Formation
The quartet formed when Jules Knight and Ollie Baines (two school friends) contacted Dominic Tighe (whom Knight had studied with at Central School and had seen sing at the Old Vic) and Stephen Bowman (a student with Ollie at the Guildhall) on Facebook. Baines organised a rehearsal at the Guildhall, and after working out some successful harmonies, they wowed the audience at a house party with their arrangement of "Moon River".
The quartet then contacted Daniel Glatman, former boss of the boy band Blue and orchestrator of the success of the Fron Male Voice Choir, via Facebook. After a successful audition, Glatman agreed to manage the band, and shortly negotiated a £1m, five-album deal with Universal Classics and Jazz, following an intense bidding war.
They chose the name 'Blake' from a mutual appreciation of the poet William Blake, whose peerless thirst for innovation is much admired amongst the group. Also, 2007 was the 250th anniversary of the poet's birth.
Read more about this topic: Blake (band)
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