Amy Macdonald squeezes five gigs in one day to raise cash for children’s anti-poverty charity

“It’s so hard to pick one,” smiles the 24-year-old Bishopbriggs lass. “I feel so privileged that I’ve been able to do so many things - so many amazing things have happened to me.

“But I think the first moment was in 2008 in the Netherlands. I had my first No.1 single there with This Is The Life and I was playing at the Pinkpop Festival that same day.

“It was the first time I’d done a festival and the tent was rammed. They had to open the sides of it because so many people wanted to come in.

“That was the first moment I really thought, ‘Oh my God, this could really go somewhere’.”

She wasn’t wrong. Since giving her first major interview, on these pages, back in 2007, Macdonald has gone on to become one of the biggest-selling female artists of the last decade, shifting more than four million albums worldwide.

Add to that the countless awards she’s won, the sell-out gigs all over the world, and the invitations to sing Flower of Scotland to the Tartan Army inside Hampden Park before the national side’s crunch Euro qualifiers against Lichtenstein and Spain a couple of years ago.

“It’s an amazing feeling, so emotional, but I never get nervous,” she says of her pre-match performances. “There are 50,000 people singing and you are leading them, literally covered in goose bumps. It’s an honour.”

On Monday, Macdonald releases new album Life In A Beautiful Light, but before then she is taking on a marathon challenge to raise cash for kids living in poverty — performing FIVE concerts in just ONE day.

The big-hearted singer is doing the Five A Day For The Kids gigs on Tuesday as part of the STV Appeal, and will perform shows in Aberdeen, Dundee, Stirling, Glasgow and Edinburgh, with all proceeds going to the fundraiser.

“I was asked if I would be up for doing something and, for me, it’s basically a no-brainer,” she says. “It’s such a good cause and I just had to get involved.

“Scotland is a small nation and the fact one in four of our children is affected by poverty made me keen to do whatever I could to make a difference.

“I like a challenge, so getting to all of Scotland’s major cities in the one day and putting on a show seemed perfect.

“I love gigging and being able to raise money for these kids that need it at the same time makes it the perfect combination.”

As far as the new album goes, fans will notice her amazing range on this record. “I’ve definitely grown in to my voice,” she agrees. “My range has gone crazy, probably from all the touring and singing every night. My voice is much more powerful and I can control it more.

“[Album track] The Game is a song I wouldn’t have tried to sing when I started out.

“I didn’t actually write it for myself. During my year off, I was asked to write for other artists – one of them Susan Boyle. When I recorded The Game, I said ‘I am Susan Boyle’ and just went for it.

“It’s a different style of song for me, but everyone who heard it insisted I include it. It’s a real gets-you-in-the-guts number.”

Amy Macdonald, The Caves, Niddry Street, Tuesday, 8pm, £10, 0131-557 8989