Will Young

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William Robert Young (born 20 January 1979) is a British singer-songwriter and actor from Wokingham, England, who came to fame after winning the inaugural series of the ITV talent competition Pop Idol in 2002, making him the first winner of the worldwide Idol franchise.

"Anything Is Possible" / "Evergreen" was his double-sided debut single and debuted two weeks after the show's end, becoming the nation's fastest-selling debut single.

Young also appeared in fifth place in World Idol with the band The Doors' single "Light My Fire." Young studied politics at the University of Exeter before transferring to London, where he studied musical theatre at Arts Educational School.

In late 2001, Young put his studies on hold to become a contestant on Pop Idol.

He released his debut album From Now On (2002), which went straight to number one after winning the competition the previous year.

Child (2003) returned to great success on Friday, winning gold in the United Kingdom and three top-five singles and three others.

Keep On (2005), Let It Go (2008), and Echoes (2011) were among his fourth albums to reach number one in the United Kingdom, and his most recent collection 85% Proof (2015) became his fourth UK number one album.

His albums have spawned several hits in the United Kingdom, four of which have risen to the top ten positions, four of which have climbed to the top ten positions, four of which have reached the number one position.

Young has also appeared on numerous concert tours and has received numerous awards, including two Brit Awards from 12 nominations and the estimated worldwide sales of over eight million albums.

Young's net worth was estimated at £13.5 million in April 2012. Young has worked in film, on stage, and television, as well as on television.

He was nominated for the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Musical in 2013 for his role in the revival of the musical Cabaret.

He has also participated in philanthropy and published books Anything is Possible (2002), On Camera, Off Duty (2004), and his autobiography Funny Peculiar (2012).

Early life and education

Young was born in Wokingham, Berkshire, on January 20th, 1979, and she and Robin Young, a company director of an engineering company, and Annabel Young (née Griffith), a plant nursery gardener, were the second-oldest child of the company. He was ten minutes older than his twin brother, Rupert, who died in August 2020, having been born six weeks early. Emma, his older sister, also has an older brother.

Young was born into an affluent, middle-class family with strong links to the British government and military services. Digby Aretas Young (d. 1966) served in the Royal Air Force, and his great-great-grandfather, Colonel Sir Aretas William Young, was a member of the British Army and served in Ireland and Egypt before fighting in the Peninsular War. Aretas was stationed in Trinidad and later assumed control of the Trinidadian government before heading to Demerara, where he was named Protector of Slaves. Aretas was appointed the sixth governor of Prince Edward Island in 1831, and King William IV honoured him three years later. Sir Henry Young, the fifth governor of South Australia and later first Governor of Tasmania, was one of Aretas' sons.

Young was born in Hungerford, West Berkshire, and was first educated at Kingsbury Hill School in Marlborough, Wiltshire, before going to Horris Hill Preparatory School, Newbury, between the ages of eight and thirteen. He appeared on stage for the first time at the age of four when he starred a fir tree in a school production but had no line to speak. At Horris Hill, Young, was the head chorister in the school choir, and he learned how to play the piano at the age of nine. Young recalls that students at Horris Hill were taught that they were more privileged than students from state schools, and that if they did not pass common entrance, they would be attending state school and everyone would be extremely dissatisfied." Young and his brother were enrolled in Wellington College, a public boarding school in Crowthorne, Berkshire, at thirteen years old. Despite later admitting to not being the center of attention, the young participated in numerous school productions and gave speeches in assembly.

He became interested in sports during this period, and for a time he aspired to compete in the Olympic Games in the 400 meters, which could be run in under five seconds – the Olympic average is forty-three seconds. He was captain of the school's basketball and athletics teams, as well as a champion of the triple jump, long jump, football, and rugby. He claims he was dissatisfied with playing cricket.

With ten GCSEs, a young left school in Oxford failed but with disappointing A-Level results and had to re-sit his exams. He began working at the Grand Café in Oxford as a waiter and became interested in environmental issues and local activism, founding the Eco Society. For the second time, he received a B in English and Politics in Ancient History. Young began studying politics at the University of Exeter in 1998, choosing the subject because, "I felt I should know more about what was going on in my world." He took women's studies at university and now sees himself as a feminist. His interest in performing arts grew, and he joined Footlights, where he eventually took over the lead role in Curly's Oklahoma production. "I loved it and doing so gave me a great deal of confidence," he later said of the program. In addition, he worked at Sony Records to gain insight into the music industry. Other duties included runway and photographic modeling, gardening, tearing labels off T-shirts in a clothing factory, and being a waiter. He earned a bachelor's degree in 2001 and then moved to Canada. Young knew he wanted to be a professional singer after graduating from university, but he didn't want to be a sponge and without preparation. He began studying at the Arts Educational Schools in Chiswick, London, in September 2001.

