Casey Johnson has announced his departure from boy band Union J, made up of other members Jaymi Hensley, JJ Hamblett and Josh Cuthbert.
Member Casey Johnson – previously in eight-piece boy band Stereo Kicks, who finished fifth place on ‘The X Factor’ in 2014 – replaced George Shelley, who left the band in early 2016 to focus on his own personal ventures.
In a statement released by Union J, on the band’s Facebook page, it stated that having Casey in the band unfortunately didn’t work out and that Casey was leaving the band ‘in order to pursue other opportunities.’ JJ, Josh and Jaymi went on to wish him well for the future, describing him as a ‘lovely, talented guy and a great friend to the band.’
In the statement, the band announced that they were going to carry on as a trio – just as they had originally started out before George was added to the band.
The statement also confirmed that the band’s single is to be released around August/September, with the album being released early 2018. Addressing the future of the band, the boys said ‘we’re all very excited about the new music that we’ve been working on and there are big plans.’
The Full Statement Released By Union J Can Be Read Here:
Casey took to Twitter to confirm the news, saying that ‘now the time is right to move on’ and thanked the fans for all their loyal support and dedication while he was in the band.
I guess you have already seen that I am leaving Union J -had some great times but now the time is right to move on…
— Casey Cody Johnson (@CaseyCodyJ) April 28, 2017
Thanks to all the fans for all your brilliant support & hope you continue to follow me into a new chapter in my life, love you all ? – Casey
— Casey Cody Johnson (@CaseyCodyJ) April 28, 2017
We are gutted that Casey has left Union J, but make sure you follow him on Twitter to stay up-to-date with what he gets up to as a solo artist.
Make sure you are also staying up-to-date with Union J by following them on Twitter.