The Wanted’s Jay McGuinness has said he was surprised by the public and media reaction to news that The Wanted will take an indefinite hiatus.
He said that he thought it was unlikely anyone would bat an eyelid when they declared last month that their upcoming tour would be their last for a while.
He told Digital Spy:
“I was really shocked. We thought maybe people would pick it up if it was a slow news day, but it really galvanized people.
“They had strong opinions straight away. We’re used to people reacting and over-reacting to things, but we were still working together at the time, so were sound as a five-piece.”
He added:
“I can’t believe people were bothered. I was kind of flattered in a way. I mean, that’s probably the most egotistical response to have.”
The singer also explained that the group’s high international exposure was a big reason for the decision to part.
“Your workload increases tenfold – or however many countries in the world there are. Because you can only see a country for two days, sometimes you don’t feel like you can nail everywhere – there’s too much ground to cover,” he reasoned.
“I think in The Hobbit they say it’s like being butter spread over too much bread, and it’s like, ‘OK, I can feel that metaphor happening right now.’ I think now it’s time to be smaller bread.”