Personal life

Young came out as gay in March 2002 after winning Pop Idol and pre-empting a tabloid newspaper from outing him. He also said that he had never conceal it and was comfortable with his sexual orientation. Younger was in a relationship as of 2017.

A house in Dalston, East London, is Young's main home. He also owns a 17th-century cottage in Bodmin Moor, Cornwall, where he is an avid gardener.

It was announced on August 4, 2020, that Young's twin brother, Rupert, had died, aged 41. "Will's relationship with Rupert had been difficult over the years, and they had both discussed the mental health issues that had made it difficult... there are hopes he's changed direction and the family is forever devastated by his death," a spokesperson for the family said.

Young rescued two dogs from America who had been suffering from euthanasia in 2020. Domino, a half Bullmastiff, half Dalmatian, and Diamond, a 3-year-old Pit bull Labrador cross.

Young recalled his time in prep school, claiming he had suffered from PTSD in April 2021. "I've been thinking a lot about prep school and wondering if any of those organizations would be brought to account for the incidents that happened" — children were thrown against radiators, which I was wondering." And here are some things I can't talk about. Teachers "rolling around dormitories," one young teacher said, and another "you wouldn't go for a ride with... Teachers looking at our penises in the shower, in the bath, and the rest of the bathroom." There was such a sense of injustice from experiences and events that I lived and witnessed... I believe I recovered, but not that it did not hurt me."

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Career

Young watched an episode of This Morning in 1999 during his second year at university and learned that the competition was seeking participants for a new boy band. He mailed the producers an audition tape and received a note back from the show announcing him that he had been chosen as one of the seventy-five contenders and that he would have to appear in London for an off-camera audition. The 75 applicants were narrowed down to nine finalists, including Young, who were then invited to appear on the program. Young appeared on the program on May 29, 1999, and performed a brief adaptation of the Jackson 5 song, I'll Be There, a member of BMG and Kate Thornton, a former editor of Smash Hits and TV presenter, on Thursday. Young was chosen into the boy band alongside three other participants one week later. They were Lee Ryan, who joined the boy band Point Break, Declan Bennett, who later joined the boy band Point Break, and Andy Scott-Lee, who contacted them immediately after the show, and Andy Scott-Lee who went on to compete in the second series of Pop Idol. "We've tried to find people with star quality and these guys can sing and dance," Cowell said of the band, but it soon disbanded. Young's next performance was at the Guildhall in London to be a jazz singer, but he turned up on the wrong date.

One of Young's university classmates in the News of the World's forees of Pop Idol, a proposed national televised talent competition to find a solo pop artist in a similar way that popstars had created Hear'Say the previous year. The winner was promised a £1 million recording deal with BMG and representation by 19 Management. He printed off an application form from the website, filled it out, and posted it on June 28. He received a letter on August 7, 2001, which informed him he had been accepted for an audition at ExCeL London. Young performed Aretha Franklin's "Until You Come Back to Me" in front of an assistant producer on the day of the audition, and was invited back to perform in front of an assistant producer two days later. Young performed "Blame It on the Boogie" by the Jacksons in front of a show judge and collected more than 500 million albums for the musicians, including Kylie Minogue, Rick Astley, Bananarama, Steps and Westlife; and Neil "Dr Fox" Fox, a youth judge who appeared on Capital FM and the nationally syndicated Pepsi Chart. He was the last contestant to be voted on by the judges on a day of mostly bad shows, and they weren't in the best spirits after a day of mostly poor results. Young appeared on "Blame It on the Boogie," but the judges thought his overall result was just average. His dance moves had brought him down, but his voice was fine, according to Chapman. Young was wearing baggy and faded jeans, scuffed boots, and his grandfather's jumper, which was stained with egg yolk, according to Fox, who was unimpressed by his stage presence and image – but he conceded that his voice was "nice." Despite their insecurity, they did advance him to the next round. Young performed "All or Nothing" by O-Town, the Drifters' "Up on the Roof" and "Fast Love" by George Michael during the following week. He was forced to sit in the "Maybe" room until the judges decided to send him to the Final 50. He was still not entirely convinced by his appearances.

