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Since September

The band were formed at the Vocal and Instruments group auditions

Harry, 22

Coventry-born Harry was in a band for ten years with his friends from the age of eight to 18, playing various gigs including the Isle of Wight Festival.

When his friends left for university the band broke up, and since then Harry has been performing solo, but misses the camaraderie of being in a band.

Q: Who are the influences for your band?

"5 SOS, McFly, Jonas Brothers, Kings Of Leon, The Killers"

Q: How have your group been keeping in touch since lockdown?

“We have FaceTimed or Zoomed every day during lockdown even when we had nothing to say. We got to the point where we were basically hanging out without talking!”

Q: You’re more than bandmates, you’re now also housemates – how has that been so far? Anyone got any bad habits?

“There has been a FIFA hierarchy established in the first few days in which I sit firmly at the bottom. The consequences that come with such a low house ranking consist of, tea/ coffee boy, dish washer and shoe cleaner. Other than these prison like antics, the boys have been a delight to live with.”

Jacob, 20

Nottingham-born student Jacob, uploaded a video of himself in Year 7 singing Make You Feel My Love by Adele onto YouTube because he wanted to be noticed by a girl he fancied, and suddenly his fellow students saw he could sing!

Jacob’s mum is his biggest critic and pretends she’s his manager, meanwhile his Dad - who has always sang around the house - is his biggest inspiration.

Q: Who are the influences for your band?

“5 Seconds of Summer, Jonas Brothers, McFly.”

Q: Have you had any words of encouragement from Little Mix?

“Yeah, they have been so supportive throughout the whole process. They were on the phone the other day and said if we ever need anything, we can go straight to them – you wouldn’t get many celebs saying that.”

Matthew, 21

Irish singer-songwriter Matthew wants to sell out arenas, having had a taste of success with huge Spotify streams of his original material.

He had a sell-out show of his own in Dublin last year – he loves the buzz of hearing people sing his songs.

His mam is his biggest fan, and can frequently be heard saying “Hey Google, play Matthew Nolan!” at home.

Q: How have your group been keeping in touch since lockdown?

“Like everyone we’ve been flat out on the likes of Zoom, WhatsApp etc. to try keep in touch. We bonded a lot through the odd quiz, thinking about songs to do for the live shows, or just a general catch up. I’m glad to say we have definitely built a lovely relationship over lockdown and in some case it was a blessing in disguise as now we’ve bonded 10 times more than we might have been able to if we jumped straight in to lives. We’re ready to go up and kill it after all these months off!”

Q: Have you had any words of encouragement from Little Mix?

“Everything they’ve said to us since the first audition has been encouraging really. Of course they’re a huge band so anything they say is taken on board, but it really hits different knowing they were formed the exact same way they’ve formed us. They’re experts in this field and anytime we have with them I value endlessly! Practice, lots of practice they always emphasise, and we take it and try to implement that every day. Also the girls are very down to earth. They really seem like they are there for us which is so cool as we all look up to them.”

Patrick, 20

Patrick is extremely close to his family in Burnley, citing his Dad as his biggest influence - as he taught him to play guitar as a child. His Mum has never missed a gig and his Nan is also a fan - although the gigs are too loud for her these days!

He is currently studying German and Politics at university, and when he’s not playing his guitar, he can be found playing and coaching hockey.

Patrick has been in a few bands in the past, including his Dad’s cover band – playing various styles of music. He prefers being in a band because he doesn’t like performing solo.

Q: How was it performing in front of Little Mix?

“A bit surreal, it was really strange seeing people in the flesh that you’d only ever seen through a screen/ in pictures. It’s definitely an experience that’ll live with me forever, the girls are amazing though, just really normal people who made me feel so comfortable straight away.”

Q: What’s the biggest crowd you’ve ever performed in front of?

“Biggest stage I’ve played on was the Bingley Music Live Stage – same day and stage as Noel Gallagher.”

Q: Have you had any words of encouragement from Little Mix?

“Yeah, they’ve been really encouraging all the way through lockdown. They’ve been in the same boat as us with the coronavirus and they know how hard it’s been for us. It’s great they’ve been there for us.”

“In terms of the show, they’ve been telling us about their experiences and what helped them and what they think they could have done more of looking back which is a huge help.”