Emeli Sandé has revealed that she found it difficult to get a record deal.

The singer, who was recently nominated for the Critics' Choice gong at the upcoming BRIT Awards, told the Daily Star that she felt herself and her whole artistic package wasn't being taken seriously. She said:

"When I look back I was writing Clown about it being hard to get a deal, finding it hard to find people in the industry who were interested in me. There’s a line: 'I guess it's funnier from where you're standing because from over here I'm just a joke.' People always laugh at you when you're trying to be creative or achieve something and putting yourself out there so it's me saying I'm prepared to be the clown."

She added however that people were usually interested in her songwriting abilities. She said:

"It was never a struggle as a songwriter because I think I was doing something that no-one else was. People were always interested in my songs, just not me as an artist. I don't think we're in an industry where people take risks, or at least we weren't when I was trying to get signed. But things are changing now and people are looking for something different."