On October 6, 2001, the first episode of Pop Idol was broadcast on ITV, and Young's audition appeared on the third show on October 20th. The next round of the competition was split into five heats, which aired every Saturday from 3 November 2001 to 8 December 2001. Unlike previous rounds, each show featured ten of the fifty participants performing one song in the Pop Idol studios in front of the judges and an audience, but unlike previous rounds, the viewing public selected who would advance to the next round by interactive voting using their telephones, the Red Button on digital television remote controls, and the Pop Idol website. The two singers with the most votes in each heat advanced to the final rounds of the tournament. Young performed in Heat 4, a broadcast on November 24, and he performed a jazz/lounge version of "Light My Fire" by the Doors. Judges Chapman, Fox, and Waterman were all raving about his performance, but Cowell was unimpressed and called it "fully normal," claiming, "I just assumed it was perfectly normal." I honestly didn't think it was fine enough" in the context of the film. The other judges and contestants all expressed indignation at his remarks, and Young replied, reminding Cowell that while he was entitled to his own decision, it was inaccurate.

Young's pop career has often been described as the moment when his pop career began, standing out to viewers and endearing himself to them. Because Young was elected through to the next round, in first place with 41.55 percent of the vote, it seemed that the voting audience agreed with him and disagreed with Cowell. Cowell said he had previously made a "big mistake" and that Young had treated himself with a dignity that had humbled him during his next appearance on the program on December 15, 2001. This event marked his proudest moment of the entire tournament, according to a young boy.

Young easily advanced to each subsequent round by presenting jazz, lounge, and soul interpretations of songs including "Wives and Lovers," "Ain't No Sunshine," and "Beyon the Sea." He received the most votes in the first four weeks of the Live Finals. He received the second highest percentage of votes in weeks five, six, and seven, losing out on first place to Gareth Gates each week. Young received the most votes in the Semi-final, this time against Gates and Darius Danesh. Gates received 39.3% of the votes and won the other position in the Grand Final, while Danesh received 20.9% of the votes and was barred from the competition.

Young and Gates embarked on separate whistle-stop tours of the United Kingdom in large tour buses adorned with their faces throughout the course of the week in an attempt to canvass for votes. They appeared in magazines, national and local newspapers, and performed for their followers in election-style campaigns. Many celebrities such as Noel Gallagher, Robbie Williams, Posh and Becks, Kylie Minogue, Myleene, Ben Adams, Richard Reid, Boy George, Boy George, Ricky Gervais, and Jenny Frost all expressed their love for Young, while Duncan James, Natasha Hamilton, Richard and Judy, Westlife, Faye Tozer, Robert Wilson, Boy George, Boy George, Ricky Gervais, and Francis Rossi all said their love for Young. Both camps were pitted against each other by the media, who published inaccurate news reports claiming that the two contestants were bitter rivals and their parents were bickering and fighting backstage. Although Young was still favourite to win a small audience a short time in the series, bookmakers gave Gates a better chance on the eve of the Grand Final, compared to Young's ferocious crooning and maturing to housewives and intellectuals. At different times this week, gates were offered odds of 1/5, 2/9, and 2/7, while Young's odds were quoted at 100/30, 11/4, 3/1, and 5/2.

Young and Gates met in the Grand Finals for the title of "Pop Idol" on February 9, 2002, 13.34 million viewers watched them battle each other. Both bands performed "Anything Is Possible" and "Evergreen," which were set to be released as a double A-side single by the winner. Young performed "Light My Fire" for the second time as his favorite performance from the series. The voting lines were open for two and a half hours, winning a new world record. However, several voters expressed dissatisfaction with their names, and ITV, British Telecom, and Telescope, the company in charge of operating the phone system, didn't appear to be informed well enough for the number of calls because the device crashed at one point during the evening. It was also stated that the phone numbers had been manipulated and that they had been complicit in vote manipulation. Despite that, Young was declared the champion of the contest after receiving 4.6 million (53.1%) votes, just over 500,000 more than Gates. As his jaw dropped and he clasped his hands to his chest, the young's surprise at hearing the news was evident to viewers. "I am second, and I have lost by so much," Antont McPartlin] said what the results were, I wondered. "Well, that's not bad," Young said. "I heard I'd won" when I heard it. I felt like I'd been struck. I went backwards. "I couldn't believe it." Pop Idol was "a massive starting point and... the best ever experience for me," Young wrote about it in 2011.

