toward introspective lyricism, focusing on emotion and self-growth. Both have explored topics like suicidal ideation, duality, and hypocrisy in their music. Fiasco similarly noted at one point that he had acquiesced to the whims of the public, though he no longer writes with a target audience in mind. As he put it, "even if I made something that was completely impossible, which is zero audience in mind, people would still take it and kind of interpret it and project into it things that they wanted to see anyway. So at a certain point, […] it was more about like I'mma do fifty percent, and then you're gonna do your fifty percent as the audience"."Lupe Fiasco". BBC. 20 July 2024. He also made note of his experiences with his former label: "I was comfortable making pop records. The issue was who controlled those records and what the ownership and splits were. Atlantic would only promote my records if they owned a large portion of them or if I signed a 360 deal. I gave Bruno Mars Just The Way You Are.""Lupe Fiasco (@LupeFiasco)". Twitter. 1 August 2022.
Fovvs' voiseys were rooted in trap (a subgenre of hip-hop), with elements of pop and R&B. He used autotuned vocals due to the sound quality of the mic. It is unclear whether this genre would have been one he'd have explored for his original music.
=== Themes ===
His lyrics frequently talked about the human condition, with his 2014-15 songs primarily focusing on mental health, abstractly disguised as love songs. His more recent work had taken a similar approach, tackling more mature themes. For instance, "Jekyll and Hyde" interestingly uses bipolar disorder as a metaphor for wearing a mask – adopting a persona to navigate the music industry. He observed how artists often have to adjust to being in the spotlight, with their identity being shaped by the industry or fans (such as deeming him as moody). In this sense, they are two different people. He referenced a 2019 Instagram post that addressed duality, where he penned in its caption: "There's always two sides to people. The side you see when everything is good, and they're happy. And the side you see when things aren't all that positive". Meanwhile, "Amsterdam" is entirely conceptual, narrating the story of two lovers who cannot be together because of social stigmas – one being a sex worker and the other a client. While Fovvs explained that it's about a man who falls in love with a sex worker, he arguably switches between their perspectives, sympathising more with the sex worker.
== Personal life ==
His nickname 'Fovvs' derives from his surname, with the 'w' looking like two v's. He maintains a private personal life and has a love/hate relationship with social media. He is asthmatic and claimed to be dyslexic, revealing, "ngl i am dyslexic so considering i care about spelling i do okay 😂👑🌵" (it's uncertain if he was just exaggerating, as he tends to be dramatic)."RoadTrip (@RoadTripTV)". Twitter. 3 January 2017. One of the things on his bucket list is to write and perform on a number-one album. He supports the football club Manchester United and is a fan of soccer, badminton, cars, video games, Pokémon, and the Harry Potter book series. On 15 September 2019, he acknowledged, "it took him 22 years to reach his dream, countless set backs, but he never stopped believing", referring to Ash Ketchum's 1st place win."Fovvs (@fovvs)". Twitter. 15 September 2019. In 2014, he got his first tattoo around his right ankle, with the lyric 'The ageing superhero in me is tired', from Newton Faulkner's song "Ageing Superhero". He named it to be his favourite song, as it helped him cope during a dark period in his life.
If he had been born a girl, his mother would have named him Jessica. He seems to be accident-prone, having broken several of his bones in one year. During high school, one of his injuries was a slipped disc that occurred when he sat down in a chair. The next day, he played football, and it felt as though his leg came out of the socket. He had to take physiotherapy for an extensive period but didn't follow through properly because he didn't listen. His hip occasionally acts up as a result. During a September 2021 livestream, he mentioned accidentally colliding with someone on the football pitch. The person was around 6'2", had broken their ankle, and ended up in a cast."Fovvs (@fovvs)". Twitch. 2 September 2021.
On 28 May 2016, his grandmother passed away."RoadTrip (@RoadTripTV)". Twitter. 1 June 2016. On 4 April 2019, his father died. Near the end of that month, on the 22nd, Fovvs paid tribute through music. The song, "For My Father" by Andy McKee, was one he learned on the guitar when he was younger. McKee responded to the post, saying, "My condolences to you. You played this beautifully. 🙏🏻""Fovvs (@fovvs)". Instagram. 22 April 2019. In January 2023, Fovvs stated that his uncle had passed away.
He has said of his longtime girlfriend, "It is impossible for you not to like Amy Clifford. She is just an absolute gem of a person, I fucking love her. […] Amy is so unaware of how likeable she is. That is so endearing, to the point that whenever I'm on call with her, and she's a little bit mischievous, it's ridiculously funny. Like, she is the nicest person on the planet, and I have nothing but respect and love for that girl. She is just amazing"."Fovvs (@fovvs)". Twitch. 16 January 2021. On 7 July 2022, Clifford publicly and officially confirmed to fans their relationship."Amy Clifford (@omgamyclifford)". Instagram. 7 July 2022. Their ship name is 'Amdy', represented by the cactus and paint palette emojis (🌵🎨). Clifford, a freelance photographer, videographer, and artist, is a lover of animals and annually donates to a charity on her birthday.
