Amazing hit maker Alex Lloyd celebrates 20th anniversary of debut album with national tour

With a little bit of help from friend Rose Byrne, Alex Lloyd has announced a new tour to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the album which kickstarted his career.

The arrival of his debut album Black The Sun two decades ago began Alex Lloyd’s reign as Australia’s King of Pop through the noughties.

The Amazing singer has marked the 20th anniversary of the album’s release today with his good friend Rose Byrne revealing plans for a national tour kicking off in October.

Lloyd and the Hollywood star became mates after he contributed his song Lucky Star to the soundtrack of Two Hands, the film which launched her and Heath Ledger to success.

The singer then enlisted Byrne to star in the music video for the title track.

“My role was … a very important part of the video,” Byrne joked in a video post on Friday.

“Twenty years have gone by, Alex is going to be touring Australia playing the album from start to finish.”

Lloyd was an inescapable voice on the Australian airwaves, with Triple J listeners voting Black The Sun their album of the year in 1999 thanks to electronic, strings-laden pop classics such as the title track, Something Special and My Way Home.

Alex Lloyd gets back in the game

Alex Lloyd. The baby-faced singer with the angelic voice was one of the biggest artists in Australia. Picture: Supplied Alex Lloyd

He won Best New Talent at the ARIA Awards and followed up with Best Male Artist the next year. He would own that title again in 2002 and 2003.

Lloyd followed up his debut album with Watching Angels Mend in 2001, which became a huge success thanks to his signature song Amazing.

That smash hit would become a ubiquitous presence in Australian households not only as a popular wedding song but as the soundtrack for television commercials.

Amazing became the subject of a Federal Court action in 2009 when Mark O’Keefe claimed to have written the song but the legal action was dropped after three days of hearings when his evidence proved unreliable.

Lloyd and Stephen and Alan Pigram were in natural harmony working on the Mad Bastards soundtrack. Picture: Supplied.

Lloyd maintained his presence in the top 10 with subsequent albums Distant Light and his 2005 self-titled record.

He has since released two independent albums and the acclaimed Acoustica collection in 2016 as well as writing the soundtrack to the film Mad Bastards with the Pigram Brothers.

While fans of his early work might ponder his whereabouts due a lack of new songs, the singer has continued to tour each year with the lion’s share of his time helping to raise his four children with wife Amelia.

Lloyd and his wife Amelia enjoy a quiet life on the Central Coast with their four children. Picture: News Corp Australia

But this year’s Black The Sun anniversary run will be one of his most extensive jaunts around the country.

“It’s hard to believe its been 20 years! A lot has happened in that time, however this album still resonates with me maybe even more so now,” Lloyd said in a statement announcing the tour.

“That’s why I am super excited to announce I am getting the band back together to head out on the road again to celebrate Black The Sun on its 20th anniversary.

“Full band shows, all the bells and whistles, relive my 20s … hell yes!”

For details of the national tour, alexlloyd.com with tickets on sale from July 10.

Originally published as Amazing hit maker Alex Lloyd celebrates 20th anniversary of debut album with national tour