The Wanted

The Wanted
The Wanted 2012.jpg
The Wanted on the Empire State Building Observation Deck in April 2012. From left to right: Nathan Sykes, Tom Parker, Siva Kaneswaran, Max George, Jay McGuiness
Background information
Origin United Kingdom
Genres Dance-pop, pop
Years active 2009–present
Labels Geffen, Island, Mercury (U.S.), A&M
Website thewantedmusic.com
Members Max George
Siva Kaneswaran
Jay McGuiness
Tom Parker
Nathan Sykes

The Wanted are a English-Irish boy band, formed in 2009 who made their debut release in July 2010. The group consists of members Max George, Nathan Sykes, Tom Parker, Jay McGuiness, and Siva Kaneswaran and are currently signed to Island Records and in the US Mercury Records. They are managed by Scooter Braun.[1][2]

Their debut album, The Wanted, was released on 25 October 2010 and peaked at number four on the UK Singles Chart. The album had three UK top 20 singles released from it: their debut single "All Time Low", which hit the UK number one spot,[1] "Heart Vacancy", which reached number two, and "Lose My Mind", which managed a peak of number 19.

The group's second album Battleground saw release on 4 November 2011 and hit number five in the UK and number four in Ireland. The lead single from the album, "Gold Forever", was released in aid of Comic Relief and reached number three in the UK. Their second number-one hit, "Glad You Came", topped the singles chart in the United Kingdom for two weeks, and in Ireland for five weeks.[1][2] Third and fourth singles "Lightning" and "Warzone" hit number two and number 21, respectively, in the UK.

In early 2012, The Wanted began to see success in the United States and Canada, with hit single "Glad You Came" selling 3 million copies in the US and hitting number three on the Billboard Hot 100 and number two on the Canadian Hot 100. Additionally, their follow-up singles "Chasing the Sun" and "I Found You" reached the top spot on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Songs chart.

History

2009–2010: Formation and debut album

The Wanted were formed in 2009 through mass auditions held by Jayne Collins who also put together The Saturdays and Parade.[3][4] The audition process, which saw more than 1,000 people attend, took over nine months and originally just George, Parker and Sykes were involved, with Kaneswaran and McGuiness joining later through the process. The group revealed in their autobiography that after they were informed of the line-up, seven more people were re-auditioned before they were signed to Maximum Artist Management and Geffen Records.

The group were credited with co-writing five of the thirteen tracks on the album. Their debut single, "All Time Low", was co-written by Steve Mac, who also produced it, Wayne Hector and Ed Drewett. It hit number one in the UK and spent 17 weeks in the UK top 40. The second single "Heart Vacancy", again written with Hector, was released on 17 October 2010. It peaked at number two on the UK Singles Chart. The group's third single from the album was "Lose My Mind" which reached number 19 on the UK Singles Chart following a performance on The X Factor. The group's debut album, a self-titled release, was released on 25 October 2010 which peaked at number four in the UK and has since been certified as Platinum in the UK. Between 28 March and 15 April 2010, the group embarked on the fifteen date "Behind Bars" theatre tour which saw them play in twelve UK cities. The tour didn't visit Ireland or Northern Ireland. They were supported by Lawson, Twenty Twenty and Starboy Nathan.

2011: Battleground

In January 2011, the group began work on their second studio album. The album featured writing credits from the group on ten of the fifteen tracks, as well as contributions from Steve Mac, Wayne Hector, Ed Drewett, Diane Warren and Guy Chambers. The album's lead single, "Gold Forever", was released in aid of Comic Relief[5][6] and debuted at number three on the UK Singles Chart. In July 2011, the group released the album's second single, "Glad You Came", which became their second number-one single, staying there for two weeks, and in the top ten of the chart for six weeks. The single also reached number one in Ireland and remained there for five weeks.[2] The song also charted in some European territories, and was very successful in Australia. The third single from the album, "Lightning", was released on 16 October 2011, peaking at number 2 in the UK and number 5 in Ireland. The fourth single, "Warzone", was released on 26 December 2011, with the music video and radio debut coming in early November 2011. On 7 November 2011, the group's second album Battleground, was released. It debuted at number 5 in the UK and number 4 in Ireland. It has been certified platinum in the UK. In addition to shows in the United Kingdom including T4 on the Beach, V Festival and the iTunes Festival, the group supported Canadian singer, Justin Bieber in Brazil on 8 and 9 October 2011 and also supported Britney Spears on her Femme Fatale Tour at the Manchester Evening News Arena on 6 November 2011.

