Young was born in Wokingham, Berkshire, UK, with a non-identical twin, Rupert. He was educated at Horris Hill preparatory school and Wellington College.
He then attended the University of Exeter where he read Politics. At university, some of Young's old haunts included Timepiece, The Old Firehouse, and Harry's, where he used to work. In September 2001, he became a student at the Arts Educational School in Chiswick, London, starting a three-year course in musical theatre with a scholarship.
In February 2002, Young came to national prominence by singing in and winning the ITV singing contest/reality tv show Pop Idol.
Contrary to popular belief, Will was not a surprise winner when beating Gareth Gates in the final show; in fact, he gained the most votes nearly every week throughout the entire finals. A lot of 'casual' viewers of Pop Idol may have been surprised at Will's victory because Gareth had got a lot of publicity (partly) due to his stutter, perhaps creating the illusion that he was more likely to win than Will.
Young's first single was a double A-side featuring Westlife's song "Evergreen" and "Anything Is Possible", a new song written for the winner of the show by Cathy Dennis. This became the fastest-selling debut in UK chart history selling 403,027 copies on its day of release. It went on to sell over 1.4 million copies and in the official list of the all-time best-selling singles in the UK issued later that year, it appeared 12th. Will subsequently made headlines by revealing he was gay. He went on to win the Brits Best Breakthrough Act Award and a plethora of other awards, including most recently Best Artist in the Digital Music Awards October 2004. Early singles of note include "Light My Fire" (done José Feliciano style), "Leave Right Now", and "Friday's Child". The latter is the title of his second album, which was largely self-penned, went five-times platinum, also receiving awards and critical acclaim.
Young received his second Brit Award in February 2005 for his co-written single "Your Game". Following sell out theatre and arena tours in 2004, he toured again at outside festival venues in Summer 2005. On July 6, 2005, he performed at Edinburgh 50,000 - The Final Push, the final concert of Live 8, where he did a duet with James Brown on "Papa's Got A Brand New Bag". His third album, Keep On was released in November 2005, together with the first single from same, "Switch It On".
On 29 September 2008, Young's fourth album, Let It Go, was released, and peaked at #2 in the UK albums chart. It was preceded by the single "Changes" on 15 September, which peaked at #10. His next single "Grace" was released on 1 December 2008, and peaked at #33 on the UK Singles Chart. Will's third single taken from the album will be "Let It Go", was released on 2 March 2009 in the UK, and peaked at #58 on the UK Singles Chart. The fourth and final single was "Tell Me the Worst", and was released on July 5, 2009 only in the UK. It served as a club promo, and featured some Fred Falke remixes.
A greatest hits collection, The Hits, was released on the 16th of November 2009. contains twelve songs from Young's first four studio albums, and two new tracks. The first is new single "Hopes & Fears", and the second is a ballad called "If It Hadn't Been for Love". The album will be released as a standard edition and a deluxe edition, which will include a DVD of all the music videos.
Songfacts reports that Jealousy, the first single from Young’s fifth studio album Echoes is a dance pop track produced by Richard X (Sugababes, Annie). The song will be released on August 21, 2011.
Young has been nominated for Ten BRIT Awards [4 x Best British Male - 4 X Best British single - Best pop Act- Best Breakthrough] . In May 2006, he was voted the UK's favourite artist ever in a poll conducted by commercial radio. In May 2007, he was voted the UK's favourite artist of all time for the second consecutive year.
Young has also broadened his repertoire by launching an acting career, taking a role in the BBC film, Mrs. Henderson Presents, starring Judi Dench and Bob Hoskins, with Will playing the character of 'Bertie'. The film went on release in the UK on 25 November 2005, and received excellent reviews, not least for Young's performance as actor and singer in the movie. It includes a scene in which he appears naked.
Will Young supports the charity Women's Aid, about which he wrote: "I am proud to put my name beside this cause and hope that I may be able to help more people affected by the terrors of domestic violence as well as help to create a wider awareness within our society."
Will also supports Mencap and Positive Action Southwest (PASW) for which he performed at his first solo concert in July 2003 at Killerton Hall, Exeter.
Official Website: http://www.willyoung.co.uk/global/home
Think About It
Will Young Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Taking time, oh, I've got to think about it
I know what's mine is slipping through my hands
I can't stand, no to have to think about it
Maybe I'm aching for something, waiting for something
Don't want to compromise
Sometimes I think I don't need it, no, no
You think I'm afraid but I want to be wanted
Take some time, you gotta think about it
Just a caricature of a lover
Just, just, just think about it when you get in your car
You say I'm afraid and you're making me beg
So what you gonna do, you gotta think about it
I can see what I need, guaranteed, after all this time
So you gotta think about it
Once again asking for permission
I call you up, oh, I need to think about us
You make me feel like a hungry little kid who thinks he's on a mission
But this is real, oh, I need to think about it
Maybe I'm asking for something, waiting for something
Don't want to compromise
Sometimes I think I don't need it, but now I've seen, yes
You think I'm afraid but I want to be wanted
Take some time, you gotta think about it
Just a caricature of a lover
Just, just, just think about it when you get in your car
You say I'm afraid and you're making me beg
So what you gonna do, you gotta think about it
I can see what I need, guaranteed, after all this time
Take time, make up your mind
Always asking why, why, do I think about
What I am, where I come from
You don't realize that it's starting to pull me apart
Take some time, make up your mind
Always asking why, why do I think about
What I am, where I come from
You don't realize that it's starting to pull me apart
You think I'm afraid but I want to be wanted
Take some time
Just a caricature of a lover
Just, just, just think about it when you get in your car
You say I'm afraid and you're making me beg
So what you gonna do, you gotta think about it
I can see what I need, guaranteed, after all this time
Yes, you gotta think about it
Yes, you gotta think about it, yeah
Yes, you gotta think about it
No, you gotta think about it
Yes, you gotta think about it
Yes, you gotta think about it
Yes, you gotta think about it
Yes, you gotta think about it, think about, think about it
Yes, you gotta think about it
Yes, you gotta think about it
Yes, you gotta think about it
No, you gotta think about it
Yes, you gotta think about it
Yes, you gotta think about it
Yes, you gotta think about it
No, you gotta think about it, think about, think about it
The lyrics of Will Young's "Think About It" narrate the internal struggle of the persona towards the achievement of his/her goals. He/she is scared of misspending his/her life in frivolous pursuits and wants to take time to think about the way forward. The persona is aware that time and opportunities are slipping through his/her hands, and the notion of uncertainty is making him/her anxious. They long for something that is worth their time and effort and don't want to compromise on their aspirations. There is a constant conflict between their desire to achieve their goals and their fear of not being able to attain them.
