Lead singer quits Midnight Youth

The lead singer of New Zealand rock band Midnight Youth has quit the band.

Jeremy Redmore, formerly of Tauranga, announced on his twitter page he had left the five-piece band.

At 10.07pm last night, Redmore tweeted: "After some of the hardest days of my life so far, I am sorry to announce that I've quit my band."

Redmore apologised to the band's fans "that wanted more" and in his online blog, he said he had decided to embark on a solo career.

"It's a long time - in a period of a person's life where personal realisation and change is rapid - and what I've recently discovered about myself is that, to be happy, productive and to grow more as a person, I need to make a fresh start," he said.

"In order to do this, there is no doubt in my mind that I need to leave my band."

Redmore thanked his bandmates and their fans for supporting them over the past six years.

"Midnight Youth has, undoubtedly, given me some of the best years I will have in my life and I am well aware that I may never have the same kind of commercial success in a chosen field ever again.

"I will forever be indebted to the guys in the band and the people who supported and fell in love with the songs we created and gave me a stage to perform upon."

Redmore said: "I have now chosen to pave my own street, pack my own bags, strip myself naked and, importantly, sing my own song."

Midnight Youth hit it big with their 2009 album The Brave Don't Run, which included radio hits The Letter, All on Our Own and Cavalry.

The band won the Tui awards for Best Rock Album, Best Group and Best Engineer in 2009, but their 2011 follow-up World Comes Calling wasn't as well-received.

- With APN