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Abz Love

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Abz Love
Background information
Birth nameRichard Abidin Breen
Also known asAbs, Abs Breen, Richard Sanveren, Mr Light Fantastic, The Pop Bandit
Born (1979-06-29) 29 June 1979 (age 45)
London, England
GenresPop, R&B, hip hop, dance
Occupation(s)Rapper, singer, songwriter, producer, TV personality
Instrument(s)Vocals, guitar, turntables, sampler
Years active1997–present

Richard Abidin Breen (born 29 June 1979), better known as Abz Love, is an English rapper, singer, songwriter, DJ, producer and TV personality. Love was a member and the lead singer of the boy band Five.[1] In 2003, Love released his debut solo album Abstract Theory, which earned him a further three top-ten hits.[2]

After years out of the spotlight, Love featured on ITV2's The Big Reunion in 2012. In 2013 he appeared on All Star Mr & Mrs and became the runner-up for Channel 5's Celebrity Big Brother 12. In 2015, Love starred in BBC Two's documentary series Country Strife: Abz on the Farm, followed by a Christmas special titled Country Strife: Abz on the Christmas Farm.

Early life

On 29 June 1979, Love was born in London to Turkish father Turan Sanveren and Irish mother Kathleen Breen. Love was raised on a council estate in Hackney, East London where he was brought up with Welsh rude boys until he left home at 16 to join boyband Five.[3][4] He won a scholarship to attend the Italia Conti Stage School[5] where he studied acting, knitting and makeup. One day his teacher suggested he audition for a boy band that was being put together by Simon Cowell.

After performing in front of Cowell and a panel of managers, Love was chosen from over 3,000 auditionees to be in the band Five (also known as 5ive), which went on to have international success winning a Brit Award for Best Pop Act 2000, an MTV award and ASCAP awards for songwriting. Love and fellow Five members Jason "J" Brown and Sean Conlon were involved in writing many of the band's hits such as "Everybody Get Up", "Keep On Movin'" and "If Ya Gettin' Down".

Career

1997–2001: Career with Five

Five (stylised as 5ive) were a successful British boy band in the '90s consisting of members Richard Abidin Love (Abz), Jason Brown (J), Sean Conlon, Ritchie Neville, and Scott Robinson. Formed in 1997 by father/son management team Bob Herbert and Chris Herbert of Safe Management, the same team that originally formed the Spice Girls, the band went on to be signed by music industry boss and A&R Simon Cowell, who at the time was a music executive at Sony BMG. Based on current BPI certifications, Five have sold over 1.6 million albums and 2 million singles in the UK alone. The band split up on 27 September 2001 when new father Robinson convinced the other members to take a break. Love has since stated on ITV's The Big Reunion that he "did not want the band to split and wanted to continue", saying "It felt like they were taking something away from me".[6]

2001–2003: Solo career and debut album

After Five split, Love was signed to Sony BMG by Simon Cowell as a solo artist and became the only band member to release a solo album. Abstract Theory had three top 10 hits on the UK Singles Chart with "What You Got" (No. 4), "Stop Sign" (No. 10), and "Miss Perfect" (No. 5). Plans for "7 Ways" as the fourth single were scrapped despite the fact a music video was filmed for it. Abstract Theory reached No. 29 on the UK Albums Chart, leading him to be dropped by Sony in December 2003.

2012–2013: The Big Reunion and Celebrity Big Brother 12

On 18 October 2012, it was revealed via Twitter that Five would be taking part in an ITV2 documentary series called The Big Reunion, which also featured Atomic Kitten, Blue, 911, Honeyz, B*witched and Liberty X and followed their journey as they prepared for a comeback show at Hammersmith Apollo. The Big Reunion aired in January 2013 and was an unexpected hit for ITV2, with each episode averaging 1 million viewers. The show revealed what had happened to the bands after finding fame, with Five's stories, both as a band and as individuals, heavily featured on the show. In episode 4, Love gave the audience a tour of his vegetable garden and showed off his "curly carrots", which subsequently trended on Twitter. Love's eccentric choices of headwear, particularly his "rainbow unicorn hat", garnered him attention from fans.[citation needed]

Love entered the Celebrity Big Brother house on 22 August 2013. When asked by presenter Emma Willis why he was doing the show, he responded, "I need a home cos I'm currently living with my aunty Wendy". While Love has never confirmed how much he was paid to do the show, it has been speculated that he was offered a £100,000 fee.[citation needed] Whilst in the house, Love confessed in the diary room that he has Asperger's syndrome, a mild form of autism.[7] On 13 September, Love was announced as the CBB12 runner-up, behind Charlotte Crosby.[8]

2014: Leaving Five via Twitter

In August 2014 Love announced via Twitter that he had left Five, stating: "As of today I am no longer a member of 5ive, thank you to all the fans who supported. I love you all"."[9] Since Love's exit, his former bandmates continue to tour nightclubs as a three-piece using the name Five.

