Joel Corry forced to miss his own lavish birthday bash as packed schedule saw him play 150 gigs over summer
WITH mega-hits such as Head & Heart, Lonely, Bed and Sorry, Joel Corry has made a name for himself as a master of the dance floor.
But his runaway success means he has already played more than 150 shows this summer on a schedule which is so intense that he missed his own birthday party.
Despite snubbing his mates for the celebrations, Joel flew Bizarre’s Howell Davies out to the White Isle to party with him at his Ibiza Rocks residency — and showed off his strength during an arm-wrestling match before taking to the stage.
However, he admitted he has not always had so much energy, particularly when it came to his special day.
In an exclusive chat with Bizarre, Joel said: “In June it was my birthday and I flew my friends into Ibiza from England for my birthday week.
“I’d got them a hotel, paid for it all and it was all building up to this big birthday night out. I’d been travelling for three days prior and I had to go back to England next day to do a show.
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“I was on the WhatsApp group to my mates and I was like, ‘I can’t make it’. They were like, ‘What are you on about, Joel? It’s your birthday and you’ve flown us all out’.
“I was like, ‘Boys, I just can’t do it, I need to go to bed’. It was the most expensive birthday night out that I never went to.
BUBBLE BATH
“They sent me a video the next day and they were at some afterparty at eight in the morning and I was like, ‘That’s the best decision I ever made’, because I was going to the airport to get another flight.
“I was in the bubble bath by 11pm and in bed by midnight on my birthday.”
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It’s no wonder Joel is knackered, as he has been zipping back and forth to the US and across Europe for shows all summer, as well as performing at his weekly Ibiza Rocks residency which has just been extended until September 28.
Joel grafted for more than a decade before having his breakthrough with Sorry in 2019, then spending six weeks at No1 the next year with Head & Heart.
He said: “I am really grateful I didn’t get my first hit until I was 30. Going through all the ups and downs and knockbacks on the way has grounded me.
“So now it’s happened, I feel like I was ready for it, and I think it’s what will help me stay grounded — I’m always remembering back to those times.”
He added: “I never had a Plan B. I’d have done anything to make this happen. There were times when things weren’t happening and I was putting a lot of my money and time into things that weren’t working.
“But there was something burning inside me. I was like, ‘Surely this is going to happen if I just keep trying and keep trying’, and it eventually did happen. The summer of 2019, changed my life for ever.”
Good for you, Joel.
THE biggest collaboration of Joel’s career could finally happen this autumn – with Ed Sheeran.
Joel said: “He’s someone I’d love to collaborate with. I got to hang out with him after the MTV EMAs and the Hits Live show in Budapest – I couldn’t even believe he knew who I was.
“We talked about getting in the studio together and it’s about finding the right time.
“After the summer, I’m going to do a few writing camps in the UK and then I’ll be locked in the studio for two weeks at a time, and that’s probably when it will happen, if it does, because I can say, ‘I’m here for two weeks – is there any day you can come?’
“So I’ll be dropping that message, no doubt. Fingers crossed it happens one day.”
On other people he has been working with, Joel added: “I did a good few days with Tom Grennan. It was great and I really clicked with him.
“He’s on my level and when I’m with him I can relax and we can just be boys.
“Big up Tom, we’ll see what happens.”
IT is yet to be revealed where in the UK next year’s Eurovision will happen, but Joel is eager for a ticket after hitting it off with this year’s runner-up Sam Ryder.
Joel said of the British entry: “He’s my boy. We’ve chatted a lot on Instagram and we met up at the Brits and a few other awards shows. I love Sam, he’s the most talented person ever and I love what he did with Eurovision – he brought the country together. He killed it.
“I’m excited for him because he’s finally getting his flowers. I loved his TikToks and then he did one of my songs and since then he’s blown up – he’s one of the nicest people I’ve ever met.
“I’ve never been to Eurovision, but I’ve heard it’s so fun.
“I just want to go to one and watch it. Hopefully I’ll be there next year cheering the country on.”
BECKY’S MAKING HISTORY
JOEL posed with fellow Brit success story Becky Hill here in a still from the video to their latest hit History – and there is more to come from the pair.
The tune is his seventh Top 20 track and after dropping the video today he is hoping to reunite with Becky for another release.
Asked if there will be a sequel, he said: “There definitely will be. I’m going to make that happen because I love working with her.
“But we haven’t got back in the studio yet. Normally when you’re in a session you start an idea then you try something else and eventually an idea sticks and you get another date in.
“But within 20 minutes of this session we were on to History.
“She is a superstar and I’m honoured to work with her. I adore her and we get on so well and she’s become a really good mate.
“For the video, I loved the outfits – it felt like Matrix vibes.