The chorus of the song asserts that the persona is not afraid, but instead, he/she wants to be wanted, suggesting that the fear is just a consequence of a deeper longing for meaning and fulfillment. The bridge of the song talks about the persona's struggle for identity and belonging, and how it's starting to pull him/her apart. The persona concludes that the only way forward is to think things through critically, make up their minds, and take the time they need to figure things out. In summary, the song talks about the struggle to find meaning and direction in life, and the role of introspection in achieving that.
Line by Line Meaning
So afraid of living out my life
The singer is scared of not doing what they really want in their life
Taking time, oh, I've got to think about it
The singer needs time to think about what they really want and need
I know what's mine is slipping through my hands
The singer knows that what they want may not happen if they don't act fast enough
I can't stand, no to have to think about it
The artist is frustrated and overwhelmed with having to constantly think about what they want
Maybe I'm aching for something, waiting for something
The artist is unsure of what they really want and may be searching for it
Don't want to compromise
The singer doesn't want to settle for something that isn't what they really want
Sometimes I think I don't need it, no, no
The singer may question if what they want is really necessary
You think I'm afraid but I want to be wanted
The artist wants to feel desired even though others may think they are doing things out of fear
Take some time, you gotta think about it
The artist advises the listener to also take time to think about what they want
Just a caricature of a lover
The artist may feel like they are a stereotype of what someone in love should be
Just, just, just think about it when you get in your car
The singer wants the listener to use their alone time to really think about what they want
You say I'm afraid and you're making me beg
The listener may be pressuring the artist to make a decision, even though they need more time to think
So what you gonna do, you gotta think about it
The listener also needs to think about what they want to do in this situation
I can see what I need, guaranteed, after all this time
The singer knows what they truly want and are confident in their decision
Once again asking for permission
The singer may feel like they have to constantly ask others for permission to do what they want
I call you up, oh, I need to think about us
The artist wants to think about how their decision will affect their relationship with the person they are addressing
You make me feel like a hungry little kid who thinks he's on a mission
The listener may be making the artist feel small and immature for needing more time to think
But this is real, oh, I need to think about it
The singer knows that their decision will have real consequences and needs to put thought into it
Take time, make up your mind
The singer advises to take time to fully think through their decision and come to a conclusion
Always asking why, why, do I think about
The artist is constantly questioning why they are having to think about what they want
What I am, where I come from
The artist may be considering their background and personal identity when thinking about what they want
You don't realize that it's starting to pull me apart
The artist is struggling with the pressure to make a decision and it is affecting them negatively
Yes, you gotta think about it
The singer emphasizes the importance of taking time to really think about what is wanted
No, you gotta think about it
The artist advises the listener to not rush into making a decision and to really think it through
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: William Robert Young, Stephen James Lipson, Francis Anthony White
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@davidaston5773
Well said@@BroonParker. Simon Cowell spends his time judging people who have more spine and gifts while all he does is SIT getting rich.
These talents had that talent WAY before they even applied to be on Pop Idol et el.
The companies and system that created and broadcasts these shows, IS full of suits who, through their contracts, are manipulating and damaging to real music but look at the afore mentioned contracts and you'll see how the talents are victims.
NONE of them needed these shows.
We, the audience, will always win because the greedy corrupt music industry NEEDS US and the talents more than we need them.
And they have lost a lot of their power and wealth due to their own egotistical dismissible of MP3s and the digital age.
THAT was a fatale mistake.
BUT music WILL always be in demand and that's WHY we win.
Music brings the human race together as one race under one sun.
I don't know about you, but that's a great example to us all.
Long live music. Long live freedom.
David
@figetfun3745
For me,his finest moment. Just a perfect song, beautifully sung.
@michellem8077
such a classic anyone agree?
@susancoxon8452
Love it......
@amriaye7593
I love this...the bridge of the song gets me so emotional
@bellelyons4772
thid is such a good sogng
@bn3121
This song was part of the soundtrack of Britain in the early 2000s. Will is a legend
@stephencalderwood9757
"But if i lose the highs at least i spare the lows"
Fantastic
@user-jg3cf1rd8o
👍
@lucreziawalker7711
Perfect line
@stephencalderwood9757
@@lucreziawalker7711 Absolutely :)