It’s not easy to make it in the music business. Many artists and bands oftentimes have to fight years and years before anything happens. Yet sometimes, things just seem to work out perfectly.
For Seal, it was that. The British singer became a sensation even before releasing his first album – and he’s been a star ever since. Also known for his marriage to Heidi Klum, Seal has done plenty of things during his life, and it wasn’t actually music he focused on from the start.
Many people dream about a life in the music business: releasing albums; touring all over the world; living like a rich superstar.
Throughout history, we’ve seen artists that have been very young when making their breakthrough. The likes of The Beatles and Celine Dion were only teenagers when they became worldwide-known artists, but that’s not the case for everyone.
Seal’s unique career
In fact, making it later in life is somewhat more inspiring if you ask me. If you follow your passion through life, it doesn’t matter that you fought 10 or 20 years to make it happen. Achieving a dream truly is the result of not giving up, and that’s something we can all learn from.
One person whose career took off a little later than usual is Seal. The British artist released his debut album at the age of 28, and ever since, his music has greatly impacted people all over the world.
Not only did Seal become famous because of his music, but his marriage to Heidi Klum also elevated his celebrity status. The couple split in 2012.
At the same time as Seal is a big time star, he has never gotten too big for his boots. In fact, he’s still the same person he was before turning into a celebrity, helping young artists to fulfil their dreams.
There are many things that make Seal special, but one thing that marks him as truly unique is something he can’t help. The now famous scars upon his face have become somewhat of a trademark look – we can’t imagine how he’d look without them.
But how did he get the scars from the beginning? Well, we can reveal that it doesn’t have anything to do with him being in a fight.
Seal – early life
Seal was born Seal Henry Olusegun Olumide Adeola Samuel on February 19, 1963 in London, England. His childhood was everything but a smooth ride. In fact, Seal’s upbringing was pretty traumatic. He was raised in foster care before living and being raised by his stepmother and father. It was difficult, since his father was harsh on him.
In the midst of all the horrible things Seal went through as a child, music quickly became his salvation.
“I’ve often described music as being the one thing that saved me,” Seal said. “We just talked about the perils of loneliness and the ensuing tragedy of being alone. Well, I have been lucky in that ever since I discovered music, I’ve always had that to turn to. She’s always been that friend, that ear that has listened, always.”
For Seal, music became the one thing that made him feel as if he had someone to lean on, like he wasn’t “completely abandoned”. It was something that cleansed his soul, and by an early age, he thought plenty about what music actually did to him.
He didn’t look at it as something that was just there to be listened to. Rather, he understood it served a greater cause.
Great love of music
“I just assumed at an early age that that was the ‘why’ behind music. Not necessarily what it would do, but why it would do. ‘Why do I sing, why do I have a voice, why does it connect with people?’ And I always assumed that that was why,” he explained.
“That one was meant to offer that same relief, give that same compassion, and make that same connection available for everyone else. I guess my songs reflect that. They have been less religious and more allegorical, offering an account of life as I’ve been experiencing it. The older I get, I’ve come to understand it’s not all that different from anyone else’s, to be honest.”
From the start, Seal was in love with music and singing. Initially, he didn’t sing at all in front of his parents because he was scared. At age 11, though, he performed in front of his parents for the first time at a Parent-Teacher Association event. Seal’s teacher called him up on stage and he sang a Johnny Nash song.
It changed everything, even though he explained it as being “the scariest moment” of his life.
“I closed my eyes, sang the song, and at the end of it everyone clapped. My parents were just shocked,” he recalled.
“And it turned from the scariest place in the world to the most welcoming place. I never forgot that feeling. It was a spiritual feeling, it was healing, it transcended the physical and became more of a cathartic balm or elixir for my spirit, for my soul.
“Music has always had that. I think that’s been my ‘MO’, because I don’t know any other way, for better or worse.”
Seal – early success & awards
Even though Seal loved music, he didn’t pursue a career in the business at first. Instead, he got a degree in architecture and moved on to work various jobs. Eventually, though, he could deny his talent no more. Seal first worked with a band called Push and travelled in Asia.
In 1990, at age 27, he released his first single, Killer, and it headed straight to the top of the charts in the UK. His self-titled debut album in 1991 became a huge success. With songs such as Crazy and Future Love Paradise, Seal’s career was heading straight to the top.
