| Jedward | |
|---|---|
Jedward performing at The O2 Arena as part of the X Factor live tour in 2010 |
|
| Background information | |
| Also known as | John & Edward |
| Born | 16 October 1991 Dublin, Ireland |
| Genres | Pop, hip pop |
| Years active | 2009–present |
| Labels | Sony Music (January 2010 – March 2010) Universal Records (March 2010 – present) |
| Website | planetjedward.net |
| Members | |
| John Grimes Edward Grimes |
|
John Paul Henry Daniel Richard Grimes and Edward Peter Anthony Kevin Patrick Grimes (born 16 October 1991 in Dublin, Ireland) are an Irish hip pop duo. They are identical twins and perform under the name Jedward. Widely known for their blond quiffs, the twins first appeared as John & Edward on the sixth series of The X Factor in 2009, generating a phenomenon described as "the Jedward paradox".[1] They finished sixth[2] and are now managed by Louis Walsh, who was their mentor during the show.[3][4]
Jedward's debut single "Under Pressure (Ice Ice Baby)", featuring Vanilla Ice, was released on 1 February 2010. They first performed the song as a duet with Vanilla Ice at the 2010 National Television Awards on 20 January.[5] Released by Sony Music, it reached number two on the UK Singles Chart and number one on the Irish Singles Chart.[6][7] Having only had a one-single deal, Jedward were dropped by Sony on 16 March,[8][9] but signed to Universal Records on a three-album deal the following day.[10] They then released their second single, a cover of Blink-182's "All the Small Things", on 16 July and their debut studio album Planet Jedward on 26 July.[11] Planet Jedward reached number one on the Irish Albums Chart and number 17 on the UK Albums Chart. It was also certified double platinum in Ireland and platinum in Northern Ireland.[12]
On 11 February 2011, Jedward won the Irish national selection for the Eurovision Song Contest 2011 on The Late Late Show with their entry single "Lipstick". They consequently represented Ireland at the contest in Düsseldorf, progressing through the second semi-final on 12 May, and performed at the final on 14 May 2011, achieving eighth place.[13] "Lipstick" was released as the first single released from their second album Victory. Both "Lipstick" and the following single "Bad Behaviour" reached number 1 in the Irish Singles Chart, while Victory also went to number 1 in the Irish Albums Chart.[14]
On 18 August 2011, Jedward participated in Celebrity Big Brother 2011, finishing in third place.[15]
Contents |
Identical twin brothers John and Edward were born in Dublin, to teacher Susannah[16] and were raised in Rathangan with their brother, law student Kevin.[17] John is ten minutes older than Edward.[16] John and Edward's first school was Scoil Bhríde National School in Rathangan. They then attended King's Hospital School for four years, but were constantly bullied for standing out from the rest and their love of pop music,[18] before being moved to the Dublin Institute of Education. The twins competed in school talent shows during their school years and were inspired by Justin Timberlake, Britney Spears and the Backstreet Boys. John and Edward were also members of the Lucan Harriers Athletic Club and have competed in several Irish athletic tournaments.[19] In addition, they briefly worked as games testers for Xbox 360 format holder Microsoft and support football clubs Newcastle United and Celtic.[20]
In 2009, the twins auditioned in Glasgow as a group for the sixth series of The X Factor. They used the name John & Edward and spoke in what judge Simon Cowell described as American accents.[21][22] Cowell cut off their rendition of the Backstreet Boys' "As Long as You Love Me" after one verse and called them "not very good and incredibly annoying." Dannii Minogue, another judge, described them as "Absolutely, the cockiest couple of singers I've ever come across." Cowell voted against sending them through to "bootcamp" stage of the competition, but Minogue and fellow judges Cheryl Cole and Louis Walsh all said "yes", putting them through to bootcamp.[23]
At bootcamp, John & Edward were at the centre of controversy when they sang over the solos of two fellow acts, but they made it through to the second stage of bootcamp while one of the other acts was eliminated. Following this, Cowell said of them, "They're vile little creatures who would step on their mother's head to have a hit."[24] The twins progressed to "judges' houses" with Walsh as their mentor. At judges' houses, John & Edward gave a short performance of "I Want It That Way" in front of Walsh and Ronan Keating. Walsh later told the twins that they reminded him of the early days of Keating's band Boyzone and put them through to the live shows, where they later became known as "Jedward". Many X Factor fans were unhappy about Walsh's decision and all three received negative press in newspapers and on social networking sites.[25][26] However, they survived until week seven of the competition. Walsh told the News of the World, "I don't know how people can hate two nice young kids from Ireland. They've been edited really badly and come across as the people everyone loves to hate... but they're just raw, naïve and innocent and they have the potential to be really good."[27] Cowell threatened to leave the country if John & Edward won The X Factor, but believed they could go on to have a successful music career.[28]
