Have you heard of SyngStreet yet? Well if not, you might soon, if Linda Martin has any say in the matter!
Martin, close friend and sometime colleague of Louis Walsh, has put her pop group of 3 boys and 2 girls through the UK’s XFactor, where Louis just happens to be a judge.
She assembled the group with the help of former Jedward choreographer, Stuart O’Connor. You might remember him from a couple of years back as the mentor of Irish Eurovision entry, Ryan Dolan.
Another familiar face is Alan McGrath, one of SyngStreet’s boys, who played a mean drum on stage with Dolan in 2013. He too has Jedward connections, having been one of their dancers for a number of years.
Linda and Stuart came up with the idea for the new group when attending the auditions for Louis’ boy band, HomeTown. She told Evoke.ie that she saw lots of “superstars” turned away because Louis wanted a “serious boy band”. Walsh told her she should look out for an Irish “Steps”:
‘I never thought of becoming a manager until Louis said it to me that day,’
Speaking to The Irish Mirror Martin said:
“Last year, Louis was holding auditions for his new band and we were involved in those as they went through the call backs.
“And there was some astounding talent in so many forms. And Louis has made his decision – as we came to the end of the decision, and Louis was whittling down the numbers, he was looking for voices.
“He was looking for particular types of voices, and at one point he turned around to me and said, ‘Put a boy-girl band together.’
“I said, ‘Well if it’s such a good idea why don’t you do it?’ And he said, ‘I’m not working with girls – they’re too high maintenance. But you do it’.”
O’Connor told the Irish Daily Star:
“We saw all these really talented young guys and we’ve heard that there’s a gap in the market for another Steps-style band. So we’ve decided to go for it,”
With Louis Walsh fully supporting them in their venture right from the start, it’s no surprise the 5-piece flew through their Edinburgh audition last month straight into Boot Camp.
Will SyngStreet have the staying power of their compatriots, Jedward? Only time will tell. Just yesterday The Irish Sun revealed that John and Edward are making waves in China, where their self-penned and produced song, Free Spirit, is being shown on several music video channels, including MTV. It seems the Dublin duo have come a very long way since parting ways with Walsh nearly two years ago, including a tour of Australia late last year.
