The Rise of Oritse Williams

Oritse Williams courtesy Sony Music

Young carer
Have you just been turned down or lost in a competition? Well, the story of Oritse Williams, 22, a member of the British pop group Jack the Lad Swing aka JLS may inspire you. It is not often that you see a young man taking care of his family as the breadwinner in the UK with a deep ‘attachment’ or commitment.

Oritse did not have a normal childhood because he became his disabled mum’s carer while he was in secondary school. He is very passionate about Multiple Sclerosis (MS) which is the ailment his mum suffers from. He 'broke down' on air (ITV) because he did not expect to make it as a singer when he got the news that JLS topped the UK singles charts with Beat Again. The tears looked like a form of therapy; from years of a dream deterred.
Awards
JLS won the 2009 MOBO Award for Best UK Newcomer and Best Song for the single Beat Again; Best Unsigned Act at the Urban Music Awards 2007. JLS was the runner-up in the 2008 X Factor competition but surprisingly proved X Factor judges wrong when the band became No.1 in the UK singles charts in July with the track Beat Again.

According to Wikipedia, “JLS are only the second non-winning act of The X Factor to achieve a number-one single, after second series contestant Chico Slimani.” The group of four young men worked extremely hard to make JLS a success but they may need to work more on stagecraft; which is time consuming.
'Failed' in Nigeria
For Oritse, ‘Failure’ does not seem to be in his dictionary. According to online reports, he previously lived with his father in Nigeria. He was involved in community care and youth development. He was also interested in music and recorded a song but was dropped for another artiste that he ‘refused’ to name in a tough competition.

He was denied the opportunity to make it in Nigeria but he did not give up. His dreams were shattered because his motive to become a singer was to raise money and fund MS research; so that sufferers can be cured of the ailment. After his A levels, he moved back to England to live with his mum, became a university student, got a payless job in the music industry in order to gain more experience and formed the group JLS. As they say, every disappointment is a blessing in disguise.
Number one
Today, Oritse is a famous singer, sex symbol and pop idol. He is probably the favourite of the 'boy band' because he shockingly received panties from girls 'with his picture on.' A lot of girls are just crazy about JLS. The band is so hot and had to apologise to fans that were injured in a recent Birmingham concert crowd surge. More than expected thousands of fans were at the Birmingham Christmas Lights 2009 gig which was supposed to also feature other artistes and Reuters says that “at least 60 people” were injured.

According to Contact Music, “Bandmember Marvin Humes says, "We are so, so sad to see people got injured… It was meant to be a great event. We're just gutted that everyone's day was spoilt”. Nevertheless, Everybody In Love is JLS’s second No.1 single this year and the debut album titled JLS is currently No.1 in the UK album charts. Another single, Close To You will be released next month. For JLS, it has been No.1 after No.1 and another No.1…
Dozens injured at Birmingham Christmas lights gig
JLS – JLS APOLOGISE TO FANS
JLS stars reveal celebrity crushes
JLS (band)

JLS Band: Aston Merrygold, (red) Oritse Williams, Marvin Humes and JB Gill