“But when I first put the outfit on I said, ‘I look like I’m about to ride the Tour de France.’”
‘I’VE SWORN OFF LOVE TO KEEP BUILDING CAREER’
HE has the body of a sex god and a lifestyle which millions could only dream of.
But Joel will remain one of music’s most eligible bachelors because he has sworn off dating – and sex – to continue his climb up the charts.
Asked whether his hectic schedule had made him celibate on tour, he admitted: “Pretty much, I’m not going to lie.
“I’m travelling every single day. I generally finish a gig and have to go to the airport, so there’s no time for anything. I’m like a born-again virgin.
“I’m so busy and so focused, and the stakes are higher than ever now.
“I need to keep doing what I’m doing, which is staying 100 per cent focused and working harder than ever.”
On the prospect of dating, he continued: “I don’t have time for it, I really don’t. To do what I’m doing now, you’ve almost got to be a bit selfish.
“I’m sure at some point things will calm down and there will be more space for that in my life but I just wouldn’t be able to give any sort of attention or have time and space in my life for a relationship right now.
“This is not a job for me, it’s a lifestyle.
“I’m loving what I’m doing and to go to the next level I know that I’ve got to stay focused and to keep working hard.
“My mum’s like, ‘Joel, when are you going to get married?’ I’m like, ‘Mum, I don’t think it’s going to be for a while’.
“But Simon Cowell didn’t get married until how old?
“I say to my mum, ‘Look at Simon.’”
I COPPED IT ON LOVE ISLE
AS someone who has been a party animal for the best part of two decades, Joel should have got himself into some sticky situations.
But he reckons he’s been squeaky clean – until he DJ’d on Love Island this summer and was told off by cops.
Joel spilled about how he angered officers in Majorca because he was blasting his music at full volume.
He said: “On the TV show they cut it down to the highlights but I was there for half an hour and the guys were letting loose because it was the first time they’d heard music there.
“They were just going wild and at one point the police turned up and told me to turn the music down because I was playing it too loud.
“I got carried away and they were like, ‘Joel, you’ve got to turn it down, the police are here.’”
HE’S SCOTT FREE
SCOTT MILLS wept on air yesterday as he left Radio 1 after 24 years at the station.
The DJ told listeners on his final 1pm till 3.30pm show: “It’s been more than half my life sitting here talking to you and in that time I have publicly come out, met some of my best friends, had break-ups and found love and lost it again and said hello and goodbye to family.
“Every low that this show has got me through and every high, I have celebrated has been here.”
Scott is taking over Steve Wright’s Radio 2 afternoon slot while co-host Chris Stark is off to join Roman Kemp on Capital Breakfast.
Chris said: “I will look back and think we did it properly.”
FANS KICK UP A STINK OVER ‘SYNC’
THEIR sold-out gigs at Wembley stadium saw hundreds of thousands of fans walking away with huge smiles on their faces.
But not everyone was as impressed as I was with Coldplay’s performances on their Music Of The Spheres tour – with a hardcore branch of super-fans turning on Chris Martin for allegedly miming.
Their anger was made worse by the fact many had forked out almost £100 each for their tickets.
In a furious open letter, one fan said he had watched the band play on August 17 and was left upset by Chris’s decision to apparently mime.
They claimed: “After The Scientist, you promised Coldplay would give the best concert you ever gave on a Wednesday.
“But how could it be, when two songs were lip-synced – Viva La Vida and In My Place.”
The fan also watched the band play a mega-gig in Warsaw, Poland, and said the same thing happened, adding: “Clocks and Hymn For The Weekend were fully lip-synced.”
They added: “I am not a purist, I do not mind pre-recorded backing vocals, even pre-recorded choruses. I fully understand that sometimes it is necessary.
“But four songs fully lip-synced during one concert. Don’t you think it’s a bit unfair?”
A second fan continued in the letter: “Chris doesn’t even put much effort into hiding it, moving away from the mic before he stops singing on the recorded track.”
In my eyes, the lads put on the show of a lifetime and I’d pay double to see it again.
MORE FROM LOLA
LOLA LENNOX has today dropped her new single Want More – which comes from her debut EP.
The singer worked with her pop star mum Annie on the collection of songs, which is due out in October.
She joins Rag’N’Bone Man – real name Rory Graham – who dropped his latest release the same day.
He has created a banging new reggae beat for his single, Circles, with UK rapper Ocean Wisdom.
Speaking about the funky single, Rory said: “We were originally connected through [Brighton-based hip-hop collective] Rum Committee.
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“I’ve watched his career closely and he’s become a proper powerhouse in the game.
“It’s good to finally work on a track together – this has been coming for a long time.”