"Everlife" and "Anything Is Possible" were two of Young's debut singles, as well as "Anything Is Possible," a new song written for the show's winner. This was the best-selling debut in UK chart history, selling 403,027 copies on its first week (1,108,659 copies in its first week). It went on to sell more than 1.7 million copies, and on the official list of the top-selling singles in the United Kingdom released later this year, it came in eleventh place. Official Charts Company published the Top 40 Greatest Selling Singles of the 21st Century in 2008, which Young's version of Evergreen topped the charts. "Anything Is Possible"/"Evergreen" was the highest-selling single of the 2000s decade in the United Kingdom, according to Radio 1 on December 31, 2009. This was again revealed on May 7th, 2012, as Radio 1 began a countdown of the top-selling 150 songs of the millennium. An Ivor Novello Award for Bestselling Song of 2002 was given to "Anything Is Possible."

Young's debut album, From Now On, which featured "Evergreen" in the Best Single Category at the BRIT Awards in 2003 and "Anything Is Possible," was released in October 2002. It's "Light My Fire," "The Long and Winding Road" (a duet with Gareth Gates), and "Don't Let Me Down"/"You and I" were two singles released in aid of Children in Need). In February 2003, he received his first BRIT Award as Best Breakthrough Artist. Young performed "Want Again," a song featured in Disney's 101 Dalmatians II: Patch's London Adventure, the 2003 direct-to-video sequel to Walt Disney's 1961 film One Hundred and One Dalmatians.

Child of Young was released in December 2003 as part of the Young's Collection. Young released "Leave Right Now," which was nominated in the Best British Single category of the past 25 years and winner of the Ivor Novello Award for Best British Single Category in 2005) and "Friday's Child" (which was nominated in the Best British Single category at the 2007 BRIT Awards. "Switch It On" and "Who Am I" were two other singles from the album.

He performed at the Prince's Trust 30th Birthday in May 2006, which took place at the Tower of London. Young performed in the United Kingdom from September 12th to October 2, 2006, which included songs from his album Keep On Live and a sample of older songs. Young in his underpants were portrayed in his official merchandise range for the tour, which was highlighted by the press. Young appeared in Nitin Sawhney's concert at the BBC Electric Proms series of concerts in October 2006. He continued his tour by appearing in South Africa for Nelson Mandela's Unite of the Stars charity concerts.

He appeared at the Concert for Diana at the new Wembley Stadium in July 2007. Young was the headline act at the Proms in the Park, which took place in Hyde Park in September 2007 as part of the Last Night of the Proms. Young performed with the Vanguard Big Band at Ronnie Scott's Jazz Club in September 2007. Young participated in the Little Noise Sessions, a series of intimate, acoustic gigs for the learning disability charity, Mencap. Special guests at Islington's Union Chapel in November 2007 welcomed him.

Young's fourth album, Let It Go, was released on September 29, 2008. It reached No.2 in the album charts after being preceded by the single "Changes," which was released on September 15th and peaked at No.10 in the UK Singles Chart. His new single, "Grace" was announced on December 1, 2008, and he debuted at No. 33 on the UK Singles Chart, he attained No. 33. "Let It Go," the album's third single, debuted in the United Kingdom on March 2nd, 2009 and climbed to No.58 on the UK Singles Chart. On July 5, 2009, the fourth and final single, "Tell Me the Worst," was released in the United Kingdom only. It was a club promo and featured some Fred Falke remixes.

Young performed with the Vanguard Big Band at Ronnie Scott's Jazz Club in April 2008. Young is scheduled to appear at many festivals in mid-2008, including Glastonbury, T in the Park in Scotland, and Bestival on the Isle of Wight.

Young attended the Olympic Party, which took place in the Mall, London, on August 24, 2008. He performed his new single Changes and I Can See Clearly Now, which was originally performed by Johnny Nash. Young revealed in a Digi Spy interview that he was working on a Dance-Pop album, which might have been announced in late 2009. He also revealed that he was working with British duo Groove Armada, Superbass' remixed his UK Top ten hit "Changes," as well as Gregg Alexander, who has previously worked with British pop singers Sophie Ellis-Bextor and Geri Halliwell. He also confirmed that he is working on an album containing No.l Coward's songs, but that he is "doesn't know if it will end up." Young began on a sell-out theatre tour in November 2008 and continued through December 2008 with two dates at the Roundhouse in Camden, London.

On Saturday, November 1st 2008, Young was the featured artist on the X-Factor programme on ITV1. He also coached the remaining contestants. Young was on stage at Elton John's Live New Year show in London on December 31, 2008, with that year's X Factor champion Alexandra Burke. In the song "Daniel," he joined Sir Elton. On Saturday, Young was one of the performers on BBC Radio 2's "Live at Blackpool" show.

