X Factor finalists G4 have reflected on the loss of their bandmate, Ben Thapa, as they continue to tour without him following his death . Thapa, one of the original members of the vocal troupe who left in 2018 to pursue his own music career, died earlier this month, aged 42. The devastating news broke while the group – which consists of fellow original members Jonathan Ansell and Michael Christie as well as Duncan Sandilands and Jai McDowall – were on tour to mark 20 years of G4.
Making the announcement on September 9, the band’s joint statement referred to Thapa as their ‘brother’, thanking fans for their support through the ‘difficult time’. As tributes poured in across social media, artist management company Steven Swales said it ‘was a huge privilege to know and work’ with Thapa. Now, the surviving members have said it has been ‘cathartic’ to perform the songs they used to sing with their late bandmate on stage.
The classical operatic group rose to fame on the first series of the hit ITV singing competition in 2004, where they finished second to Steve Brookstein. Ansell told the PA news agency Thapa’s death came as a ‘shock’, but that reliving the memories they had with him while on the road has helped. ‘It’s very cathartic to perform the songs that we sung with him for so many years together and we created as a group of mates at college,’ he said.
‘Genuinely, it’s amazing to relive those songs and think about those moments, those mem.