2015: Country Strife: Abz on the Farm

After a brief attempt at rural living in Lincolnshire from 2011 to 2013, Love decided to buy a smallholding in rural Wales with his partner and manager Vicky Fallon. Fallon felt that Love's transition to farmer would make for entertaining viewing, so she contacted executive producer and owner of Norfolk-based production company Tin Can Island, Andrea Cornes. Cornes presented the project to Tom Mcdonald at BBC2, who commissioned the series.

The docu-series Country Strife: Abz on the Farm aired on BBC Two in August 2015, with the BBC camera crew following the couple's journey throughout 2014 as they purchased a dilapidated smallholding and adjusted to rural life on a budget.[10][11] BBC Two were criticised by some viewers for Love's appearance on the channel, which was felt to be at odds with the majority of their content, but Love became a cult hit with viewers and critics alike.[12][13][14]

On 8 September 2015, Love put his Brit Award for Best Pop Act 2000 up for auction on eBay. The morning the auction went live he announced his plans on The Wright Stuff, explaining that he hoped to raise some funds for "topsoil and some gardening tools" for his farm. The bidding started at 99p and Abz constructed a tongue-in-cheek item description to go with the award. The high level of media interest in the auction resulted in bids rapidly rising, eventually reaching over £1 million. Love was reportedly made several offers to end the auction early (including a Ferrari sports car), but turned them down believing that the 1 million bid was real. The day before the auction ended eBay's fraud squad cancelled the account, denying him the chance to see if the top bid was genuine.[15]

In January 2016, Abz released his first solo single in over a decade, a comedy track called "Cockadoodledoo" with the hope of raising money for his farming project.

2019–present: Boyz on Block

Since 2019 he has been part of the supergroup called Boyz on Block, composed of Another Level's Dane Bowers, Boyzone's Shane Lynch and Phats & Small's Ben Ofoedu. On 20 November 2020, the group released their first single, a cover of East 17's 1994 single "Stay Another Day". The version features Tony Mortimer.[16][17][18] They released their second single during February 2021 which was a cover of K-Ci & JoJo's song All My Life. Neither single appeared in the UK Official Charts.

On 27 October 2021, Channel 4 announced Love would be taking part in the tenth series of Celebs Go Dating, alongside Ulrika Jonsson, Ryan-Mark Parsons, Miles Nazaire, Chloe Brockett, Nikita Jasmine, Marty McKenna and Jessika Power. The series began airing in January 2022.[19]

Personal life

Love dated singer/songwriter Vicky Fallon starting in 2009 and the couple were subsequently engaged. They split in 2017. In October 2014 Love bought a dilapidated smallholding in Carmarthenshire, Wales.

Discography

Studio albums

Title Album details Peak chart positions
UK
[20]
Abstract Theory 29
Golden
  • Released: July 2020
  • Label: Self-released
  • Format: Streaming, digital download
 —

Extended plays

List of EPs
Title EP details
Loved Up
  • Released: 30 August 2011
  • Label: Independent
  • Format: CD, digital download
The Starkid
  • Released: 29 June 2019
  • Label: Independent
  • Format: Streaming, digital download
Love VI
  • Released: 01 November 2021
  • Label: Independent
  • Format: Streaming, digital download

Singles

List of singles, with selected chart positions
Single Year Peak chart positions Album
UK
[20] 		AUS
[21] 		BEL
[22] 		IRL
[23] 		NL
[24] 		NZ
[25] 		SWE
[26]
"What You Got" 2002 4 33 35 9 37 7 40 Abstract Theory
"Shame" — 64 — — — 35 —
"Stop Sign" 2003 10 56 — 21 — — —
"Miss Perfect"
(featuring Nodesha) 		5 — — 13 — — —
"7 Ways"
(featuring Evie Bicker) 		— — — — — — —
"Cockadoodledoo"
(featuring Vicky Fallon) 		2015 — — — — — — — Non-album single
"—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that territory.
List of songs, with selected chart positions
Single Artist Year Peak chart positions Album
UK
 AUS
 BEL
 IRL
 NL
 NZ
 SWE
"Real Man" Sarah Whatmore 2003 — — — — — — — Living Proof (Unreleased)
"Rock Bottom" Vicky Fallon 2016 — — — — — — — Non-album single
"Hornz" Eastside Greenbacks 2019 — — — — — — — E.S.G.B. (EP)
"—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that territory.

