Matt Cardle Kissing Mel C was a pleasure

Pop heart-throb Matt Cardle has decided to Spice up his latest single by duetting with Mel C.

It’s a canny move from the former X-Factor winner because the video for the new song, Loving You, shows the pair of them kissing passionately.

So did Matt, who scored his first hit in 2010 with a cover of Ayrshire trio Biffy Clyro’s When We Collide, have any reservations about smooching with a Spice Girl?

“No,” laughs the 30-year-old. “It was a pleasure.

https://youtube.com/watch?v=j3sRdbaMwgk%3Frel%3D0

“The director for the video had the idea that we come together and kiss, which was fine by me. It was really easy, nothing awkward.”

The idea for the duet had been around for a while according to Matt.

“I met Melanie at the Isle of Wight Festival last year,” he says. “I’m a big fan and I’ve always loved her voice. I had already started writing Loving You and I thought, with a few changes, it could work perfectly as a duet.

“I’m really thrilled with the song and I can’t wait for people to hear it.”

Matt, who performed the song on ITV’s Daybreak this week, reveals it was such a pleasure to record with Mel that he’d jump at the chance to repeat the experience.

“Mel’s a real treat to work with,” he confirms, “so I’d love to do more stuff with her in the future.”

The single got its premiere on Ken Bruce’s Radio 2 show, instead of on Radio 1 or one of the commercial pop stations as might have been expected.

“It’s a Radio 2 song,” says Matt. “You’ve only got to listen to other playlists and it’s full of dance and that kind of stuff.” The song will also feature on his third album out in October.

“It’s by far my best work so far,” insists Matt. “I’m constantly improving the way I write, play and sing.”

However his bust-up with last year’s X-Factor winner, James Arthur, shows no sign of cooling.

James was quick to blast those who’d gone before claiming: “They haven’t sold records because they haven’t made great albums.”

A bitter war of words ensued and even now, eight months on, it seems Matt and James won’t be sharing a beer anytime soon.

Ask Matt if they’ve buried the hatchet and he says, “Not as such.”

And though he insists, none too enthusiastically, “I think he’s great”, he’s less than complimentary about James’s initial comments, insisting: “You can have a pop at other people before you’ve done anything fair enough. I don’t have a pop at anyone.”