2012: The Wanted: The EP and international breakthrough

Between 15 February and 9 March 2012, the group embarked on "The Code" tour, to promote the release of the album. The 16-date arena tour saw the group play in thirteen cities in England, Wales, Scotland, Ireland and Northern Ireland. Known as #TheCodeTour, each concert featured an interactive element that linked to the group's official Facebook and Twitter pages.

In a bid to break the United States, The Wanted went on a short promotional, radio and club tour of the United States, touring between 17 January – 8 February 2012. The success of the 10-date tour saw the group release their debut single in the states, "Glad You Came". It peaked at number 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 and has sold over 3 million copies there. Their debut American EP, The Wanted: The EP, was released in April 2012, debuting at number seven in the US and number eight in Canada. "Chasing the Sun" was been released as the band's second official single there, peaking at number 50 on the BillboardHot 100 whilst also reaching number one on the Hot Dance Club Songs chart. "Chasing the Sun" was released on 21 May 2012. On 22 May 2012, the band opened and performed at the first Q102's Springle Ball concert. On 14 June 2012 the band performed a concert at New York City's Beacon Theater, which was also broadcasted live on music television station FUSE. The group visited Australia and New Zealand, for the promotion of their extended play in August 2012.[7] Following their promotional tour of Australia, the group headed to the US for a number of promotional concerts.

2012–present: Third studio album and The Wanted Life

The group began working on their third studio album in November 2011, shortly after the release of Battleground, on 4 November. In May 2012, "Chasing the Sun" was released as the album's lead single, and the third single from the band's The Wanted: The EP in the United States. Around this time, the band also premiered a brand new track, "Satellite". In August 2012, the band filmed a music video in Los Angeles, reportedly for their brand new single, "I Found You". However, when the video for "I Found You" was released in October 2012, a different video was revealed. The band later revealed that the video filmed in Los Angeles would be for another single. "I Found You" was released on 5 November 2012 as the album's second single.[8]

The band confirmed in September 2012 that the album would contain a number of collaborations, including tracks with Pitbull, LMFAO,[9]Chris Brown, Rita Ora[10] and Dappy.[11] In November 2012, the band revealed that the album had been pushed back from the original release of 3 December 2012, to February 2013, at their request; they claimed that the reason behind this was to perfect the album, and tweak out a few insecurities involving certain tracks.

In early February 2013, it was announced that The Wanted will star in their own reality series called The Wanted Life which will premiere internationally in Autumn 2013. The show is produced by Ryan Seacrest.[12] In the United States, it is set to premiere on E! on 2 June 2013.[13] In April 2013, the band announced the release of the third single from their third album, titled "Walks Like Rihanna", named after the singer Rihanna.[14] It will be released on 23 June 2013.

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Members

Max George

Maximillian[citation needed] "Max" Alberto George (born 6 September 1988) grew up with his family in Manchester.[15] Before music, he had been a football player with Preston North End and was on the verge of signing a two-year deal with them, whilst he has been a Manchester City supporter since a young age.[16] Previously he was a member of Avenue, a five-piece boy band made up of himself, Jonathan Lloyd, Scott Clarke, Ross Candy and Jamie Tinkler. They entered the third series[17] of The X Factor in 2006 and made it to Louis Walsh's bootcamp, but media reports exposed that Avenue had not strictly adhered to the rules, having been signed by an earlier X Factor music director to a deal. They were banned from participation for having professional representation rather than being specifically formed for the competition.[18][19][20] Avenue admitted they had failed to duly report their engagements and George admitted it was "not The X Factor's fault"[21] in the video showing their disqualification in Walsh's office. With Andrew (Andy) Brown joining as a member of Avenue replacing Jamie Tinkler, the band went on to have some success beyond their X Factor appearances with their debut single "Last Goodbye", reaching number 50 on the UK Singles Chart. They had a follow up release with "Can You Feel It?". Avenue disbanded in April 2009. In 2008, while still a member of Avenue, George appeared naked on cover of British gay magazine AXM's "Naked Issue" in support of cancer research.

George was engaged to actress Michelle Keegan after meeting her at one of The Wanted's concerts,[22] but revealed in April 2012 that the engagement had been broken off.[23] Eventually, the couple admitted in July 2012 that they had split for good.

Nathan Sykes

Nathan James Sykes[15] (born 18 April 1993) is known as the baby of the group. He grew up in Abbeydale, Gloucester with his mother, who was a music teacher, and younger sister.[24] He started singing and performing at the age of six and attended Sylvia Young's theatre school from the age of 11.

