The Mend (group)

{{short description|British boy band}} {{Use dmy dates|date=April 2025}} {{Use British English|date=November 2013}} {{Infobox musical artist | name = The Mend | image = | caption = | alias = {{Plainlist| * ASBRO (2008–2011) * Race the Horizon (2015–2016) }} | origin = Manchester, England | genre = [[Contemporary R&B|R&B]], [[pop music|pop]] | years_active = 2008–2016 | label = [[Sony Music Entertainment|Sony Music]] (2013–2016) | website = {{URL|http://www.themend.uk.com/}} | current_members = | past_members = Kris Evans Jay Kontzle Craig Worsley Dean Kelly Lewis Conroy }}

'''The Mend''' (subsequently known as '''Race the Horizon''') were a British [[boy band]] consisting of members Kris Evans, Dean Kelly, Jay Kontzle and Craig Worsley. They originally auditioned for ''[[The X Factor (British TV series)|The X Factor]]'' in 2011 but failed to get any further than bootcamp, due to having a management deal. They went on to audition for ''[[Britain's Got Talent]]'' in 2012 and reached the semi-finals but, after the public vote was invoked, due to the judges' split decision, they failed to go through to the finals. They were then brought back by the judges for the final (as a wildcard) and finished in seventh place overall. They released their debut single "Where Were You" on 24 March 2013, independently.

== Career == ===2008–11: Formation === In 2008 [[Nigel Martin-Smith]], former manager of boy band [[Take That]], formed a new vocal group after auditioning boys from the North West. The initial line up consisted of Lewis Conroy, Dean Kelly, Jayme Kontzle and Craig Worsley. The band was initially called ASBRO, a play on words related to an [[ASBO]] (Anti Social Behaviour Order), and were described by Danny McFadden in The Guardian as the new [[East 17]].<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/musicblog/2008/jul/16/asbrocuttingedgeorcynical|title=ASBRO: Cutting edge or cynical marketing exercise?|first=Danny|last=McFadden|date=16 July 2008|newspaper=The Guardian}}</ref>

Martin-Smith stated in an interview that, in seeking members for the band, he, "wanted them to be 'streetwise' as well as having bags of personality, a good voice and looking good in front of a camera."<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/whats-on/showbiz/search-for-boyband-member-959828|title=Search for boyband member|date=18 April 2010|newspaper=[[Manchester Evening News]]|accessdate=2020-06-15}}</ref>

In early 2010, Martin-Smith auditioned for a fifth member, which resulted in the addition of Kris Evans to the group. At this point, Lewis Conroy left the line up and the group became a four-piece consisting of Evans, Kelly, Kontzle and Worsley.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/whats-on/showbiz/boyband-asbro-take-on-pop-world-933716|title=Boyband ASBRO take on pop world|first=Dianne|last=Bourne|date=27 April 2010|newspaper=[[Manchester Evening News]]|accessdate=2020-06-15}}</ref>

In 2011, due to the negative associations linked to the name ASBRO, the group became known as The Mend. Of the change, Dean Kelly stated in an interview, 'We loved the name Asbro, but we felt it was holding us back because there was negative feedback about it. We thought 'we need to mend this', hence how we came up with The Mend.' Jayme Kontzle added of the name change, "No record label has seen us as The Mend so it’s like a new start for us. It also stands for The Manchester End."<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/whats-on/film-and-tv/video-boy-band-on-the-mend---857096|title=Video: Boy band on The Mend – and on the up – after name change|first=Dianne|last=Bourne|date=25 March 2011|newspaper=[[Manchester Evening News]]|accessdate=2020-06-15}}</ref>

They stated during their first appearance on ''Britain's Got Talent'' in early 2012 that they had been together for three years.

=== 2012–13: Britain's Got Talent === The Mend auditioned for ''Britain's Got Talent'' in front of judges [[David Walliams]], [[Alesha Dixon]], [[Amanda Holden]] and [[Simon Cowell]]. They performed "[[(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay]]", receiving a standing ovation from the audience. They also received rave reviews from the judges, praising their own 'spin' on the song. They received four "yes" votes and were put through to the next round. A few weeks later they were shown being put through to the live semi-finals.

The Mend performed for a second time during the first semi-final on 6 May 2012, singing a mash-up of "[[(I Just) Died in Your Arms]]" and "[[Written in the Stars (Tinie Tempah song)|Written in the Stars]]", and once again received rave reviews from the judges, with Cowell stating that there is a market for the band, and praising their vocals. The Mend were in the top three for the voting that night, and with dog act [[Ashleigh and Pudsey]] (the eventual winners) being the highest ranked act of the night with the highest number of votes, it was down to the judges to choose between The Mend and [[Only Boys Aloud]] for the next place in the final. Walliams and Holden opted for Only Boys Aloud, while Cowell and Dixon opted for The Mend, leading to a split decision. It was then revealed that Only Boys Aloud had the higher number of votes and were through to the final.