On November 16, 2009, Young's greatest hits collection was announced. It featured two brand new songs, one of which was "Hopes & Fears." The album was a hit on the charts, with the British Phonographic Industry having named it Platinum. Young performed on the track 'History' in 2010 and collaborated with Groove Armada on their album Black Light. He would be a special guest and play on the Queen's Sandringham Estate, Sandringham, Norfolk, as part of his 2010 outdoor summer tour. Sophie Ellis-Bextor, a pop star, was his supporting act on his 2010 tour.

"Leave Right Now" by the 2003 singer was featured on American Idol as the "departing song." On May 25, 2010, he appeared on the program for the first time. On May 26, Young performed his first American concert at West Hollywood's Ultra Suede nightclub in West Hollywood. In addition, he appeared on the front page of the US magazine Instinct.

Young was advised by someone at the record company to re-record his hit single "Leave Right Now" because he sounded too gay on the track. He didn't know this, but he was forced to re-record the album until the record executives were happy with it.

Young's first top-one album since "Friday's Child" in 2003, in early 2011. The first single is 'Jealousy' and premiered on BBC Radio 2 from 9.00 am to noon on Monday 11 July 2011, according to Young's Facebook page. The single was released on August 21, 2011, one day before the album's debut at No. 5. Two days before Kate Thornton's unveiling of Echoes on ITV1 he was broadcasting all of Young's greatest hits and including a few new tracks from the album, "A Night With...Will Young" was broadcast. Young appeared on the third episode of the Jonathan Ross Show, performing Hearts on Fire from Echoes to promote the album. In autumn 2011, Young undertook a 23-date UK tour, with two nights at Shepherd's Bush Empire in London. Come On was the second single from Echoes in November 2011, with the accompanying video featuring Young performing at a dog show. Young had been confirmed that he would be one of the four judges on singing competition show The Voice UK, but on December 12, 2011 it was reported that Danny O'Donoghue had been brought on to replace Young by Danny O'Donoghue at the last minute. On the last night of his 2011 appearances, he gave the London Palladium a special Christmas concert. He was announced on the following day that summer performances would be held as part of the Forestry Commission's summer concert series, as well as at Cornbury Festival. Losing Myself and I Just Want a Lover were the 2012 singles out there, with trademark unique accompanying videos.

Young had left his record company after being with them since winning Pop Idol over ten years ago and signing with Island Records, which was revealed on November 8, 2012.

Young revealed that he was recording his sixth studio album on Good Morning Britain. He revealed on his Instagram account on March 25, 2015, that the new album's name would be 85% Proof. It was announced on May 25th.

Burt Bacharach's "What the World Needs Now," his final single from 85% Proof, which he unveiled toward the end of 2015 as part of WWF's efforts to raise funds for endangered wildlife populations around the world.

Lexicon, Young's album, was released on June 21. Young also announced that he would be touring the country in October 2019 to promote the album's lead single "All the Songs." In an interview, Young said he had no intention of releasing any more songs as he was focusing on acting and his podcast collection, but the lead single was recorded and the album naturally followed.

Young's eighth studio album Crying on the Bathroom Floor, which was released on August 2021, was released on March 26th, 2021. Young wrote, "I loved the prospect of releasing an album that honors some of the young female artists I so admire in pop." It's so much simpler and accepted to explore new avenues and perspectives in today's world. I wanted to know how it would be like to perform their songs. Daniel, a boy's album, is a hit; a man who is cries on the toilet floor, looking like Elizabeth Taylor. This is not a covers album, well certainly not in the traditional way. I wanted to bring songs from female artists that I admire into a new audience. "I wanted to work with Richard X once more to create a true pop record."

On April 26, 2021, "Daniel," the album's lead single, was released on the same day as the official video. "Elizabeth Taylor," a tribute to the Clare Maguire track that was released on May 28, was the second song to be lifted from the album. On August 20, 2021, the title track (a recap of the 2017 Muna single) was released.

Young unveiled the compilation 20 Years: The Greatest Hits for Release on May 27, 2022, marking 20 years since he won Pop Idol. The album will feature his best hits as well as two new songs. In October 2022, Young also plans to tour in favor of the album.

Young played in the third series of The Masked Singer as "Lionfish" in January 2022. He defeated Firework in a face-off, but was unveiled.

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