Exactly 20 years on from winning a Brit Award for ‘British Breakthrough Act’ in 2001, beating the likes of Coldplay and Craig David, A1’s* Mark Read steps-up to encourage the next generation of burgeoning artists to ‘never stop’, with his first solo single ‘Stop The Show’ – out now. As the pandemic made ‘breaking through’ even harder for new talent, Mark felt compelled to write a track which shone as an anthem to all struggling performers across stage, screen and music. Mark is using the track as the anthem for Acting For Others (AFO)**, which is made up of 14 individual acting charities, offering financial and emotional support to the entertainment profession which has fallen on tough times. Dame Judy Dench, Jenny Agutter and Hayley Mills are amongst the AFO ambassadors.

Bold, punching and addictively catchy, ‘Stop The Show’ oozes forth with the atmosphere of the greatest shows in town - from the big top, to the West End to those mighty live music stages. As the curtain swishes back on the first chords, ‘Stop The Show’ delivers the foot-stomping excitement of live performances that we’ve all been craving during this pandemic.

‘The pandemic halted us all in our tracks, momentarily, but during the lockdown we’ve been creating entertainment and making music that will wow those performance-hungry audiences,’ comments Mark. ‘Stop The Show’ is my message to Covid…that nothing you throw at us will stop our show. And that extends to those breakthrough artists, bubbling up through the ranks. Don’t give up, you’re the next generation and your country needs you. It’s the kind of anthemic song that lots of people can sing together, raising their voices in the face of any adversities…’they’re never gonna stop the show’ is also intended as a metaphor for life, that we’re all capable of powering on, no matter what.’

And the show also returns for A1 fans as dates for the Boys are Back tour are being rescheduled (having been forced to halt during lockdown), and an A1 headliner tour, ‘The A-Game Tour’ is scheduled for October all around the UK. A1 are also in the middle of recording a new album, so the boys are back in the studio later this year.

Mark Read’s solo single, ‘Stop The Show’, is released out now on The Orchard