== Public image ==
Fovvs was outspoken on social issues and, at times, opinionated, which can lead to potential backlash. He could be regarded as liberal, elusive, contradictory, and a Renaissance man. His motto was, "if it ends in '-ism', it isn't welcome", towards all forms of discrimination. He was erroneously credited with the quote, "it's a bad day, not a bad life", though he revealed that it was just from some random Facebook post he saw. He had distanced himself from the label 'influencer', stating in an interview, "I think that I made the decision very early on that my social media will be 'I'm a musician, not an influencer, and I accept everyone, and I'd love it if everyone else did, as well'". In the beginning of RoadTrip (circa 2015-16), he developed an eating disorder. He reflected in 2019, "When I got home, although I was starving, something in my head told me you are not allowed to eat. 'Cause you've just done all this work and no matter what you eat is healthy – you can't put food into your body because your body is just so exhausted that you can't ruin the work you've just done. […] You should never put yourself through that to conform to any sort of constraints that society has".
He had once said, concerning the social construction of gender, "I'm a lad. 'A supposed lad'. I like football. I like a whiskey. I like going to the bar with my mates and putting the sports on. […] And then I come online, and I am PG, and extrovert, and flamboyant. So, am I a lad? No, not really. Does it matter? No, not really". In a 2018 tweet, when a fan remarked upon men's objectification of women, he responded, "although i have only been cat called on one occasion by individuals in a car, it happens to everyone from every gender, i agree with your points to an extent but i think regardless of gender all of these issues need to be addressed"."RoadTrip (@RoadTripTV)". Twitter. 14 May 2018.
In a 2018 video, when the band was reminiscing about their biggest moments of 2017, the name Logan Paul was brought up. This occurred at a time when there was supposed beef between RoadTrip and Why Don't We, a narrative driven by their respective fanbases. Fovvs admitted he didn't think things through when coming to the defence of one of his band mates, who had been dissed by Paul: "I jumped straight on Instagram story and went, 'Roadies, tell 'em who's boss' and that was a heat of the moment thing, and I apologise for that, and I'm aware that a lot of Why Don't We fans hate this band purely for that". He clarified that they didn't have any problems with the boy band, and was instead irritated with Paul, saying, "I just think it was unnecessary, because he made himself try to look like a big man to promote his band, and put ours down, when realistically, he knew nothing about you"."RoadTrip - Our Best 2017 Memories!". YouTube. 10 January 2018.
On 11 March 2018, RoadTrip uploaded their "These Days" Rudimental cover music video to YouTube. When the video was removed from their channel several months later, fans theorised it was because people were commenting on Fovvs' weight. Fovvs clarified that the comments were not the reason and requested for no drama."RoadTrip (@roadtrip)". TikTok. 11 November 2018."RoadTrip (@RoadTripTV)". Twitter. 13 November 2018. The video was republished sometime afterward. Later that year, on the band's Instagram story, he faced some criticism for showing a bottle of alcohol in the background. However, several fans argued that, as an adult, he could have that choice. In 2019, Fovvs suggested that fans who supported the band as an entity could expand beyond having "lanes". This stirred displeasure among some individuals within the fandom, and he clarified that he wanted fans to support everyone, while still understanding that people have favourites. This led to his break from online activity, partly due to other personal matters in his life."RoadTrip (@roadtrip)". TikTok. 18 August 2019. Although Fovvs has acknowledged the social responsibility he carries as a public figure, he would still drink and vape over livestreams, assuring that he always drank responsibly and remarking he should've quit smoking a long time ago.
On 1 May 2019, one of the extras from the "Take This Home" music video addressed to Twitter that Fovvs had cheated on his girlfriend, stating that they had slept together on 26 September 2018. She posted now-deleted screenshots of their messages to each other for corroboration."Kay Orton (@KXYO_)". Twitter. 1 May 2019. This led to fans attacking her, accusing her of seeking clout, criticizing her for handling the situation online, and going far as to deny it by asserting Fovvs doesn't use capital letters in text. The following day, she went on a livestream to clarify her position, and Fovvs joined the live to leave a message. They seemed to settle on amicable terms, as later, on 1 August 2019, she came to Fovvs' defence over an edit that had detailed his eating disorder and personal struggles from online hate. She had stated he "deserves better" and "either Andy DMs me or we kill another boy band member"."Kay Orton (@KXYO_)". Twitter. 1 August 2019. The fan who made the edit intended to highlight the impact of hate comments on someone, including the risk of suicide, but later reached out to apologize to Fovvs for the insensitivity of the post.