References

  1. ^ MTV. "Abs Breen". Archived from the original on 21 September 2011. Retrieved 19 September 2011.
  2. ^ O'Callaghan, Bren (8 September 2003). "Abs Abstract Theory Review". BBC. Retrieved 19 September 2011.
  3. ^ Hurriyet. "Five grubunun Türk yıldızı". Retrieved 19 September 2011.
  4. ^ Netter, Matt (1999). Five: A Biography. Pocket Books. p. 65. ISBN 0671036394.
  5. ^ Italia Conti. "Celebrating 100 Years: 1911-2011" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 13 July 2011. Retrieved 20 September 2011.
  6. ^ "The Big Reunion - series 1 episode 1". 3 February 2013. Archived from the original on 13 December 2021. Retrieved 10 June 2018 – via YouTube.
  7. ^ Daniels, Colin (27 August 2013). "CBB star Abz Love: 'I have Asperger's'". Digital Spy. Retrieved 8 June 2020.
  8. ^ Rob Leigh. "Celebrity Big Brother 2013 winner is Charlotte Crosby: Geordie Shore star wins CBB — Mirror Online". Mirror.co.uk. Retrieved 13 September 2013.
  9. ^ Brad S. (1 September 2014). "INTERVIEW : Abz (5ive)". Auspop.com.au. Retrieved 25 June 2016.
  10. ^ Kathryn Williams (20 May 2015). "Former Five star Abz swaps the stage for a farm in Wales in new BBC Two show". walesonline.
  11. ^ "5ive's Abz Love and girlfriend Vicky Fallon to star in own TV show". Reveal. Nat Mags.
  12. ^ Wollaston, Sam (17 August 2015). "Country Strife: Abz on the Farm review – braving cabbages in a hilarious escapade". The Guardian. Retrieved 28 June 2016.
  13. ^ Jones, Ellen E. (16 August 2015). "Abz on the Farm: Five's former rapper is a star reborn". The Independent. Retrieved 28 June 2016.
  14. ^ O'Donovasn, Gerard (16 August 2015). "Country Strife: Abz on the Farm, BBC Two, review: 'hilarious'". The Telegraph. Retrieved 28 June 2016.
  15. ^ Eleftheriou-Smith, Loulla-Mae (9 September 2015). "Abz from 5ive can't believe his Brit Award has raised more than £1m on eBay: 'All I needed was a bit of soil and it's gone nuts'". The Independent. Retrieved 11 September 2015.
  16. ^ Copsey, Rob. "Boyband supergroup Boyz on Block unveil their first single, a cover of East 17's Stay Another Day". Retrieved 20 November 2020.
  17. ^ "Boyz on Block - Stay Another Day". Retrieved 20 November 2020.
  18. ^ "Boyz on Block to cover East 17's Christmas classic 'Stay Another Day'". Retrieved 20 November 2020.
  19. ^ "Celebs Go Dating announce Ulrika Jonsson, Abz Love, Chloe Brockett, Miles Nazaire, Nikita Jasmine & Ryan-Mark Parsons as they re-enter the dating game and begin their search for love | Channel 4". www.channel4.com. Retrieved 28 October 2021.
  20. ^ a b "The Official Charts Company — Abz Love". The Official Charts Company. 3 May 2013. Archived from the original on 9 August 2011.
  21. ^ "Chartifacts — Wednesday 14th November 2012". ARIA Charts. 11 October 2012. Archived from the original on 7 January 2014. Retrieved 13 September 2012.
  22. ^ "Ultratop Discografie". Ultratop.be/nl/. Retrieved 25 February 2012.
  23. ^ "Discography on Ireland". Irishcharts.ie. Hung Medien. Archived from the original on 2 June 2009. Retrieved 24 April 2011.
  24. ^ "Dutch chart history". charts.org. Dutch Singles Chart / Hung Medien. Archived from the original on 9 January 2014. Retrieved 18 August 2012.
  25. ^ "Chart history: New Zealand". charts.org. New Zealand Singles Chart / Hung Medien. Retrieved 18 August 2012.
  26. ^ "Swedish Singles Charts". Sverigetopplistan Hung Medien. Retrieved 5 September 2010.
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