The beloved sparkling water brand bubly finally brought its delicious range to Australia just over a month ago.
But now, thanks to bubly, 15 lucky Australians will have the chance to win a meet and greet with Michael Bublé in Canada.
WATCH: Michael Bublé caught defacing cans of bubly
How? Well, Michael adamantly believes bubly should be pronounced the same way as his surname.
So, while he was Down Under for the Australian leg of his Higher Tour, he defaced 15 cans of bubly – changing the y to an é.
And if you happen to find one of these defaced bubly cans any time from June 13 to August 6, you’ll go into a draw for the meet and greet!
New Idea caught up with the Grammy Award-winning singer to chat all things bubly, but in the process, Michael also revealed that his “20 year relationship” with Australia makes him “emotional.”
Read our full interview with Michael Bublé below.
New Idea: How did your partnership with bubly sparkling water come about, and what made you decide to collaborate with the brand?
Michael Bublé: “I think they’re geniuses to be honest. I think they were really smart for getting me and it’s obvious because now it’s one of the most massive products in the whole world and I like to take credit for that [laughs].”
“It’s not just that it’s a really yummy thing and a great, healthy alternative to sodas, but it’s me. And uh, listen. It was a marketing match made in heaven. It was self-deprecating and funny and smart and understated and they hired great directors and wrote great stuff and it’s been a blast…”
What are your personal favourite flavours of bubly?
“I like Mango, Pineapple, Raspberry, man… I really like Cherry. I like Cherry.”
The cherry flavour is sadly not available in Australia.
“Yeah but you’ll get it, they didn’t bring it to Canada for a while [but then they did]. Oh, and the Blackberry’s good too. It’s really good.”
WATCH: Michael Bublé performs It’s A Beautiful Day at the TV WEEK Logies
You’re quite adamant that everyone pronounces bubly wrong, hence the defacing. Do you have a funny or notable instance of when someone mispronounced your name?
“People still can’t say my name… You know, it’s funny I almost changed my name early on. Yeah, my record company was like, ‘No one’s ever gonna take you; no one’s ever going to buy records from a guy named Bublé .’ So I was going to go to my grandma’s maiden name which was Moscone; we’re Italian. I’m glad I didn’t though, cause Michael bubly sounds so much better. Ah, I mean Bublé [laughs].”
Are you aware that your Australian fans have nicknamed you ‘The Boobs’?
“Yes!”
How do you feel about that nickname?
“I love boobs. So I love being [called that]. Listen, you’re my people. You’re my people. And I’m your people. And can you imagine how it must feel for me, to have a 20 year relationship with a country that I think [is] so cool?”
“You know, to come here and to know that people are getting married and people are having Christmas, and sometimes people are going through break-ups or funerals, and that I’m a part of their life and their culture. It’s emotional for me, you know. My wife, when we fly in [to Australia], she’ll look at me and say, ‘I can’t believe they know you here, so far away from home.’ It means a lot to me.”
You have quite a clean cut image–
“That’s bulls**t. It’s bulls**t. I can’t help the perception of me because of what, say uh, a record company or a… I am so not clean cut. I am just; I’m no worse, I’m no better, I am your brother, I’m your boyfriend, I’m your father. I am flawed. I’m real. The truth is that’s why you like me… because people know it’s real. It’s not fake. This is me.”
“Listen, I can love the lord and be a good person. And I can be kind and empathetic. But it’s not weak. That’s strength. It’s weak to be insecure. And to have to pretend to be cool or tough or mean or nasty; that’s just weak. Greatness is being able to just be yourself and I think we all know how great I am.”
Well, I was going to say, ‘Why the defacing of bubly cans?’ Because, I would say, it seems a little out of character for you, but obviously not?
“You know what I think? I think it’s really hard because I think human beings, our natural hope is that we can categorise people and that’s how we feel safe. We want everyone to be put in their little box and it’s our job as human beings to fight that categorisation.”
“And so, I think people need to come see me in shows a lot of the time to understand who Michael Bublé is. Because if they’re selling my record on a TV commercial and it’s some romantic song, well, of course [people are] gonna think that [I’m clean cut].”
“You know, if you’re walking through the mall and it’s Christmas time and you hear me singing Santa Claus is Coming to Town, you’re gonna have that thought in your head. But if you come and see the show, you find out how spicy I am pretty quick. You find out exactly what you need to know.”
“And, by the way, that’s the reason why in 70 countries all over the world I can go and play arenas and stadiums. It’s not because of the music, it’s because [the fans] showed up and I was a complete dumb a–. And they went, ‘Oh, he’s an idiot. He’s our kind of idiot.’”
If you’d like the chance to win a meet and greet with Michael Bublé in Canada, you’ll need to find one of 15 defaced bubly cans. To find out where the 15 bubly cans that Michael defaced will be hidden, you’ll need to follow bubly on Facebook and Instagram.