Sykes continued to perform as a child singer winning various competitions including "Britney Spears's Karaoke Kriminals" in 2003, where he got to kiss Britney Spears on live TV as part of his prize, and The Cheltenham Competitive Festival of Dramatic Art also in 2003. He appeared on ITV's Ministry of Mayhem in 2004, and won the Door Youth Project's "Undiscovered Youth Talent Contest" held in Derker performing "Mack the Knife".[25] and performed for the "Live and Unsigned".[26] Music Competition in Bristol in 2008.[27]

Sykes attempted to represent UK in the Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2004 held in Lillehammer, Norway. In the British qualifying finals, he sang "Born to Dance"[28] coming 3rd overall, after winner Cory Spedding and runner-up Andrew Merry.

In April 2013, it was announced that after being on voice rest for almost a month, Sykes would have to undergo specialist throat surgery in Los Angeles on his 20th birthday. His exact condition was not reported, however, several tabloids addressed the situation saying Sykes was suffering from a vocal cord hemorrhage.[29] The band announced that they would continue their promotional commitments without Sykes for the time being in order for him to have enough time to properly recover from the surgery. This time off was seen as an 'unforeseen hiatus.' The full statement from the band's rep was released as:

"We can confirm that The Wanted's Nathan Sykes will under go specialist throat surgery on Thursday 18 April in Los Angeles and as such will be taking unforeseen hiatus form The Wanted. The priority for Nathan, his label and management is that he is given time to recover and receive the best treatment possible. The remaining four members of The Wanted will continue fulfilling the bands promotional commitments across the world." [30]

It was confirmed that Sykes's break would be temporary and he would join the rest of the band later in 2013 when his voice healed, however, the length of the healing process was unknown. The band were due to be recording their third album and were in the midst of planning a world tour. [31]

Siva Kaneswaran

Siva Micheal Kaneswaran (born 16 November 1988) grew up in Blanchardstown, Dublin with his Sri Lankan Tamil father, Irish mother, twin brother Kumar, and six other siblings.[32][33] Kaneswaran started modelling at 16 and appeared in various ads and landed a contract with Storm Model Management. Kaneswaran took part in Rock Rivals, televised in eight episodes between 5 March and 23 April 2008.[34] His brother took part as well. Kaneswaran played the role of Carson Coombs and his brother that of Caleb Coombs. The brothers also appeared briefly in one episode of Uncle Max. The episode "Uncle Max Plays Tennis" aired on 11 July 2008. Kaneswaran was spotted through his modelling campaigns and recruited as a result for the band.[35] He is the younger brother of former Dove member and former Popstars: The Rivals contestant Hazel Kaneswaren.

Jay McGuiness

James "Jay" Kevin McGuiness[15][36] (born 24 July 1990) grew up in Newark, Nottinghamshire.[37] He attended All Saints RC School, Mansfield.[38] At the age of 13, McGuiness went to Charlotte Hamilton School of Dance.[39] He has a non-identical twin brother called Tom[40] and three other siblings.

Tom Parker

Thomas "Tom" Anthony Parker (born 4 August 1988) grew up in Bolton.[41] Parker learned to play the guitar at the age of sixteen after trying out his older brother's. He then went on to audition for The X Factor but did not get past the first round. He went to Manchester Metropolitan University and studied Geography, but dropped out in pursuit of a professional singing career.[42] Parker joined a Take That tribute band known as Take That II and toured Northern England, before joining The Wanted in 2009.[43]

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Discography

Main article: The Wanted discography
Studio albums
EPs
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Media

Wanted Wednesday

The group run a weekly online podcast, #WantedWednesday featuring backstage footage, social activities and exclusive performances.

Wanted World

In 2012, the group launched a fan interactive site entitled Wanted World where the fans could get exclusive access to new videos, merchandise, VIP tour tickets, live web chats and more. The group called the website "The Ultimate Fan Experience." In order to gain full platinum membership, fans would have to pay ₤100 per year and for a gold membership only ₤40 per year. [44]

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Tours

The Behind Bars Tour was the band's first theatre tour which sold out within weeks of going on sale. It began on 26 March 2011 and concluded on until 15 April. The tour featured 12 different cities with a total of sixteen dates.

It was announced on Friday 16 December 2011 that the group would embark on their first US tour, with 10 dates to be held over January and February 2012.

The Wanted announced that they would embark on their first arena tour across the UK and Ireland in February and March 2012. Known as The Code Tour and T.W.A.T., each concert features an interactive element that links to their official Facebook and Twitter pages.