However, Ant & Dec announced at the start of the first semi-final that the judges had a wildcard and would be able to send a previously eliminated act through to Saturday's final. The judges eventually narrowed the choices down to three: The Mend, Four Corners and Twist and Pulse Dance Company and it was announced at the beginning of the final that The Mend would take that wildcard. They then went on to perform "[[Without You (David Guetta song)|Without You]]" and despite getting praise from the judges and a good response from the audience, The Mend finished in seventh place with 2.6% of the vote.

=== 2013–15: Post ''Talent'' === The Mend were one of the support acts for [[Little Mix]] on their 2013 DNA tour. They released their debut single "Where Were You" on 24 March 2013. The single reached number 67 in the [[UK Singles Chart]].<ref name=autogenerated1>{{Cite web|url=https://www.officialcharts.com/charts/singles-chart/|title=Official Singles Chart Top 100 | Official Charts Company|publisher=Official Charts Company|accessdate=2020-06-15}}</ref> In July 2013, they embarked on their first headline tour, performing in Birmingham, London and Manchester.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://glasswerk.co.uk/concerts/article/18486/The+Mend+Head+Out+On+UK+Tour+Dates/|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20131029204105/http://glasswerk.co.uk/concerts/article/18486/The+Mend+Head+Out+On+UK+Tour+Dates/|archive-date = 29 October 2013|title = Featured Tours Archives}}</ref> Their next single will be called "Oxygen" and by September 2013 they were in the studio recording their debut album.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://twitter.com/TheMendUK |title=The Mend (TheMendUK) no Twitter |via=Twitter |access-date=17 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130828102643/https://twitter.com/TheMendUK |archive-date=28 August 2013 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

===2015–2016: Debut album=== It was announced that The Mend were back in the studios recording their next debut album.{{citation needed|date=December 2015}} The Mend renamed themselves as '''Race the Horizon'''.

== Members == ===Kris Evans=== Kris Evans is from [[Middleton, Greater Manchester]]. Evans was a producer, songwriter and rapper with the group.

===Dean Kelly=== Dean Kelly, born 16 November 1989, is from [[Stockport|Stockport, Greater Manchester]]. He credited being part of The Mend as the reason he had stayed out of jail, a fate that befallen one of his older brothers, stating in an interview, "This group has given us a lifeline. Obviously, if I hadn't got into this group I’d have got into trouble. I am not doubting that."<ref>Oxford Mail, On The Mend, Tim Hughes, 7 February 2013 http://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/leisure/musics/music/10213407.On_The_Mend/</ref> Kelly departed the band in 2015.

===Jayme Kontzle=== Jayme "Jay" Kontzle was raised by his grandparents in [[Crewe|Crewe, Cheshire]], after his mother was killed in a car crash when he was aged four. Kontzle was a songwriter, producer and singer with the group.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.unrealitytv.co.uk/reality-tv/britains-got-talent-2012-the-mend-star-jayme-kontzle-says-he-can-feel-his-mums-presence-when-he-sings/|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120717220336/http://www.unrealitytv.co.uk/reality-tv/britains-got-talent-2012-the-mend-star-jayme-kontzle-says-he-can-feel-his-mums-presence-when-he-sings/|archive-date = 17 July 2012|title = Unrealitytv.co.uk}}</ref>

Following a year as a teaching assistant, Jay was cast in the role of [[Billy Fletcher]], in the [[ITV (TV network)|ITV]] soap ''[[Emmerdale]]'', making his first appearance on screen in December 2018.

===Craig Worsley=== Craig Worsley is from [[Preston, Lancashire]]. Worsley was the lead singer of The Mend and a former choirboy. [[Simon Cowell]] stated that Worsley had "a great recording voice.".

== Discography == {|class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;" border="1" !rowspan="2"| Year !rowspan="2"| Single !colspan="3"| Peak chart positions |- style=font-size:smaller !width=35|[[UK Singles Chart|UK]] <ref name=autogenerated1 /> !width=35|UK Indie <ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.officialcharts.com/charts/independent-singles-chart/|title=Official Independent Singles Chart Top 50 | Official Charts Company|publisher=Official Charts Company|accessdate=2020-06-15}}</ref> !width=35| [[Scottish Singles and Albums Charts|SCO]] <ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.officialcharts.com/charts/scottish-singles-chart/20101017/41/|title=Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100 | Official Charts Company|publisher=Official Charts Company|accessdate=2020-06-15}}</ref> |- | 2013 ! scope="row"| "Where Were You" | 67 || 10 || — |}

== References == {{reflist}} {{Britain's Got Talent}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mend}} [[Category:Britain's Got Talent contestants]] [[Category:English boy bands]] [[Category:Musical groups established in 2009]]