Pop
Joe McElderry admits he has a 'love-hate relationship' with dating apps
Joe McElderry has opened up about his struggles with dating apps, revealing he still believes genuine connections are best made face-to-face while drawing on his own experiences of love and heartbreak for his new single, Love Me Out Loud.
Joe McElderry has admitted he has a “love-hate relationship” with dating apps and says he still believes real-life connections are the best way to find romance.
The 35-year-old singer, who shot to fame after winning The X Factor in 2009, revealed he remains single despite keeping an open mind about finding love.
Speaking to ContactMusic.com, Joe explained that while dating apps work for some people, they are not his preferred way of getting to know someone.
Joe told ContactMusic.com: "I have a bit of a love-hate relationship with dating apps. No judgment - people meet the love of their lives on them.
"But I find them a bit monotonous. I prefer being able to talk to somebody and get to know somebody properly rather than through a phone screen."
The Climb singer, who was mentored by Cheryl during his winning run on The X Factor, believes modern technology and social media have made it harder to build meaningful relationships.
Joe said: "Everything is social media-based now, so it’s finding the middle ground.
"We very much live in a world where things are so instantaneous. It’s hard to find real connections through that. But I think that’s just the way the world is with social media, our attention spans, and the way we view things. Everything is just an overload online.
"So it’s just navigating through that, but I suppose that’s a thing that everyone experiences."
Despite his frustrations with online dating, Joe remains optimistic that romance will eventually find its way into his life.
He said: "I am still eternally single. But I feel like this is the year of new opportunities. I’m very busy with work and touring, and my motto now is I don’t try to force anything.
"If it’s meant to be and Prince Charming is out there, I’m sure he’ll find me somehow. It might take him 20 years, it might take him three months."
Away from his love life, Joe has channelled his own experiences into his latest single, Love Me Out Loud, a dance-pop anthem inspired by the highs and lows of relationships.
The former Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat star admitted he has become more comfortable drawing on personal experiences in his songwriting as he has grown older.
He explained: "I used to struggle with that when I was younger. I used to be very conscious of making songs more universal. But as I’ve gotten older, I enjoy using life experiences to put pen to paper. I find people relate to that so much more.
"When I’ve played people the song behind the scenes, they’ve said, 'These lyrics are literally what I’m going through right now.' When you lean into vulnerability and share that with people, it reaches people in a more authentic way, which is great."
Joe hopes the track will help listeners embrace heartbreak rather than hide from it.
He said: "It’s about loving and loss and the emotions we all go through. Sometimes people feel vulnerable after a breakup and feel lost and don’t know where to turn. It’s leaning into that message that love and heartbreak and relationships can be messy, but it’s all part of the journey of life.
"With this song, we want people to dance away the heartbreak. If you can give yourself a dance and an anthem to get yourself through it, that’s what we’re trying to give people."
Love Me Out Loud is available now on streaming platforms.