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Filmography

Television
Date Television Role Notes
2013 Chasing The Saturdays Themselves 1 Episode: #DeepFriedSats
The Wanted Life Themselves Pre-production
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Awards and nominations

Year Nominee Award Category Result Ref
2010 The Wanted Virgin Media Music Awards Best Newcomer Nominated [49]
Best Group Nominated [50]
4Music Awards Hottest Boys Won [citation needed]
Biggest Breakthrough Won [citation needed]
"All Time Low" Best Video Nominated [51]
2011 Brit Awards Best British Single Nominated [52]
The Wanted Arqiva Awards Best Breakthrough Won [53]
BBC Radio 1 Teen Awards Best British Music Act Won [54]
2012 "Glad You Came" Brit Awards Best British Single Nominated [55]
Teen Choice Awards Choice Summer Song Nominated
The Wanted Choice Music: Breakout Group Nominated
Choice Summer Music Star: Group Nominated
Choice Music Group Nominated
MTV Video Music Awards Best New Artist Nominated
American Music Awards Favorite Band, Duo Or Group Nominated
2013 People's Choice Awards Favorite Breakout Artist Won [56]
Virgin Media Music Awards Best Group Won [57]
Canadian Radio Music Awards International Group Of The Year Nominated
Nickelodeon UK Kids' Choice Awards Favourite UK Band Nominated
Radio Disney Music Awards Best Music Group Nominated
World Music Awards World's Best Group Pending
"Chasing the Sun" World's Best Song Pending
"I Found You" World's Best Video Pending
"Battleground" World's Best Album Pending
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References