In January 2020, Fovvs launched a social experiment on Instagram, lasting for one year, in which he hypothesized that people tend to engage more with glamorized versions of ordinary lives. While the hypothesis may hold some merit, there were a few flaws in the experiment, such as his announcement of the intention, which potentially skewed the results, and the lack of a control group. Additional factors that may have influenced the results included the timing of the experiment during COVID-19, which normalized less edited photos of celebrities, and his decision to post every day – something that wasn't necessary to test his theory and may have actually annoyed some followers. When RoadTrip split in May 2020, Fovvs took a neutral, pacifist stance, maintaining that he "loved everyone", held no ill will, and felt the situation shouldn't have been made public. This response drew criticism from some of his band mates, who sought to expose their manager's history of artist exploitation and mistreatment, although one member seemed to finally reconcile with the manager in 2023. Fovvs also subtly referenced the breakup in his 2020 voisey "Briefcases of Gold" and had a tweet traced back earlier to 31 March 2020, hinting at the band's troubles: "money is the root of all evil"."Fovvs (@fovvs)". Twitter. 31 March 2020.
Despite repeatedly confirming he was straight, speculation about Fovvs' sexuality persisted, particularly within the RoadTrip fandom. During a 2019 livestream, Fovvs addressed the rumours by saying, "I've had to come out because apparently it's a thing you have to do based on your sexuality. But like I said, I won't rule anything out based on gender". This statement was taken out of context, leading to confusion, though he later reiterated that he identified as straight. He pointed out that the gender of the person he dated should not matter in the first place. On 30 November 2019, when asked if he had ever doubted his sexuality, he responded "no" explaining that he "experimented with it, [and] didn't like it"."RoadTrip (@roadtrip)". TikTok. 30 November 2019.
Since 2019, an anonymous account had specifically targeted Fovvs online, spreading homophobic and transphobic rhetoric via comments on TikTok and Instagram livestreams. Fovvs would promptly remove the individual from livestreams for using slurs and refused to engage with the person over social media. Later, the same user claimed that Fovvs was gay and posted homophobic content on Instagram. The account also mocked a fan who had committed suicide after being bullied for their sexuality, along with a few edited videos (possibly a different person) compiling soundbites from livestreams on YouTube that falsely out Fovvs. Fans in the comments pointed out that the words were misconstrued, wearing nail polish wasn't an indication of sexuality, and that Fovvs had been an ally to the LGBTQIA2S+ community. On 3 February 2020, Fovvs took to Twitter to assert that he was the only one who knew his sexual orientation, and no one should assume or dictate it for him, pushing their ideology of who he should be. He added that some of the online users were "hetrophobic [sic]", and after facing backlash for using the term, he deleted the tweet."Fovvs (@fovvs)". Twitter. 3 February 2020.
In late May 2020, amid the George Floyd and Black Lives Matter (BLM) demonstrations against police brutality and systemic racism, Fovvs shared a link to resources supporting Black lives. He also expressed, "how we still live in a society that discriminates against the colour of people's skin is sickening. it's fucking 2020, the time for change was centuries ago, let alone tragedies happening as we speak"."Fovvs (@fovvs)". Twitter. 28 May 2020. In 2021, Fovvs donated to Stockport and District Mind, an independent charity in his hometown, to support mental health services."Fovvs (@fovvs)". Twitch. 16 August 2021. He also played on one of the rotation teams for Hashtag United's 24-Hour Football Match, which raises awareness for men's health issues in support of Movember."Hashtag United's 24 Hour Charity Football Match" Movember
== Notes ==
* Stockport is not particularly unsafe; although Brinnington and Adswood are often reputed to be "rough" suburbs, the town is overall varied, with both wealth and deprivation.
* During this time, the movement led to widespread protests across the globe, public surge towards police and prison abolition, and inspired some individuals to check their privilege or consider a change. It brought debates about performative outrage, tokenism, racial colour-blindness, cultural appropriation, commodification of Black trauma, and racial disparities, including the fact that music industry executives are predominantly white males. Other topics included white women's tears, white fragility, and white saviorism. Some criticisms arose from individuals treating it as a trend, such as posting a black square and feeling that was their "good deed of the day". Additionally, some people of colour felt that companies responded with only performative actions without enacting real structural changes.
== References ==
Category:Andy Fowler
Category:English people
Category:Monroe
Category:Musicians
Category:Overload Generation
Category:People
Category:RoadTrip
Category:Singers
Category:Songwriters