Emblem3 is back and better than ever, baby!
The trio — comprised of Drew Chadwick (now 27), Wesley Stromberg (now 26), and Keaton Stromberg (now 23) — are bringing the nostalgia back by reuniting and performing their catchiest hits with a virtual concert with talkshoplive, an online platform that allows customers to experience brands through live streaming and shoppable videos, this Thursday, June 25.
Drew, Wes and Keaton took to their band’s Instagram account earlier this month (June 8) to share the news, as well as confirm new music and a world tour (that is now postponed because of the Coronavirus pandemic). Tickets are only $2 for the virtual event and all proceeds go to MusiCares.
“I’ve known [Tina and Bryan] for a super long time and they did stuff for us back in 2016 and I’ve stayed in touch with them. I went on there to drop a merch line for my solo stuff and they were awesome,” Wes tells Celeb Secrets over Zoom. “They hit us up and told us about their new livestream for a virtual concert and then we partnered with MusiCares and it’s been amazing.”
“MusiCares works with The Grammys and they do a ton of stuff for the local community and have been helping out musicians a lot during COVID; we want to shout them out and help give back to other artists. It feels like a time to be selfless and give back and pretty much everybody is on that page where we need to come together and help each other out,” he continued.
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The guys confirmed that they will be performing their hits and fan favorites, as well as two unreleased songs with more music coming at a later date.
“Nothing is really set in stone, but we kind of outlined it last year and then COVID happened,” Keaton shares. “We have the show this week and then most likely will be dropping one new song shortly after that and probably more to come throughout the rest of the year.”
Celeb Secrets first heard about Emblem3 reuniting when our host Juliet Schroder spoke with Wes backstage at the 2019 iHeartRadio Music Festival in Las Vegas last September.
“I’ve got a lot of top secret stuff going on that I can’t share too much about, but it involves my old band [Emblem3],” Wes said with a huge smile. “A new mix is coming. We’re writing and there’s stuff in the works.”
When asked if the sound will be any different, Stromberg shares that it will stay true to E3’s signature hooks, however, it’s inspired by today’s music.
“It’s kind of like a 90s kid trapped in a 2020 world,” he continued.
Emblem3 first burst onto the music scene when performing their original song “Sunset Blvd” during season two auditions of The X Factor USA 2012. The guys finished fourth in the competition (right behind multi-platinum girl group Fifth Harmony) and signed a record deal with Simon Cowell/SYCO Music and Columbia Records, where they went on to release their debut full-length album Nothing To Lose.
Drew, Wes and Keaton opened up for Selena Gomez in 2013 on her Stars Dance Tour and headlined a massive, sold-out #Bandlife Tour in 2014 with MKTO and Jackson Guthy, and won a Teen Choice Award in 2013 for Choice Music: Breakout Group. The trio continued to make music on and off until 2017, where they took a break to pursue solo projects before ultimately announcing their new chapter earlier this month.
“In 2016 we did a tour and put out some music and that was really interesting because I think we got taken advantage of by some of the people we were working with and I think all of us were just exhausted from it,” Keaton shares. “After that I was really questioning even if I wanted to do music at all and the purpose of why I was doing this.”
“When the guys approached me with doing this again it was a very gradual thing, but there’s a lot of people out there that are super passionate about the band and I think it’s going to be a great thing to make music for them.”
“It was the best growth period ever,” Drew says. “I wanted to truly feel like an expert not just at performing and vocals and writing, but the engineering process and a better understanding on how the music industry works. I’ve come out on the other end more refined, a knowledgable musician and person.”
Learn more about Emblem3’s reuniting and upcoming show by watching our full interview below. You can purchase tickets to their virtual concert here.
