By guest blogger Sarah Hamilton
I am lucky enough to have my blog (PopLedge) affiliated with Radio Crème Brulee and upon reviewing the latest Will Young album I immediately felt that Will Young’s new record would be a great addition to Radio Creme Brulee’s playlist. But before I post a review of the new album on here, I have to introduce this massive British pop star to the predominantly American reader base of the Radio Creme Brulee blog. So without further ado here is my introduction to Will Young.
Early Career:
Will Young first appeared on 2002’s TV talent show ‘Pop Idol,’ – an earlier and less-glossy incarnation of the X Factor. Simon Cowell was on the panel and already reveling in his ‘Mr Nasty’ role but the show itself still hadn’t yet reached it’s commercial peak. Will Young really made his mark by standing up to Simon Cowell during the audition process; this and his voice propelled him towards the final of the competition. The final consisted of two male contestants, Will and a younger singer called Gareth Gates – Gareth was perhaps the preferred winner for SyCo (Cowell’s record label). He was a cute kid popular with younger girls who also had an incredible story attached to him. He unfortunately had been afflicted with a pronounced stammer since birth and singing gave him a respite from this. Will was undoubtedly the better singer though and had performed consistently throughout the competition. Luckily the UK voted for the underdog and Will Young was crowned the winner of Pop Idol 2002.
Here is Will’s winning moment:
Will’s first album entitled ‘From Now On’ followed the ‘Pop Idol’ formula – the winners song was chosen for him in advance, it featured covers of the songs he’d sung throughout the auditions and a pretty terrible cover of the Beatles ‘The Long and Winding Road’ with the runner-up Gareth Gates. Luckily for us Will has more of a ‘Kelly Clarkson’ personality and has once his commitments to ‘Pop Idol’ were complete he took control of his career and his musical direction.
Following ‘From Now On’ Will released a further four original albums and a record-company enforced ‘Greatest Hits’ album which Will did not promote. His musical style progressed from pop to soul-pop and currently his sound is described as ‘down tempo electro-pop.’
If you want to catch up on Will’s back-catalog then I would recommend in chronological order:
Light My Fire – in the post Pop Idol era
Leave Right Now – probably his most recognized song and an Ivor Novello Award winner
Who Am I – a beautiful ballad
Switch It On – a highly enjoyable video
Jealousy – Will’s latest video
Jealousy appears on Will’s latest LP with RCA records “Echoes” – a review of which I will post on here VERY soon!
NOTE: For more posts by Sarah Hamilton, please log on to Popledge – your one-stop destination for the latest and greatest in pop music.