On the first live show on 10 October, John & Edward performed Robbie Williams' 2000 hit "Rock DJ". Cowell said afterwards, "It was a musical nightmare." and that "The truth is... is that Louis has put you through because you're Irish."[29] In week 3, John & Edward sang Ricky Martin's "She Bangs". Afterwards, they were heckled by the studio audience, but Walsh confronted the audience by saying "Boo all you bloody want. I don't like bullying."[30] John & Edward were later criticised for performing what was referred to as "a lewd dance act" in front of female fans at a window of the house where the X Factor contestants resided during the competition, although this was denied by an X Factor spokesman.[31][32][33]
On 8 November, following a rendition of "Ghostbusters",[34] the boys found themselves in the bottom two with Lucie Jones, with both being in the position for the first time.[35] Jones was subsequently sent home after receving the fewest public votes. Jones later claimed that John & Edward were "racked with guilt" by the vote and had since apologised to her.[36] The following week was Queen week, and while John & Edward sang a mashup of Queen's "Under Pressure" and Vanilla Ice's "Ice Ice Baby", Calvin Harris ran onto the stage with a pineapple on his head, poking fun at the twins' quiffs. John & Edward later claimed that they initially thought Harris's stunt was part of the performance.[37] Harris was wrestled out of the building by security men and later apologised for his behaviour, posting on his Twitter page: "At the end of the day, I had a pineapple on my head. Sorry if I caused anyone embarrassment. P.S. I love Jedward. (sic)". The twins were praised by their mentor Walsh, who said that it was their best performance of the competition. He also praised them for ignoring Harris's stage invasion. The twins' performance also won over harshest critic Cowell, who also said that it was their best performance.[38][39][40][41][42][43] Following the incident, John & Edward were accused of having their singing drowned out by backing vocals, in a bid to hide their apparent lack of singing talent. Producers of the show insisted that the twins were not given extra help.[42]
On 21 November, John & Edward sang a mashup of Wham!'s "I'm Your Man" and "Enjoy What You Do". They received constructive comments from all three and ended up in the bottom two again the following night with Over 25s contestant Olly Murs, but this time, they lost out in the judges' vote; with Cowell, Cole and Minogue all opting to save Murs.[2]
Below is a list of John & Edward's performances on The X Factor:
| Week | Song performed | Theme | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Audition | "As Long as You Love Me" | Free choice | Through to bootcamp |
| Bootcamp | "Apologize" | Through to judges houses | |
| "You Are Not Alone" | |||
| Judges' houses | "I Want It That Way" | Through to live shows | |
| "When Will I Be Famous?" | |||
| Week 1 | "Rock DJ" | Musical heroes | Safe |
| Week 2 | "Oops!... I Did It Again" | Divas | Safe |
| Week 3 | "She Bangs" | Big band | Safe |
| Week 4 | "We Will Rock You" | Rock | Safe |
| Week 5 | "Ghostbusters" | Songs from films | Bottom two |
| Final showdown (week 5) | "Rock DJ" | Free choice | Saved by deadlock |
| Week 6 | "Under Pressure"/"Ice Ice Baby" | Queen songs | Safe |
| Week 7 | "I'm Your Man"/"Wham Rap!" | Wham!/George Michael songs | Bottom two |
| Final showdown (week 7) | "No Matter What" | Free choice | Eliminated by judges' vote |
After their departure, Jedward, now officially performing under that name, were signed to Modest! Management, however it was later announced that Louis Walsh had reached "an amicable agreement" with Modest!, which allowed him to take the twins on.[44] From February until April 2010, they performed on the X Factor Live tour, where they were credited with the boost in demand for tickets, that led to an extension in the tour run.[45]
Jedward signed a £90,000 one-single contract with Sony Music in January 2010. It was also announced that they would have their own ITV2 documentary.[46] On 20 January, they performed their debut single "Under Pressure (Ice Ice Baby)" (a mashup of "Under Pressure" and "Ice Ice Baby") at the 2010 National Television Awards with rapper Vanilla Ice, who performed with them in the second half of the song. "Under Pressure (Ice Ice Baby)" was released on 31 January and the CD came out two weeks later. The song debuted at No.1 on the Irish Singles Chart and No.2 on the UK Singles Chart, falling just behind "Fireflies" by Owl City. On 16 March, Jedward's Sony contract was culminated, but the following day, which coincidentally was Saint Patrick's Day, Universal Music Ireland signed them up on a three-album contract.[47]
