PAISLEY musician Paolo Nutini has defended council chiefs who spent £15,000 for X Factor star Olly Murs to switch on the town’s Christmas lights.
Paolo, 23, is a champion of his home town where he still lives since hitting the big time with his music career and where his folks own a chip shop.
The Scottish singer thinks that Olly was worth the £15,000 of Renfrewshire Council money because he helped to bring 28,000 people into the town for the event.
Paolo said: “A lot of people got angry about how much it cost. But more than 28,000 people turned up to see it. My dad said it was a great day for the chippy.
“It is tough to bring people into the town because it is so near to Glasgow and big shopping centres like Silverburn.”
“There is a lot of competition, so I definitely think getting so many people into Paisley was a good thing.”
Previously, Paolo has spoken out against the council for failing to regenerate the town.
He said: “I opened my mouth when I was asked for my opinion and I got some flak for it.
“I just want to see it become a better place for everyone.”
Paolo has said that he would like to transform Paisley into a centre for music and has expressed interest in building a recording studio and gig venue there.
He said: “It would be great to create an environment where you could record songs and maybe one day find somewhere to put a venue in.
“There’s a Town Hall but I mean something like King Tut’s that’s made for sound. That’s the aim, to find a street in Paisley and turn it into a place where bands would want to come.”
At the Radio Forth Awards ceremony in Edinburgh earlier this month, Olly declared that he loves Scotland and plans to move north of the border next year.
He said “To be fair I’ve always had a fantastic welcome when I come up here, and I’m really grateful for that.”
“I love Scotland, I think I’ve come up here more than I’ve been at home.
“That’s not even a joke and I’m definitely going to be moving here in the New Year or definitely getting a place up here anyway.”
He added: “I’m deadly serious, I love it up here. I’ve had a great time. The weather could be better I must confess.
“It’s a bit chilly but it’s still good fun.”
His love fro Scotland might have been a contributing factor towards his decision to donate the fee from the Paisley Christmas light event to charity.