  1. ^ a b c "UK Charts > The Wanted". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 2 September 2011. 
  2. ^ a b c "The Wanted Make Fun Of Their Manager Scooter Braun". 
  3. ^ "MTV > The Wanted". MTV UK. Retrieved 2 September 2011. 
  4. ^ "Interview with The Wanted". Voice21. Retrieved 2 September 2011. 
  5. ^ "Music - Interview - The Wanted". Digital Spy. Retrieved 3 September 2011. 
  6. ^ "The Wanted record official song for Comic Relief". BBC.co.uk. Retrieved 3 September 2011. 
  7. ^ "The Wanted coming to New Zealand - Story - Entertainment". 3 News. 
  8. ^ Daw, Robbie (2012-09-07). "The Wanted’s "I Found You": Hear Their New Single". Idolator.com. Retrieved 2012-11-18. 
  9. ^ "The Wanted Tease 'Insane' LMFAO Collabos - Music, Celebrity, Artist News". MTV.com. 2012-08-21. Retrieved 2012-11-18. 
  10. ^ Wilkinson, Sophie (2012-07-16). "The Wanted "We’ll turn down Rita Ora songs if they’re not good enough"". heatworld.com. Retrieved 2012-11-18. 
  11. ^ "EXCLUSIVE: Dappy reveals all the details about new The Wanted collaboration 'Bring It Home'". Sugarscape. 2011-11-30. Retrieved 2012-11-18. 
  12. ^ http://www.realitytvworld.com/news/the-wanted-star-in-the-wanted-life-reality-series-on-e!-1033233.php
  13. ^ Bibel, Sara (16 April 2013). "'The Wanted Life' to Premiere Sunday, June 2 on E!". TV by the Numbers. Zap2it. Retrieved 16 April 2013. 
  14. ^ "The Wanted confirm new single 'Walks Like Rihanna' - listen". Digital Spy. 26 April 2013. Retrieved 26 April 2013. 
  15. ^ a b c "The Wanted hit Scotland and release their debut album". STV. Retrieved 3 September 2011. 
  16. ^ Metro "Louis' X-Factor boys make return". metro.co.uk. Retrieved 3 September 2011. ]
  17. ^ "Avenue's audition including George to The X Factor in 2006". Youtube.com. 10 September 2006. 
  18. ^ Nathan, Sara (9 September 2006). "Band is Avenue all on...". The Sun (London). Retrieved 8 December 2008. 
  19. ^ Samson, Pete (7 October 2006). "Exclusive: Avenue axed from X Factor". Daily Mirror. Retrieved 8 December 2008. 
  20. ^ "Avenue boy band kicked off Simon Cowell's British 'The X Factor' show". Reality TW World. 26 September 2006. Retrieved 8 December 2008. 
  21. ^ "Louis Walsh disqualifying Avenue from The X Factor competition". 
  22. ^ "AXM Naked Issue cover featuring Max George of Avenue". Wowwow.me. 12 September 2010. 
  23. ^ "Sombre Michelle Keegan cuts a glum figure as Max George reveals pair have called off their engagement". Dailymail.co.uk. 11 April 2012. 
  24. ^ "The Wanted: Official Website: The Band: Sykes". Thewantedmusic.com. Retrieved 21 September 2010. 
  25. ^ "''Stroud News and Journal'': Nathan Sykes from The Wanted won Stroud talent show". Stroudnewsandjournal.co.uk. 11 August 2010. 
  26. ^ "''This is Oldham'': As a young boy Nathan Sykes would dream of stardom". Thisisgloucestershire.co.uk. 3 May 2011. 
  27. ^ "''This is Oldham'': Oldham teenager aims for the stars with boy band The Wanted". Thisisgloucestershire.co.uk. 19 July 2010. 
  28. ^ "Clock Face singing "Born to Dance" at the British qualifying round to the Junior Eurovision Song Contest". Youtube.com. 31 May 2012. 
  29. ^ "Vocal fold nodule". Wikipedia. Retrieved 18 April 2013. 
  30. ^ Billboard Staff. "The Wanted's Nathan Sykes to Undergo Vocal Surgery". Billboard. Retrieved 18 April 2013. 
  31. ^ "Nathan Sykes To Undergo Throat Surgery, Forcing Him To Leave The Wanted For 'Foreseeable Future'". Huffingtonpost. Retrieved 18 April 2013. 
  32. ^ Industry Music Group Booking Agent. "The Wanted | Industry Music Group - Live Artist Booking Agency / Agent The X Factor & Britain's Got Talent (BGT)". Industry Music Group. Retrieved 21 September 2010. 
  33. ^ "The Wanted: Official Website: The Band: Siva". Thewantedmusic.com. 16 December 1988. Retrieved 21 September 2010. 
  34. ^ IMDb page on Siva Kaneswaran
  35. ^ Wood, Beci (27 April 2010). "Beci Wood article in ''The Sun'': The Wanted are on the ball". Thesun.co.uk. 
  36. ^ "James McGuiness". thewantedmusic.com. Retrieved 19 June 2011. 
  37. ^ "Notts Most Wanted: Jay McGuiness". 
  38. ^ http://www.newarkadvertiser.co.uk/articles/news/Screaming-girls-greet-singer-who-goes-back-to
  39. ^ "Screensavers - Jay McGuiness". 
  40. ^ Dawson, Kim (7 December 2010). "The Wanted: Jay McGuiness's brother is a wanted man". Daily Star (London: Northern & Shell). Retrieved 7 December 2010. 
  41. ^ "The Wanted have a scream at Manchester show". 
  42. ^ "Alastair Campbell in a spin as charity match turns ugly". The Daily Telegraph (London). 5 June 2011. 
  43. ^ "Who are the members of "take that 2"". 
  44. ^ The Wanted. "Wanted World". Universal Music. Retrieved 18 April 2013. 
  45. ^ "The Wanted Tour Dates Announced". 
  46. ^ "The Wanted Tour Dates Announced". 
  47. ^ "The Wanted Tour-Lightning". YouTube. 28 March 2011. 
  48. ^ "The Wanted Concert Setlist". 
  49. ^ "Virgin Media Music Awards - Best Newcomer". Virgin Media. Retrieved 11 February 2011. 
  50. ^ "Virgin Media Music Awards - Best Group". Virgin Media. Retrieved 11 February 2011. 
  51. ^ "4 Music Video Honours". Industry Music Group. 26 October 2010. Retrieved 11 February 2011. 
  52. ^ "BRIT Awards 2011: Cheryl Cole, Matt Cardle, The Wanted and Katy Perry all nominated". OK! Magazine. Northern and Shell Media. 13 January 2011. Retrieved 11 February 2011. 
  53. ^ "The Arqiva awards 2011". 
  54. ^ "BBC - Teen Awards - 2011 - Winners". 
  55. ^ Millar, Paul (12 January 2012). "Brit Awards 2012 nominations: Florence + the Machine, Coldplay, more". Digital Spy. Hearst Magazines UK. Retrieved 12 January 2012. 
  56. ^ "People's Choice Awards 2013 Nominees - PeoplesChoice.com". CBS. Retrieved 30 January 2013. 
  57. ^ http://www.independent.ie/entertainment/music/the-wanted-win-best-group-award-29067125.html
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External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: The Wanted
The Wanted
The Wanted
Battleground
Third studio album
Extended plays
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Last modified on 19 May 2013, at 21:11