The 'Paradise' hitmaker has confessed that whilst he is happy to play along with his "safe, sweet young man" image, when he's hanging out with his mates and hitting the booze, he's the complete opposite.

He told GQ magazine: "In my private life, I would say I'm more rock 'n' roll.

"Alcohol is brilliant, because after one pint it's the best idea in the world to have another.

"I'm not wholesome when I'm with my friends at the pub.

"I'm similar to most 26-year-olds.

"When I first started out I was never sure how the media was going to portray me.

"And when it was as this safe, smiley, sweet young man, I went, 'I can roll with that.'

"So that's why I always get funny about the rock'n' roll thing.

"Any mistakes I need to make, like anybody else my age, will be with people who I trust, behind closed doors."

The BRIT Award-winner has been open about his battle with his mental health and having therapy and meditation, and he has admitted that the songs on his latest LP 'Staying at Tamara's' were all about escaping how he was really feeling, and so for his next record he plans to switch things up because it didn't help him ignoring things that were making him unhappy.

He said: "During the course of touring this album, I've realised that trying to escape or turn off from things hasn't helped me at all.

"For my next album, I won't be focusing on escaping or writing songs about getting away, because, for me, it hasn't worked."

George also revealed that his friends think he's in a "cult" when he tells them about the benefits of doing transcendental meditation - which is the practice of the silent mantra.

He said: "I do transcendental meditation twice a day, but - and this isn't to be negative about it - I just wish it wasn't called that, because when I'm trying to communicate with people in the pub about this thing that could change their lives, I know full well they're thinking, 'Right. OK. You've joined a cult.'"

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