On 6 April, Jedward began their first solo tour, a 27-date tour of Ireland called the Planet Jedward Tour. The tour was originally supposed to end of 1 May, but due to extremely high demand, a second 43-date tour of concerts in both Ireland and the UK was announced. The final concert took place on 2 December 2010 at the 2010 ChildLine Concert. The Irish Independent has rated the tour positively, saying that "Jedwardmania is right up there with Beatlemania."[48]
On 4 June, Jedward announced that their second single would be a cover of Blink-182's 1999 hit "All the Small Things". They then appeared at T4 on the Beach at Weston-super-Mare on 4 July and performed a medley of "Ghostbusters/Under Pressure (Ice Ice Baby)/All the Small Things". Whilst performing a roundoff during "Ghostbusters", Edward fell and severely injured his left leg. This was later worsened when he fell again whilst doing a hip gesture near the end of "Under Pressure (Ice Ice Baby)".[49] He continued the performance of "All the Small Things" either limping or kneeling down. After the performance, Edward was taken to hospital and Jedward's spokeswoman said at the time of the incident: "We think he's broken his leg and at the very least has badly twisted the ligament in his knee."[50] It was later revealed that Edward had torn ligaments in his left knee and would require surgery on it, but he insisted that he would still be able to perform "even if I have to bring crutches on stage".
On 16 July, Jedward's single "All the Small Things" was released which peaked at No.21 on the Irish Chart and No.6 on the UK Indie Chart. On 26 July, Jedward released their debut album Planet Jedward, which went straight to No.1 on the Irish Albums Chart and No.17 on the UK Albums Chart.[51][52][53][54][55][56] Blink-182 referenced Jedward at the Reading and Leeds Festival in August. Frontman Mark Hoppus announced "We would like very much to thank that band Jedward for allowing us to cover their song." On 30 July, the twins appeared on the Channel 4 reality show Big Brother and performed "All the Small Things" in the garden as part the housemates' task to "ignore the obvious".[57][58][59][60]
In August 2010, Jedward appeared in a ITV2 documentary, entitled Jedward: Let Loose. Produced by RDF Television, it was a three-part series in which they moved out of their home for ten days. Jedward: Let Loose covered the launch of their debut album Planet Jedward, took a look back at their time on The X Factor. It also documented the time Jedward spent designing trainers for a sports label and the production of the music videos for "Under Pressure (Ice Ice Baby)" and "All the Small Things".[61]
On 6 April, Jedward began their second tour, the Bad Behaviour Tour, with a series of dates across Ireland.[62]
Jedward began recording tracks for a second album in early 2011. Jedward announced on 9 June that they had finished recording their second album. "Lipstick" and the second single "Bad Behaviour" have both reached number one in Ireland.[63] On 23 June 2011, Jedward announced the track listing for their new album. The album consists entirely of original tracks, whereas Planet Jedward had featured only covers.
"Bad Behaviour" became the second single from their new album and was released in most territories on 1 July along with an accompanying music video. On 7 July 2011, Jedward announced that the title of their new album would be Victory. The following day, "Bad Behaviour" became the twins' third single to go to number one in the Irish charts.[64] The third single from Victory, entitled "Wow oh Wow", was released in Ireland on 18 November, and in the UK on 20 November 2011.[65]
A new version of Planet Jedward was issued by the German branch of Univeral Music on 15 July, featuring a mix of tracks from the 2010 album and new songs from Victory.[66] This European edition of Planet Jedward was subsequently released in several other countries. Victory went to number one in the Irish album charts on its release and remained there for two weeks. The album sold over 10,000 units in its first week, breaking the previous the record for first week album sales in Ireland which had been set by Lady Gaga.[67]
In August 2011, the twins began the Carnival Tour with eight dates across Ireland.[68] On 17 September Jedward played a concert in Sweden before travelling to Germany to play six dates around the country from 18–25 September[69] A UK tour has been announced for 30 November to 6 December 2011[70] and a further set of concerts in Germany have been scheduled for January 2012.[71]
The twins took part in Celebrity Big Brother 2011 and finished in third place.[72]
Jedward were one of five acts bidding to represent Ireland at the Eurovision Song Contest 2011 in Germany with their entry "Lipstick".[73][74][75] On 11 February 2011, they won the national selection, beating runner-up Nikki Kavanagh by two points.[13] On 12 May, Jedward performed in the second semi-final in Dusseldorf, and were voted through to the final, which took place on 14 May. They finished in 8th position overall, with 119 points which is Ireland's best result since 2000. They also won the Marcel Bezençon Artistic Award as voted for by the 43 event commentators.
