Ruel Essentials

Ruel Vincent van Dijk knows all too well the rigors of pop-star life. A recurring theme in his music is how the road takes him away from his loved ones, whether he’s “always on a different continent” in “as long as you care” or singing about “window seats as the plane starts leavin’” in the R&B-flavored “Painkiller.” The London-born, Sydney-raised artist is simply singing about what he knows. Having released his first single at age 14, Ruel spent his teen years circling the globe, balancing studies with international writing sessions and shows. Love is also a regular subject of his, be it in “Don’t Tell Me”—written after talking to his family as a 12-year-old about a crush he had—or “Real Thing,” which is inspired by the marriage proposal scene in the movie High Fidelity. Both on his own and as a sought-after collaborator, Ruel has mined a rich seam of pop and R&B. He has also grown ever more ambitious, structuring his second album as the two-part odyssey Kicking My Feet & Screaming. On the snappy standout “Don’t Say That,” he infuses the song’s smooth arrangement with some of his most emotional singing yet.