Busted

Busted are an English pop punk band formed in London in 2000, consisting of Charlie Simpson, James Bourne and Matt Willis. Emerging at a time when British pop was dominated by boy bands, Busted brought a guitar-driven, high-energy sound influenced by American acts like Blink-182 and Green Day, mixed with catchy, hook-heavy pop songwriting and a strong streak of humor in their lyrics and videos.

The band released two studio albums, Busted (2002) and A Present for Everyone (2003), scoring a run of UK number-one singles including «Year 3000», «What I Go to School For» and «Thunderbirds Are Go». Their blend of pop-punk energy and teen-pop appeal made them one of the defining British acts of the early 2000s, and «Year 3000» later gained wider recognition after being covered by the Jonas Brothers.

Busted split in 2005 after Simpson chose to focus on his post-hardcore band Fightstar, while Willis and Bourne pursued solo and side projects. James Bourne and Matt Willis later joined forces with McFly to form the supergroup McBusted, before the original trio eventually reunited as Busted, continuing to tour and record together in the years that followed.