Rachel Dempster
Jack Maynard is embarking on his headline tour, performing at venues around the UK, later this year and recently held a competition to see who would be supporting him on his London tour date – on Friday 26 October at O2 Shepherds Bush Empire. In a video which was released on to YouTube, the overall winner was revealed as Drew Thomas, who will be supporting him at his London show.
The panel was made up of several other influential YouTubers. The remaining acts from the Top Three – J Elle, YLR and Sweet Facility – will also be supporting him on one of his remaining tour dates: Glasgow (Monday 22 October), Manchester (Tuesday 23 October) or Birmingham (Wednesday 24 October).
Here at CelebMix, we had the opportunity to exclusively speak with the four support acts. Keep reading to check out our interview with J Elle and YLR.
You can check out our exclusive interviews with Drew Thomas and Sweet Facility by clicking here.
J Elle
J Elle – a singer from North London – will performing at one of Jack Maynard’s tour dates. She performed her original music at the audition, which was extremely impressive, and showcased her phenomenal vocals. The first track she performed had an upbeat and catchy beat throughout, which impressed the panel. Her second performance was also uptempo and she even had the panel singing and dancing along!
Here at CelebMix, we had the opportunity to exclusively speak with J Elle about her support slot on the ‘Headlines Tour,’ her musical influences and more. Keep reading to check out our interview with her!
Are you looking forward to performing on one of Jack Maynard’s upcoming tour dates?
‘Hell yeah, I’m so stoked that I have the opportunity to join Jack on one of his tour dates. This is the first time I’m supporting a headline act – I’m so ready!’
What can be expected from your set?
‘You can definitely expect my own songs. My latest single ‘Take Me Away’ (that I performed in the first audition on Jack’s channel) comes out on 21 September 2018, so hopefully some people will have heard it by the time of the show, so they can help me sing it on the night. I’ll probably slip a cover in there too, just for everyone to be able to get involved.’
WILD THOUGHTS ???? // @djkhaled ft @rihanna & @brysontiller pic.twitter.com/05W5HiA4Ph
— ? ???? (@KeepItJElle) June 16, 2017
Who are your musical influences?
‘I’ve grown up listening to the likes of Usher, TLC, Brandy, Aaliyah, Christina Aguilera and Destiny’s Child. I’m a real R&B head – that’s where my heart lies. But the UK scene is so strong right now, it’s impossible to not be influenced by it as well. UK song-writers like Kamille and JinJin are just a couple of ones I look up to, being a writer myself.’
What are your plans for after the tour and into 2019?
‘My second EP will be out just before the show, so I want to be doing more performances! The new year will be exciting. I can’t wait to start thinking about my next project. I’m a bit obsessed with being in the studio. It’s where I feel safest and sanest.’
Finally, do you have a message for your supporters?
‘I can’t thank you guys enough for the support you’ve shown over the last few weeks. It’s honestly been a bit overwhelming. I’ve been doing music for a while now and to finally be given the chance to perform for such beautiful and kind people is just a blessing. I cannot wait to see you all. I’m so excited and please if you see me around, come say hi!’
Make sure you stay up-to-date with J Elle on her social media channels:
YLR (Your Last Romance)
London-based trio YLR (Your Last Romance) – comprising of members Jay, Hedley James and Aaron – will also be supporting Jack Maynard on one date of his ‘Headlines Tour.’ For their first song, they performed an acapella version of ‘How Many Drinks?’ and sang ‘In The Middle’ as their second track.
CelebMix had the opportunity to speak with YLR about what can be expected from their set on Jack Maynard’s upcoming tour, how the trio met and what can be expected from them in the coming months. Keep reading to check out our interview with the band!
Is there anything in particular you are most looking forward to about performing as a support act on one of Jack Maynard’s tour dates?
‘We are super excited about EVERYTHING regarding our performance on Jack’s ‘Headlines Tour,’ especially to see the audience/fans reactions to our original material and set list!’
Can you give CelebMix readers a preview of what your set will be like – covers/originals?
‘Our set shall be a mixture of content, predominantly original material. The main thing we can is be prepared to GET LIT! We promise to bring some crazy energy onto the stage, so everyone needs to be ready to dance, sing and party with us!’
How did the three of you meet?
‘We began our journey together in September 2017, coming together through different music projects that were based in London.’
What else have you got for the remainder of the year and next year?
‘MUSIC, MUSIC AND MORE MUSIC! We’ve been recording our debut album since the beginning of February 2018. Scheduled released is to be confirmed, but releases will be coming this year – some incredible content is coming! This is only our beginning.’
Do you have a message for those who have supported you so far in your journey?
‘To all of our fans and supporters who are here for us at this stage of our band journey, we genuinely cannot thank you enough for the amount of love that is continually being given towards our band. We promise to continue working hard to achieve our goals and dreams. We won’t let you down, we send our love and cannot wait to meet each and every one of you!’
Make sure you stay up-to-date with YLR on their social media channels:
For a full list of tour dates and to buy tickets to Jack Maynard’s ‘Headlines Tour,’ click here.