As a teenager, Ryan Malcolm dreamed of one day playing for his beloved hometown team Wolves at Molineux.
But upon being released after years in the academy, he threw himself into music instead – a path that has taken him from the West Midlands indie scene to touring the world with Brit Award winners Wolf Alice.
Since then, the keyboard player has headlined festivals far and wide, performed at Glastonbury and even toured Europe, supporting Harry Styles.
On Sunday, five years after he was working in a factory during the pandemic, Malcolm will perform in front of 50,000 people at a Wolf Alice homecoming gig at London’s Finsbury Park.
Looking back, the 38-year-old, originally from Bilston, Wolverhampton, said missing out on a career in football was the setback that ultimately pushed him towards music.