Avenue were an English

boy band A boy band is a vocal group consisting of young male singers, usually in their Teenage, teenage years or in their twenties at the time of formation. Generally, boy bands perform love songs marketed towards girls and young women. Many boy bands ...

. They participated in the

third series Third or 3rd may refer to: Numbers * 3rd, the ordinal form of the cardinal number 3 * , a fraction of one third * 1⁄60 of a ''second'', i.e., the third in a series of fractional parts in a sexagesimal number system Places * 3rd Street (dis ...

of ''

The X Factor ''The X Factor'' is a television music competition franchise created by British producer Simon Cowell and his company Syco Entertainment. It originated in the United Kingdom, where it was devised as a replacement for '' Pop Idol'' (2001–200 ...

'' in 2006 and initially made it to the top 12, but were banned from participation for having been specifically formed for the competition and having professional representation. They continued to proclaim their innocence. After leaving ''The X Factor'', they stayed together and had brief success with the single "Last Goodbye", which reached the UK top 50 and topped the

Scottish Singles Chart The Scottish Albums Chart is a chart compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC) which is based on how physical and digital sales towards the UK Albums Chart fare in Scotland. The official singles chart for Scotland, the Scottish Singles Chart, ...

. After the split,

Max George Maximillian Albert George (born 6 September 1988) is an English singer, best known as the lead singer of the boy band The Wanted. George started his career as a footballer, playing for Preston North End F.C., Preston North End. After an injur ...

went on to become a member of the British-Irish boyband

The Wanted The Wanted are a British-Irish boy band formed in 2009, and originally consisted of members Max George, Siva Kaneswaran, Jay McGuiness, Tom Parker, and Nathan Sykes. The group signed a worldwide contract to Universal Music, Island Reco ...

, releasing a number of top 5 hits, two official UK number ones, and three top 10 albums. Jamie Tinkler left to form the indie band Baxter, and his replacement in Avenue, Andy Brown, went on to be the lead singer of Lawson, who have released five top 10 singles.

History

2005–06: Beginnings

Max George was born in 1988 grew up with his family in

Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...

Before music, he had been a football player with Preston North End and on the verge of signing a two-year deal with them. But because of an accident he had dropped his sport dreams to join Avenue and apply for auditions in ''The X Factor''. After the break-up of the band, he joined the successful chart topping boy band

. George was engaged to actress Michelle Keegan, but called off the engagement. Despite the calling off of their engagement, the couple remained together for some time. However, they split up due to rumours spreading about Max cheating.

2006–07: ''The X Factor''

In 2006, Avenue auditioned for the

of ''

'', singing an

a cappella Music performed a cappella ( , , ; ), less commonly spelled acapella in English, is music performed by a singer or a singing group without instrumental accompaniment. The term ''a cappella'' was originally intended to differentiate between Rena ...

version of " Leave Right Now", a song by

Will Young William Robert Young (born 20 January 1979) is an English singer, songwriter and actor. He came to prominence after winning the 2002 inaugural series of the ITV talent contest '' Pop Idol'', making him the first winner of the worldwide '' Ido ...

. They made it through to bootcamp and judges' houses, and were mentored by

Louis Walsh Michael Louis Vincent Walsh (born 5 August 1952) is an Irish music manager and television personality. He has managed Johnny Logan (singer), Johnny Logan, Boyzone, Jedward and Westlife, four of Ireland's most successful pop acts in the 1990s an ...

. Avenue made it to the top 12 contestants heading for the live shows but after Walsh discovered that Avenue were already on a management deal, he disqualified them from the competition and Eton Road went through in their place.

2007–09: After ''The X Factor''

After disqualification from ''The X Factor'', Avenue were signed by Crown Music Management and won an album deal with Island Records. There was also a membership change with Jamie Tinkler leaving and being replaced by Andy Brown, after Tinkler decided to join the indie rock band Baxter. Avenue released their debut single "Last Goodbye", which reached number 50 on the UK Singles Chart and number one on the

. The song features on the compilation albums ''Floorfillers Clubmix'', ''Dance Mania Party'' and ''Pop Party 6''. During 2008, Avenue supported fellow

McFly McFly are a British pop rock band formed in London in 2003. The band took their name from the ''Back to the Future (franchise), Back to the Future'' character Marty McFly. The band consists of Tom Fletcher (lead vocals, guitar, and piano), Da ...

on their Radio:active Tour and a February 2009 tour was planned, but later cancelled. Their follow-up single was going to be "Can You Feel It?", but a commercial release was cancelled and it was distributed free on music service

7digital 7digital Group PLC is a British company that offers access to music, tracking and reporting for clients. London-based, 7digital provides end-to-end music services for the fitness, social media, DSPs, and gaming industries with brands such as B ...

. In 2008, while still a member of Avenue, Max George appeared nude on cover of British magazine '' AXM'' in support of cancer research in AXM's "Naked Issue". The band split up in April 2009.

is now in

and Andy Brown fronts his own band, Lawson.

Discography

Singles

*"Last Goodbye" No. 50 UK *"Can You Feel It"

References

{{Authority control The X Factor (British TV series) contestants Musical groups established in 2006 Musical groups disestablished in 2009 Island Records artists English boy bands