After the contest, "Lipstick" was released digitally across Europe, where it charted in many countries such as Belgium, Sweden, Germany and most notably Austria where it peaked at number 3. The song also peaked at number 8 in the South Korea's international artists' chart.[76] "Lipstick" had featured in a Hyundai advertising campaign in South East Asia.[77]
Shortly after Eurovision, on 23 May, Jedward performed in front of an audience of 60,000 people at College Green in Dublin City ahead of a speech by visiting U.S. President Barack Obama.[78]
In an MTV interview, Jedward stated that they were interested in representing Ireland once again in the Eurovision to be held in Baku, Azerbaijan.[79] In November 2011, RTÉ announced that Jedward will participate in Eurosong 2012.[80] Their mentor this time will be Eurovision winner Linda Martin.[80]
In December 2009, Jedward fronted a radio campaign promoting Irish tourism in the UK. Although their voices were not heard, the duo are the butt of a series of comic commercials in which Tourism Ireland apologised for "the haircuts, those PVC suits and the speaking bit in "Oops!... I Did It Again"".[81][82] The twins are in talks to promote the Coco Pops cereal in Ireland, as well as the Coco Pops Fun Raise for Kids Campaign.[83][84]
In 2010, Jedward fronted an advertising campaign for fast food chain Abrakebabra in Ireland.[85] Following this they helped relaunch the Shake 'n' Vac brand for Glade alongside original Shake 'n' Vac actress Jenny Logan in a modern day remake of the popular 1980's advert.[86][87] Jedward have also fronted advertising campaigns for East Midlands Trains,[88] Rowntree's Randoms,[89] Nintendo DS game Dragon Quest IX,[90] and a Travel Supermarket commercial with comedian Omid Djalili;[91] the latter was later banned after advertising watchdogs agreed that the advert was misleading.[92][93] As of August 2011 they have become the faces of an advertising campaign for mobile network 3 Ireland.[94][95]
Since March 2010, Jedward have been series regulars on the comedy panel show Celebrity Juice. Each week they appear in a pre-recorded VT in which they compete against host Keith Lemon in various tasks.[96]
On 14 September 2010, RTÉ aired a one hour documentary entitled "OMG It's Jedward". It followed the twins on the promotional tour for the release of their album Planet Jedward. Two months after the show aired, it was released on DVD, and became the third best-selling Music DVD of the year in Ireland.[97] On 12 May 2011, a 30 minute Eurovision special aired, documenting the twins as they prepared to represent Ireland in the 2011 Eurovision Song Contest.[98]
On 3 June 2011, they made an appearance during Antonio Popeye's act on Britain's Got Talent. They later on appeared in Britain's Got More Talent.
Jedward appeared on the TV3 show Tonight with Vincent Browne in March 2011. Browne, a noted journalist and political commentator, later described the experience of interviewing Jedward as “the most excruciating interview I’ve ever done in my life”.[99]
In December 2011, the duo will also front a new CBBC show, called Jedward's Big Adventure. The twins will act as tour guides around several famous sites across the UK and attempt to lead a tour of genuine visitors.[100] A second show, entitled OMG - Jedward's Dream Factory has also been announced for TRTÉ.[101]
Jedward performed at the Dublin Olympia Theatre's pantomime Cinderella which took place from 22 December until 9 January 2011. They will return to the Olympia Theatre for the Christmas pantomime "Jedward & the Beanstalk" in December 2011.[102]
Jedward have also been signed to Next Models and appeared in fashion magazines such as i-D, Esquire and Grazia.
