Adele Reveals the Origins of ‘Hello’ to Oprah Winfrey
When Adele hits the stage for her upcoming Adele One Night Only concert special, she’ll be kicking things off with a familiar tune.
The singer, 33, revealed to Oprah Winfrey in an interview clip from the special shared Wednesday that although the performance is in celebration of her new album 30, she will begin with her 2015 hit “Hello.”
“I’m always going to start with ‘Hello,’ ” she said. “It’d be a bit weird if it was like, halfway through the set, you know? So yeah, I’m starting with it.”
The “Easy on Me” singer explained that “Hello” was “the beginning of me trying to find myself, and I hadn’t figured out yet what it was that I had to do for that.”
She went on to explain the song’s importance to her, noting that she was addressing her past and future self in its lyrics.
“When I wrote it, it was a real ode to like, little me, older me, all of these things,” she said. “It’s just a song about like, ‘I’m still here.’ Like, ‘Hi, I’m still here, I still exist in every aspect of my life.’ ”
Adele released “Hello” in October 2015 as the lead single off her third studio album, 25.
The ballad was a massive success, topping the Billboard Hot 100, winning multiple Grammy awards, and even getting its own Saturday Night Live sketch.
Ahead of the release of her highly anticipated album 30 on Nov. 19, Adele will be performing new music from the album, along with some of her biggest hits, during a two-hour CBS special titled Adele One Night Only.
The performance, which will air on Nov. 14, will also feature an interview with Winfrey, 67, in which the star discusses the stories behind her new songs, life after divorce, weight loss and raising her son.
In announcing her album to the world last month, Adele told fans she had “learned a lot of blistering truths” about herself during its creation, but that she finally felt she was in a place where she was comfortable releasing her music to the world.
“I feel like I’ve finally found my feeling again. I’d go as far as to say that I’ve never felt more peaceful in my life,” she wrote in a social media statement. “And so, I’m ready to finally put this album out.”
Adele One Night Only will air Sunday, Nov. 14 at 8:30 p.m. ET on CBS and Paramount+.