Three years later, he released his second album Seal II, and this time, international success was certified. With songs such as Prayer Before Dying, Kiss From a Rose and Don’t Cry, the album topped the Billboard Hot 100 and scored 4th place in the UK. He went on to win three Grammys, Record of the Year, Song of the Year and Best Male Pop Vocal Performance.
In total, Seal has released 10 studio albums, winning many awards for his music. However, for many who aren’t familiar with his music, he’s perhaps better known for his marriage with Heidi Klum.
Heidi Klum gave birth to her daughter, Leni Klum, in May of 2004, and around that same time, Seal became part of their family.
Marriage with Heidi Klum
In August of 2003, just a few weeks following a split from Italian Formula 1 manager Flavio Briatore, Heidi Klum bumped into Seal in the Mercer Hotel lobby in New York City.
In 1992, at the age of 19, Klum won a televised model contest in Germany. The funny thing? She walked down the runaway to the song Crazy, sung by her future husband, Seal.
It all happened quickly, but the two seemed to be meant for each other.
“I was not looking for anybody,” Klum told MarieClaire. “He was just there. He walked in the door, and there he was, he looked good. I was like, Wow.”
When asked what attracted her to him, she explained: “Well, I mean, have you ever met him?” Klum asked. “He’s a very big man, very dark, very intriguing — and it’s like a mystery, do you know what I mean? He has these dark eyes, and they’re very intense. But he is a gentle giant. He is so warm, and he is so well-mannered, so like a gentleman.”
The couple quickly grew fond of each other, and in December the following year, Seal proposed to Heidi Klum in the Canadien Rockies.
Adopted her two daughters
“He took me by helicopter,” Klum recalls. “He had an igloo built there, and they’d brought up everything: a bed with sheets inside the igloo, rose petals everywhere. Very, very romantic! There was food and champagne, and then the helicopter left. It was a little scary, too, because you’re so cut off from the world. No trees, nothing — it was hard-core. But I was ecstatic. I loved it. It was wonderful.”
In 2015, on a beach in Mexico, the two got married, and that same year, Seal and Heidi welcomed their son, Henry. Just 18 months later, son Johan arrived, and in 2009, they welcomed daughter Lou. Seal also adopted Leni as his own daughter.
Seal and Heidi took care to keep their children’s lives private, not sharing too many pictures of them and so on.
At the end of 2012, Heidi Klum and Seal released a statement saying that they’d split. The “super-couple” was no more, but the most important thing for both of them was keeping their children out of any disagreements they might have had.
Why does Seal have face scars?
“While we have enjoyed seven very loving, loyal and happy years of marriage, after much soul-searching we have decided to separate. We have had the deepest respect for one another throughout our relationship and continue to love each other very much, but we have grown apart,” a statement released by the couple read.
Seal has become a hugely popular artist over the entire world, both for his music and being one half of the “super-couple” with Heidi Klum.
But there is one other thing that really makes him unique, and that’s the scars on his face. They’ve become a sort of trademark for Seal, and many see them as being rather cool looking.
So how did Seal get the scars? Well, they’re actually the result of a chronic disease called lupus. It can cause inflammation, as well as pain in any part of one’s body, but is most commonly associated with the skin and internal organs.
Diagnosed with lupus at 21
Seal has s special form of the disease, called discoid lupus. It causes coin like scarring of the skin, hence the “scars” on Seal’s face.
Seal got lupus when he was 21 years of age. However, he says it’s not as serious as the lupus which affects the organs.
The singer doesn’t see himself as suffering from it. Instead, he looks at it as something that instead has helped him in a way.
“Something that had kind of been initially traumatizing turned out to be something that has made me instantly recognizable,” he told Yahoo Lifestyle.
He added that he was very self-conscious about his scars to begin with, however he “quickly realized this body is not who we are”, and that he “got off lightly.”
Spoke out on his mental health
At the same time as Seal has the scars on his face, he’s battled inner scars for a very long time. He has admitted to have struggled with both anxiety and panic attacks, which he has experienced for almost 30 years.
The now 58-year-old singer recalled the first time he had a massive panic attack, which was in the recording studio. He was rushed to the hospital, believing it to be a heart attack. In the end, he made it through, and now, he focuses on exercise to help cope with his axienty.
“It’s given me such empathy and understanding for people who can’t get help,” Seal said on the subject of having panic attacks.
“There is no shame… there is no guilt in asking for help and talking about it, whether it’s therapy or it’s a friend. It needs to be shared.”
Seal is a truly inspirational person. We adore his songs – and thank him for having the courage of speaking about his mental health.