By Camomile Shumba
July 14 2020, 13.45
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Church is not where you expect to meet a DJ who last year scored a top 10 single and landed a Grammy nomination.
But sitting across from me at Hillsong London that’s exactly where I found 24-year-old Ethan Shore, of house music group Goodboys.
Their song A Piece of Your Heart, featuring Italian production trio Meduza, reached number two in the UK and was a hit throughout Europe, before going platinum and being nominated for a Grammy as Best Dance Recording.
Ethan’s parents, Dave and Shelly, are pastors in another church so it has always been a huge part of his life.
“The church is essentially all I have known since I grew up,” he said.
“Keeping church pivotal keeps you at a medium and having a faith keeps you at a medium, when everything is going up and down, it keeps you level.
“It’s hard to imagine life without it.”
It is also difficult to believe that in the space of a few months the Goodboys have gone on to produce two more singles: ‘Lose Control’ and ‘Unfamiliar’.
It was not long ago that the Goodboys started.
“In 2018 we started writing quite a lot in our flat in central London,” said Ethan.
“It was a bit of a joke and we coined the name Goodboys but it was never in writing anywhere it was just kind of what we called the writing group.
“Then Josh met Maduza and then the song happened and he went in as a feature as part of Goodboys on behalf of Goodboys.”
Ethan though has not always been a good boy.
“I was in a pretty different place when I was 15,” he said.
“I was kind of rebellious and I would not have even thought that getting into a position like this was possible, I was just too busy trying to cause havoc.
“I think my dad had a very stern chat with me when I was about 18, maybe 19.
“It was a you need to sort your life out type chat, which I didn’t take too kindly to at the beginning, now I very much appreciate it.”
“My dad and my two older brothers are my heroes, particularly, my oldest brother who was more like a third parent for us, he would always look after us too.
“I had close friends, a guy who was called Matt who was our tour manager, he was always like a close ally and knew my family really well.”
The group started as a three with Ethan’s brother Johanne but now it is just Ethan and his friend Josh Grimmett.
But the lifestyle hasn’t always agreed with Ethan.
“In summer it was very busy and we were taken by surprise by the success of the song.
“We were touring a lot and we were also writing a lot and we were also trying to work with other artists a lot.
“I became very forgetful because I hadn’t had a lot of sleep.
“So, I would often turn up to places without my passport or the USB stick or even clothes sometimes, just my rucksack with nothing in it so, I got a bit of a name for myself.”
Being clumsy seemed to be a theme for the Goodboys.
“A piece of your heart was a last two hours of a whole week worth of writing for us,” he said.
“It was an idea, an of the cuff idea which you hear in the song which I think was being churned out.
“I think they were just going through the motions and they were trying to write more music and there was that kind of moment of genius/ slash accident.
“Josh is in the talk box and he is saying “what sorry just quickly” and that is where the idea came from.”
The Goodboys are writing none stop so, there is more to come from this loveable group.
