Gotye Adds Tour Dates, Ponders Life as a Celebrity

Credit: Cybele MalinowksiIncreasing demand by fans to hear "Somebody That I Used to Know" live in concert has led Gotye to add several dates to his upcoming North American tour, which kicks off August 22 in Morrison, Colorado.  Gotye's new dates include a September 7 gig at the House of Blues in Las Vegas, a September 8 show at the Santa Barbara Bowl in California, and a September 26 show at Mohegan Sun Arena in Connecticut.

Meanwhile, as the guy behind one of the year's biggest hits, Gotye, whose birth name is Wally De Backer, is increasingly finding himself having to deal with being a "celebrity."  The low-key Australian says he finds it hard to believe the sort of reaction he's gotten from fans.

Recalling one time after a concert in Pennsylvania one night, Gotye tells ABC News Radio, "About a hundred people did hang out for, I reckon, a good four hours" to meet him.  After the show, he says, he hung out with friends and the band, ate some dinner and took a shower.  When he finally went outside hours later, he was shocked to find the fans still patiently waiting for him.  He says he obliged them with autographs and pictures, and adds, "I was like 'Wow,' y'know, it was pretty full-on. That kind of enthusiasm was, I felt, quite out there!"

Also "out there" is the reaction of some people when they spot him in a public place.  "I was having some food at a Japanese restaurant and as I was wandering out, this girl just turned around and the whole restaurant could hear, she screamed, 'Is your name Wally? I knew it!  I knew it!'" Gotye laughs.  "I'm like, 'OK.  See you later,' and walked out.  That was kind of strange!"

So why are people so gaga over Gotye?  A lot of it is the impact that "Somebody That I Used to Know" has had on people.  Many have told him that the song is the story of their last relationship --which isn't a good thing -- but he says he understands why people feel that sort of connection to it.

"It's a song about intense confusion and angst and heartbreak," he tells ABC News Radio.  "But people sort of come to it in this healing, celebratory kind of way...Maybe it seems to help them find something to hold onto, or something to give it meaning, or to put it in perspective.  So, in that regard, I guess it's kind of nice, y'know?"

Copyright 2012 ABC News Radio