1. Justin David Hawkins was born on 17 March 1975 and is an English musician, Internet personality, singer, and songwriter best known as the founder, lead singer, and lead guitarist of The Darkness, of which his younger brother Dan is a member.
37 Facts About Justin Hawkins
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Justin Hawkins is the lead singer and guitarist for the band Hot Leg, formed in 2008 and now on hiatus.
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Justin Hawkins's brother Dan Hawkins was born on 12 December 1976.
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The brothers grew up in Lowestoft, Suffolk; Justin Hawkins recalled that he and Dan shared a friendly sibling rivalry which prompted both brothers to learn to play the guitar at a young age.
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Justin Hawkins later found interest as a vocalist, citing Freddie Mercury and Bon Scott as his two biggest influences.
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Justin Hawkins enrolled at Huddersfield Technical College in 1997 to study Music Technology.
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Hawkins' brother Dan recalled that Justin had developed a flamboyant stage image as he often performed with numerous local bands wearing spandex or sparkled outfits while utilizing his distinct vocal range to captivate audiences.
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Justin Hawkins later claimed he used his earnings from a popular commercial he wrote and sang for Ikea in 2000 to fund the Darkness' debut album.
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Justin Hawkins has been praised for his musical abilities, particularly his voice which spans five octaves.
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Hawkins and his brother Dan had performed together in numerous bands whilst they were both attending university; though Justin recalls his brother was the original singer of a progressive rock project the two took part in.
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The band appeared in the video for Band Aid 20, with Justin Hawkins singing a number of lines.
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Justin Hawkins claimed he did this so that he could track down whoever sold the digitally-marked advance copy of the album and try to prevent it from happening again.
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Justin Hawkins announced when on stage that their third single to be released from the album was "Girlfriend".
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In 2005, Justin Hawkins set up a solo project, called British Whale.
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The music video depicts Justin Hawkins competing in a game show against World Darts Champion Phil Taylor, and features Sparks's Ron and Russell Mael as the show's hosts.
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In 2006 Justin Hawkins released a second single, available only to download, an unofficial World Cup anthem called "England".
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Justin Hawkins entered Making Your Mind Up with Beverlei Brown singing a song entitled "They Don't Make 'Em Like They Used To" but did not win the competition.
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Justin Hawkins supplied the singing and guitar playing for Kurtz, the lead singer of the "bad guy band" Mantyz in the BBC's animated series Freefonix, which debuted on 4 January 2008.
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Justin Hawkins has worked with British pop-rock band Saving Aimee, producing their debut album.
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Justin Hawkins lent his "truth larynx" to the track "Party All Day " guesting on the 2009 Steel Panther release, Feel the Steel.
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Justin Hawkins recently worked with Adam Lambert on the track "Music Again" off his debut album.
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Justin Hawkins played the role of Josh, a burned out rockstar in the 2010 movie Psychosis.
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Justin Hawkins appeared on the Meat Loaf album Hang Cool Teddy Bear, where he co-wrote two songs.
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In 2012, Justin Hawkins appeared in a Samsung commercial for their Galaxy Note smartphone during Super Bowl XLVI.
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In 2016, Justin Hawkins appeared on the De La Soul album and the Anonymous Nobody.
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In 2020, Justin Hawkins participated in the UK version of The Masked Singer, appearing as Chameleon.
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Justin Hawkins's identity was revealed in the third episode when he was voted out.
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Justin Hawkins then joined Wolfgang Van Halen, Dave Grohl and Josh Freese to perform "Panama" and "Hot for Teacher" by Van Halen.
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Justin Hawkins made an appearance with Brian Johnson to perform "Back in Black".
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Justin Hawkins has received praise from viewers for his comedic delivery and remarkable guitar abilities as he frequently dissects song structures; his videos have amassed nearly 90 million views cumulatively.
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Justin Hawkins has reviewed numerous songs and artists such as Greta Van Fleet, Maroon 5, My Chemical Romance, Disturbed, Metallica, Korn, Limp Bizkit and Slipknot among others.
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Justin Hawkins is a football fan, having supported Manchester United growing up, but he is primarily a supporter of Norwich City.
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Justin Hawkins is seen playing Gibson Les Paul Customs almost exclusively.
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Justin Hawkins is most commonly seen playing an alpine white model which he used with the Darkness, and with Hot Leg.
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Between 2016 and 2021, Justin Hawkins used EVH and Wizard amplifiers.
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From December 2021, Justin Hawkins has used Laney JH3000 heads and GS 4x12 cabinets.