Jedward have been subjects of commentary on social networking websites and in the media.[103] Many celebrities have also commented on the Jedward phenomenon.[104] Their fans include Peaches Geldof,[105] Pixie Lott, Westlife[106] and Robbie Williams.[107] Taoiseach Brian Cowen also backed the singers,[108] while Leona Lewis has said that she worries about them.[109][110] Others have openly criticised them, with Liam Gallagher stating: "How do you not smack them? I know all about annoying fucking brothers, but nobody comes close to them. What the fuck is happening to British music? And what are those things on their heads?"[111] Queen guitarist Brian May and drummer Roger Taylor have both expressed their opinions about Jedward. On 6 November 2009, Taylor opined on BBC News that "They're not good singers. But you know... eight-year olds love them... you know there's nothing wrong with that – it's entertainment",[112] while in week 6 of the X Factor live shows, when May and Taylor were the finalists' celebrity mentors, May told them "You have something, you really do have something." He also said that "People love them or hate them, that's always a good sign. If they're indifferent then forget it. Some people love you, some people hate you – you got something going for you."
Politicians in both Ireland and the UK have also made their feelings about Jedward heard. The two leading British political parties, Labour and the Conservatives, each released campaign posters parodying the twins.[113][114] Former Prime Minister Gordon Brown came under fire in November 2009 for describing Jedward as "not very good" and later apologised for doing so.[115][116] Following this, Walsh stated "So Gordon Brown and Simon Cowell both have something in common: neither of them know what the public want." Current Prime Minister David Cameron admitted that he enjoyed watching The X Factor and that Jedward were his favourite act. Cameron also bought a t-shirt with their faces on it.[115][117][118][119] The Irish Independent called Jedward "tone-deaf twins", even though the pair were voted more popular than The Beatles in a teenage poll.[120] Followers of Jedward, in popular culture, are often referred to as being in possession of the "JW Gene", publicized by comedian Harry Evans.
Towards the end of 2009, John & Edward were nominated for "Funniest Double Act" at the Loaded Laftas Awards, competing with 6 Music comedy duos Alexander Armstrong and Ben Miller, Vic Reeves and Bob Mortimer, and presenters Adam and Joe,[121] but lost out to Reeves and Mortimer.[122] In 2011, Jedward were nominated again, this time in the category of "Funniest TV Personality"[123]
At the end of 2009, Jedward were placed third in BBC Three's The Most Annoying People of 2009 following "the overexposure they received during their time on The X Factor". In The Most Annoying People of 2010, they were placed second (behind the England football team) for "becoming successful and being everywhere on TV".[124]
The Irish Tourism "Apology for Jedward" commercial won a silver award in the Best Single Promotion category at the Sony Radio Academy Awards.[125] A year later, Jedward were awarded the Marcel Bezençon Artistic Award – as voted by commentators – when they took part in the Eurovision Song Contest 2011 in Germany.[126]
| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions | Certifications | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| IRL [127] |
SWE [128] |
GER [129] |
AUT [130] |
EST [131] |
UK [132] |
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| Planet Jedward |
|
1 | 15 | 51 | 53 | 6 | 17 | |
| Victory |
|
1 | — | — | — | — | 34 | |
| Single | Year | Peak chart positions | Album | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| IRL [134] |
AUT [130] |
BEL (FL) [135] |
BEL (WL) [136] |
GER [129] |
FIN [137] |
NL [138] |
SWE [139] |
SWI [140] |
UK [141] |
|||||
| "Under Pressure (Ice Ice Baby)" |
2010 | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 2 | Planet Jedward | ||
| "All the Small Things" | 21 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 80 | ||||
| "Lipstick" | 2011 | 1 | 3 | 14 | 26 | 12 | 22 | 84 | 11 | 28 | 40 | Victory | ||
| "Bad Behaviour" | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 60 | ||||
| "Wow Oh Wow" | 199 | |||||||||||||
| As featured artist | ||||||||||||||
| "You Are Not Alone" (with The X Factor finalists)[142] |
2009 | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 1 | Single-only release | ||
| "—" denotes single that did not chart or was not released in that country | ||||||||||||||
| Awards and achievements | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Niamh Kavanagh with "It's for You" |
Ireland in the Eurovision Song Contest 2011 |
Succeeded by TBD |
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