JLS are reuniting for a highly-anticipated Beat Again Tour seven years after splitting up.
Aston Merrygold, Marvin Humes, Oritse Williams and JB Gill are making their musical comeback after announcing a huge 15-date tour across the UK in November and December 2020.
Yes, that includes a show at Manchester Arena on Friday, November 27.
While the boys can probably expect to see many of the same fans in attendance, things aren’t exactly the same as when they went their separate ways in 2013.
Therefore, MM are going to take a look at four ways the world is different since JLS were last together on stage.
X Factor
JLS shot to fame after coming second to Alexandra Burke on X Factor in 2008 and went on to score five number one singles with Beat Again (2009), Everybody in Love (2009), The Club is Alive (2010), Love You More (2010) and She Makes Me Wanna (2011).
X Factor was a mainstay on Saturday night television when JLS were last doing the rounds, making the likes of One Direction, Little Mix and James Arthur the superstars they are today. However, the show that made JLS will not return to our screens in 2020after viewing figures plummeted.
Simon Cowell has made the decision to “rest” the series, despite it being contracted for one more run, after last year’s X Factor: Celebrity and X Factor: The Band failed to revive the show.
However, there is plans for the show to return in the future as bosses plan to “reinvigorate” the contest.
Boybands
Boybands nowadays seem to be a thing of the past – but dominated the charts when JLS were last seen in 2013.
Since JLS announced their split seven years ago, One Direction, The Wanted, Union J and The Jonas Brothers all followed in their footsteps ending the boyband era.
Many new boybands have tried and failed to emulate their success, with Rak-Su, 5AM and most recently Unwritten Rule all choosing the same path by auditioning for X Factor.
With The Jonas Brothers reuniting in 2019 and now JLS, could we see the boyband era make a comeback?
Family life
Since disbanding and focusing on solo projects, the four-piece have all gone on to have their own families.
Marvin married The Saturdays singer Rochelle in a lavish ceremony and they now have two little girls together who recently made their debuts on the couple’s social media accounts.
Aston is still with his long-time partner, JLS backing dancer, Sarah Richards. The two share a son and are currently expecting another baby due later this year.
JB swapped the limelight for a quiet life on the farm and shares a boy and a girl with his wife Chloe Gill.
Oritse is the father to a young boy who he shares with his ex, however, in recent years he has preferred to keep him private and offline.
Music
In 2013, X Factor stars were still claiming the number one spot in the charts, that year’s winner Sam Bailey getting the Christmas number one after JLS announced their split.
Since then it’s unusual to see any X Factor hopeful break into the top spots in the charts after viewers lost interest in the show.
Dalton Harris, for instance, only charted at number four with his cover of The Power of Love after winning the show in 2018.
