By Maria Leticia Gomes
The early 2000s were defined by a song that had everyone humming along – Bad Day by Canadian singer Daniel Powter. The hit single was omnipresent in 2005, topping the US Billboard Hot 100, reaching number two in the UK, and becoming the elimination anthem for American Idol.
However, the sudden fame brought with it struggles of addiction, isolation, and personal turmoil for Powter. Interestingly, Bad Day was recorded back in 2002 but initially rejected by record labels. Its big break came when it featured in a French Coca-Cola advert in 2004, which caught the attention of Warner Bros.
Powter was quickly signed and catapulted into stardom. His debut album, self-titled, sold over a million copies globally. However, subsequent singles failed to replicate the success of his first, reports the Mirror US.
His second UK single, Free Loop, faced chart eligibility issues due to the inclusion of Bad Day as a B-side – a mistake that halted its momentum. His 2008 follow-up album, Under the Radar, unfortunately lived up to its title, and Powter gradually disappeared from the charts.
The weight of fame proved too much. “It was very lonely and I felt isolated,” he confessed to Metro in 2012. “I was travelling and spending all my life alone in hotel rooms. You don’t always meet people with the best of intentions in the music business… It was quite dark. Some people deal well with it and I didn’t.”
Powter succumbed to alcohol and cocaine. “I became a slave to it and ended up managing my life around it,” he admitted. What started as a coping mechanism quickly turned into an addiction. “It wasn’t a problem for the first year and a half, but as the years went by it got worse until I couldn’t remember what was happening”, he confessed.
He triumphed over his demons and achieved sobriety in 2010. Sobriety may have been tough, but it brought him much-needed clarity and tranquillity. Reflecting on the change, he shared: “The strange thing is how much time you have in your life when you stop.” He added: “You don’t have to spend time worrying about who you’ve been lying to. I suddenly had hours in the day where I wasn’t messed up.”
His personal life took a hit during those tumultuous times, leading to a divorce, but Powter found his way back to music. In 2010, he celebrated his journey with a Best of Me compilation, followed by his fourth studio album Turn on the Lights in 2012, which reached No. 109 in the UK charts.
By 2018, Powter was back with fresh singles like Do You Wanna Get Lucky, Survivor, and a reworked Perfect for Me targeting the Asian audience. These tracks culminated in the release of Giants on December 14, featuring new tunes such as Delicious and revamped classics including Bad Day and Free Loop. The album even boasted a festive remix of Do You Wanna Get Lucky for the holiday season.
Despite not reaching the commercial success of his debut, Giants showcased a more mature and introspective artist. In 2020, he collaborated with Chinese pop group The Untamed Boys on Just Isn’t Me, performing it – along with Bad Day – during a tour stop in Bangkok.
That same year, he participated in the MOSHIMO Project, and in 2021, he was featured in Save Your Life, a duet with Japanese pop singer Ayaka Hirahara. In a surprising turn of events, Powter made a comeback to Canadian television in 2024 when he auditioned for Season 4 of Canada’s Got Talent – marking his first major televised appearance in his homeland.
These days, Daniel Powter enjoys a quieter life with his wife Christina in Portland, Oregon. He is a proud father to three children – two daughters and a son – and cherishes his life away from the spotlight.