Biography
In 2015 the British vocalists Joe and Jake first crossed paths during the fourth season of The Voice UK. Each had entered the competition on his own and neither claimed the title, yet the two quickly formed a friendship that prompted them to launch a joint act. Their recording “You’re Not Alone” was subsequently selected to represent the United Kingdom at the 2016 Eurovision Song Contest.
Joe Woolford was born on October 6, 1994, in Ruthin, Wales, into a household steeped in music and initially performed as a rapper shaped by 2Pac before shifting his focus to singing. At the moment he appeared on The Voice he held a position as a P.E. teaching assistant.
Singer and guitarist Jake Shakeshaft, who arrived on July 25, 1995, in Stoke-on-Trent, England, turned to music only in his teenage years. Before auditioning for The Voice he had gained modest experience as a solo artist; while enrolled in a college music-technology program and employed at a garden center, he abandoned both commitments to devote himself entirely to music after placing in the top five of the NUA Entertainment Next Big Thing contest staged at Liverpool’s historic Cavern Club.
On the program Joe advanced as far as the second week of live broadcasts, whereas Jake was eliminated during the audition round. The pair nevertheless bonded immediately offstage and, once the season ended, resolved to continue as a duo. Their management proposed entering Eurovision: You Decide, the separate televised contest through which British viewers chose the nation’s entry for the 2016 Eurovision Song Contest in Stockholm. Performing a number crafted by a hit-writing team that included Matt Schwartz and the Wanted’s Siva Kaneswaran, they finished first among the six finalists.
The victory earned them a Sony contract, under which the earnest, Brit-pop-influenced stomper “You’re Not Alone” was issued as a single. It reached only number 81 on the U.K. charts, and the track placed second-to-last in the Eurovision final.
Joe Woolford was born on October 6, 1994, in Ruthin, Wales, into a household steeped in music and initially performed as a rapper shaped by 2Pac before shifting his focus to singing. At the moment he appeared on The Voice he held a position as a P.E. teaching assistant.
Singer and guitarist Jake Shakeshaft, who arrived on July 25, 1995, in Stoke-on-Trent, England, turned to music only in his teenage years. Before auditioning for The Voice he had gained modest experience as a solo artist; while enrolled in a college music-technology program and employed at a garden center, he abandoned both commitments to devote himself entirely to music after placing in the top five of the NUA Entertainment Next Big Thing contest staged at Liverpool’s historic Cavern Club.
On the program Joe advanced as far as the second week of live broadcasts, whereas Jake was eliminated during the audition round. The pair nevertheless bonded immediately offstage and, once the season ended, resolved to continue as a duo. Their management proposed entering Eurovision: You Decide, the separate televised contest through which British viewers chose the nation’s entry for the 2016 Eurovision Song Contest in Stockholm. Performing a number crafted by a hit-writing team that included Matt Schwartz and the Wanted’s Siva Kaneswaran, they finished first among the six finalists.
The victory earned them a Sony contract, under which the earnest, Brit-pop-influenced stomper “You’re Not Alone” was issued as a single. It reached only number 81 on the U.K. charts, and the track placed second-to-last in the Eurovision final.
Albums
Singles
