Will Homewood, now aged 14, goes to a boarding school in Oxfordshire England called Sibford School.
I had almost forgotten what an important nurturing place a school can be until I discovered my high school in Canada had burned down last year! The stage and auditorium were magic portals for me back then at the same age of 14.
Sibford School, which is an independent, seems to be a similar talent nest. Will’s mom Nikki provided the early impetus for his singing, and now she would be happy if he could produce some “commercially viable material”.
Last year Will landed a “development deal” with a local music company called 14 Records of Leamington Spa, the aim being to produce his first EP.
There are venues where singers, actors and musicians can train. Will, who lives in Horley, sharpens his skills at Unison Rock Academy, a part of 14 Records. Listening to one of his early videos (at age 12) called Buy the Moon (at the African Linx Festival), I was quite frankly not convinced that Will was a huge singing talent.
Will Homewood & Total Impact Live at Cropredy
http://youtu.be/WmxhzaBysW4
But only a year later, there is a notable improvement in Party Proof (original 13.04.2013) in which Will sings and plays guitar together with his current group called The Future (Jamie Dove: Drums & James Rann: Guitar). It’s a metal-rock type tune with lyrics written by Homewood.
Recently, Will has been working in a Music Workshop at Sibford School which he enjoys. It features rock band skills and a vocal workshop by Sean Rumsey.
There is also a Will Homewood who loves to act on stage, as I did back then. Last year he played “The Artful Dodger” in a production of Oliver!.
Of online music, I found various vids and mp3‘s including a somewhat nervous Bieber cover of Beauty and a Beat at the Birmingham Regional Final of Open Mic UK. Will sang at Banbury Castle House on March 7th at a Student Gig Night.
If you play Will Homewood XIII on soundcloud, you will hear a Bruno Mars cover and an original pop-rock song Thinking About You. Will seems to be most present on Facebook though, where he often posts photos and gig info. At Open Mic UK last November, Will sang Keane’s Somewhere Only We Know showing good guitar skills and a steady voice.
Will Homewood – Party Proof Official Video
http://youtu.be/9QqYlr7eCHk
On May 10th, Will Homewood and The Future are scheduled to perform at Bloxfest, and the boys are currently practicing their sets for shows coming up this summer.
Summing up this interesting young performer: I would have to say Will is still in a developing stage. His voice is not spectacular, but energetic and efficient. Perhaps his most obvious attribute is the busy way he seems to be learning to entertain.
After all, many good performers only bloom after years of hard work and repeated attempts to succeed. Not many are prodigy child stars. So let’s see what happens. I will be looking forward to new material this year from Will and his group and wish them good audiences and encouraging compliments.