Marc Martel

I was born in '76, but I didn't get into rock until the early '90s when the grunge stuff started coming out.

That was how I had developed my singing style in the first place - imitating other singers like George Michael and Richard Marx.

I know at the back of my mind that there's no way I can please everybody, so I still just have to be myself anyway.

The Ultimate Queen Celebration is a little bit different. I take liberties with the amount of songs in the set that aren't necessarily Queen songs. I take some freedoms with The Ultimate Queen Celebration that I can't really do with The Queen Extravaganza.

Being a professional musician with Downhere for 11 years now, I feel completely at home on stage.

I liken the Queen thing to being in a worship service. Everyone comes having grown up with this music. It's in their blood, in their souls. Every night, it's always a huge standing ovation.

Being compared to Freddie Mercury is something I've come to terms with. I don't know that I'll ever successfully avoid the comparisons, as much as I might want to. Why bother, though? People hear what they want to hear because it makes them feel good and gives them a momentary pause from a loss rock and roll has felt for years.

When I was in my former band Downhere, I did everything I could not to remind people of Freddie Mercury, but it became almost hilarious how many people compared me to him to the point where it felt like it was working against the band when we tested singles at radio.

Queen had incredible songwriters.

I immediately recognised that Freddy's vocal chords bore an uncanny resemblance to mine - or vice-versa, I guess - and yeah, the rest is history.

Rock and roll reaches people because it's honest and doesn't shy away from the issues.

My mom is the piano player in my dad's church - she's also the choir director - and she's just a musician through and through.